Homeowner hospitalized after builders smash up concrete driveway when she refused to pay them

The homeowner whose driveway was smashed up by builders has spoken out about the effect it's had on her health.

After laying down a new driveway in Logan, Queensland, tradesman Jesse Crowe and his team then decided to pick up their tools and smash their work to pieces.

Why? Well, the home - and driveway - owner Viola 'refused' to pay.

And she's since spoken out about the ordeal and the effect it's had on not just the state of her property but her mental health.

A video of the builders taking their tools to the freshly laid driveway recently went viral on social media despite the incident taking place last year.

Crowe alleges he negotiated a price of $6000 AUD ($4,012 USD) with the homeowner prior to getting to work on the driveway.

However, the builder claims he'd only received $2,500 AUD ($1,670 USD) because Viola reportedly expressed that she wasn't happy with the job or the rubbish removal.

Viola told 7News that she was prepared to give the building team the rest of the money - $3,500 AUD ($2,340) - if they finished the job properly, but claims they responded by threatening her.

"[They said] 'You pay now, now or we will smash the concrete'," the homeowner said.

7News

And it seems they went for the latter option - with the man behind the camera stating in the video which shows the team smashing the driveway: "This is what happens when you don't pay for works carried out at your place."

Viola says she saw the team picking up their axes and destroying the freshly built driveway, claiming the builders also hammered on her door and tried to 'scare' her.

"I was alone in the house [and] they knew I was alone," she said.

The homeowner says she 'collapsed in the shopping centre two days' after the incident and had to be hospitalised as a result of the stress the whole debacle had caused her.

7News

Despite the incident having taken place last year, Viola and her family's driveway reportedly remains a smashed up wreck.

And people have been left divided over the incident, some defending Viola's refusal to pay up because she wasn't happy with the end result and others defending the builders.

Crowe stands by his decision, noting: "I don’t like destroying something I’ve just built. I take pride in my work and I love concreting, and I love doing it.

"It comes to a point where you’re in the trade for a long time and you’re doing the right thing by people, and they don’t want to pay at the end of the day, so what are you gonna do?

"Didn’t want to pay, this is what happens."

If you or someone you know is struggling or in crisis, help is available through Mental Health America. Call or text 988 or chat 988lifeline.org. You can also reach Crisis Text Line by texting MHA to 741741.

You can also call 1-800-985-5990 or text “TalkWithUs” to 66746 at the SAMHSA Disaster Distress Helpline.

Topics: Health, Mental Health, Australia, Social Media, Viral

Poppy Bilderbeck

Poppy Bilderbeck is a Senior Journalist at LADbible Group. She graduated from The University of Manchester in 2021 with a First in English Literature and Drama, where alongside her studies she was Editor-in-Chief of The Tab Manchester. Poppy is most comfortable when chatting about all things mental health, is proving a drama degree is far from useless by watching and reviewing as many TV shows and films as possible and is such a crisp fanatic the office has been forced to release them in batches.