The popular website HomeStars.com, which allows homeowners to compare renovators, will review its policies in the wake of revelations that one of its top-rated Toronto companies has gone bust.

HomeStars CEO Nancy Peterson said on Monday that GarCon Building Group’s sudden collapse “came as quite a shock.”

“It’s not something we’re sitting on, and are just going to ignore. We need to get in front of this right away,” she said. “If we need to be better, we will.”

As the Star reported, builder Adam Gardin blamed his “own pride and arrogance” for the bad business decisions that led to the financial unraveling of his company GarCon — and forced him to abandon a number of big projects.

However, North York resident Karim Hajee, who is among the homeowners left stranded, said he holds HomeStars, which named GarCon among the city’s top-rated companies in 2010 and 2011, partly responsible.

Hajee is particularly concerned about a policy he learned of after GarCon’s collapse, which allowed the company to write its own reviews, and submit those reviews to clients for approval.

Although Hajee contacted some of GarCon’s past clients before hiring the company, he said HomeStars “sways a lot of people,” and should be more transparent.

“If HomeStars is going to allow that, they need to make it clear to the end user. There has to be some disclaimer,” he said.

Peterson confirmed GarCon is among the companies that used what she described as a “survey tool,” which she said can be purchased for $150 per month.

According to Peterson, reviews generated this way are weighted “far less” heavily as those that come directly from clients, and only account for about 10 per cent of reviews on the site. She also stressed that clients must still approve a review and submit a rating before they are posted.

However, Peterson acknowledged the tool is not currently promoted on the site, and she said the company will “absolutely” look at how to make clear the source of each review.

GarCon, which has roughly 140 reviews on the site, used the tool for 16 reviews, of which eight were approved and posted, she said.

On Monday, HomeStars removed the ratings awards from GarCon’s page, and added a red flag warning users of “suspicious reviews.”

Since GarCon went bust, Hajee claims some of the negative reviews he has submitted to HomeStars have been deleted, fueling his suspicions that the site’s ratings may be skewed.

Peterson said she was not aware of any posts that had been withheld or deleted, and encouraged any users with concerns to contact her directly.

“We’re all about getting out the truth,” she said. “So it would have to be a serious reason why we wouldn’t publish a legitimately negative review.”

On its website, HomeStars says that all reviews are read before they are published and are randomly sampled “to make sure they come from legitimate sources.”

Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading...

Despite these safeguards, Peterson said homeowners should rely on HomeStars as a “starting point,” especially for major projects.

“You’ve got to do your homework when you’re doing a renovation. But there are hundreds if not thousands of companies out there that are doing great work. We’re providing a platform for them to be recognized.”