Driveway paved without permission needs to be ripped up, says Puslinch, Ont. homeowner

Less than a month after a Puslinch, Ont. woman came home to find strangers repaving her driveway without her prior consent, she told CTV News the work will have to be redone.

"We had a couple of days of rain," Tammie Corrigan explained on Sunday. "Our driveway is graded towards [our neighbour's] house and graded toward the back of our garage where it will flood. We can't put a waste container on it. It sinks inside of the asphalt that's poorly laid. The weeds are coming up and are ripping up the asphalt as we speak."

Corrigan said a man named "Peter" from "Unique Paving & Masonry" came to her door on June 10. He offered to repave her driveway at a discounted rate, but she declined his offer.

Corrigan called him a "pushy kind of guy, very nice, very manipulative."

A photo of man, who went by the name "Peter," who police want to talk to about an unwanted paving incident. (Courtesy: OPP)

The next morning she arrived home to find a crew working on her driveway.

"We pulled up the road and saw a number of workers wheelbarrowing asphalt onto our driveway," she said.

Since the work was already half-done, she said "Peter" told her he would take $500 off the $7,500 bill.

Corrigan told CTV News in June she didn't intend to pay for work she never wanted.

She also said the company promised to repair her driveway at no cost but Corrigan has been unable to contact anyone.

Tammie Corrigan's driveway in Puslinch, Ont. on July 3, 2022. (Tyler Kelaher/CTV Kitchener)

CTV News reached out to Unique Paving & Masonry after speaking with Corrigan in June. An unnamed employee said it was a "misunderstanding" and they had a verbal agreement, adding "we don't just turn up and do this randomly." The company did not respond to further requests for an interview or statement on the matter.

Ontario Provincial Police are also trying to speak with "Peter."

On Friday they posted his photo on Twitter in the hopes that someone could help identify him.

#WellingtonOPP looking to identify this person in relation to an investigation @TwpPuslinchON ^JC @wellingtncounty pic.twitter.com/1J3tb8euXJ

— OPP West Region (@OPP_WR) July 1, 2022

"We do believe that this may be a targeted fraud and we are investigating it as a criminal matter at this time," said Const. Jacob Unger.

OPP have also been unable to reach anyone at Unique Paving & Masonry.

They said, if convicted, it would be a very unique form of fraud due to the amount of work that goes into it, how it can impact a home, and the price tag.

"This isn't a $500 or even $1,000 fraud," said Const. Unger. "They were asking for $7,500."

"I'm feeling more angry than I was originally," said Corrigan. "I've been hearing from a number of people that this has been happening to them too."

Now she'll have to pay out of pocket to repair her driveway.

"[At] the end of it all, this is costing us money," Corrigan said. "I can guarantee we won't be able to find this crew in order to lay criminal charges."

Anyone who can identify "Peter," or had a similar experience, is asked to contact Wellington County OPP.