PETERS OPAL BA Peters

[ladyh]

Hi

We were due to take delivery of our new Bavaria 31 today have paid £ 56,000.00 with only £6,000.00 to be paid today. I have employed a solicitor who is on the case although i do not hold out much hope you can email me if you wish to chat. I may be in our interest to pool resources against the Administrator. Or is there anyone out there who can help we are desperately worried that we have lost all our money.

 

[douglas_family]

I hope that you manage recover your funds in full as quickly as possible. There has been considerable discussion about peters opal here which may be of interest to you.

http://www.ybw.com/forums/showflat.php?C...5&fpart=all

 

[ThereAndBack]

Good luck in getting your money back (or, at least, most of it).

As Peters were only agents I would guess there is a good chance that a substantial part of your money will have gone to Bavaria so it may not all be doom and gloom for you.

I am sure many more forumites than me will wish you good luck. Keep us posted.

Alan

 

[photodog]

If Bavaria dont step in and guarantee delivery of all of the yachts that are nearing delivery, Then who will ever buy another one in the UK??

You assume that their is a safe escrow account for the funds, but if there wasnt, then how can we ever trust them again?

Very sad situation.

Bavaria need to step in now with a positive message to keep confidence in their product up.

I hope you get your boat, and soon. Good Luck.

 

[rhumlady]

Aren't Bavaria now owned by the money men? If so I would think that they will put there finances before the customers. It is a very sad time for quite a few people and I hope they all come through ok.

 

[savageseadog]

Is there an actual boat somewhere in the UK that would have been identifiably yours? Might be worth getting an injuction preventing the sale, transfer of posession or movement of the boat until your claim is clear.

 

[nicho]

Oh my God this is awful. I am really sorry for you, and hope you can recover all your money, or at least have Bavaria deliver the boat that has obviously been 90% paid for.

The finanial [--word removed--] at Peters, that allowed people to continue to pay stage payments knowing their dire situation need stringing up. Probably not much help, but the rumour around Chi Marina is that their bank has had people in there for several weeks. THEY, at least, must have know the situation, yet still allowed this situation to develop, Could the bank be sued??

I think this whole sorry business will have a major effect in the way boats are bought in the future. I would now NEVER hand over momey to some third party broker/dealer in the future.

Whatever, I wish you the very best of luck.

 

[rwoofer]

Really sorry to hear this - awful news that no-one wants to hear when so much money has been handed over. I did post on the other Opal thread, as I've currently paid 75% of my boat with another dealer and did a bit of research. It seems that where stage payments are made it is usually because the manufacturer needs them to cover the build costs as they progress. There may be a small window when money has been handed to dealer, but not passed to manufacturer, that could catch you out. Also, the title of a boat generally passes directly from manufacturer to owner which helps.

I hope this is the situation with Opal, so that you do have a chance of getting your boat without loosing too much money. The worst case is that Opal were asking for stage payments because they needed the money, which puts you in v. difficult position. The best hope here is that Bavaria steps up and helps those genuinely caught out.

Sorry I can't be more helpful. Good solictor is definitely the way to go.

 

[Moonshining]

One of the news items on this site indicated that the value of Peters assets at Chichester should guarantee creditors most, if not all of their money back. If that wasn't just wishful thinking, then things shouldn't be too bleak.

 

[Twister_Ken]

One imagines that the value of those assets will have been used as security to obtain bank finance, and that the banks concerned will be preferential creditors (behind any debts owing to HMCE) when it comes to any eventual settlement.

Any administration procedure totally sucks for unsecured creditors. One can only hope that the administrators manage to sell the business as a going concern, with its liabilities, or that the boat manufacturers step up to the plate and take the hit for individual customers.

 

[Twister_Ken]

Spotted in the Chichester Observer

"A KPMG partner, Jane Moriarty, said: "We understand there are a number of customers who have paid deposits on boats, or had them sold by BA Peters plc on their behalf, and not yet received payment.

"We are currently looking into individual cases and would ask any customers in this situation to contact William Lewis on 07771 555540."

 

[davidwf]

Re: Spotted in the Chichester Observer

Have you a hull number? I got one when my boat went into production at Dufour. If you have you should be able to lay claim to that individual boat.

 

[alldownwind]

[ QUOTE ]
One of the news items on this site indicated that the value of Peters assets at Chichester should guarantee creditors most, if not all of their money back. If that wasn't just wishful thinking, then things shouldn't be too bleak.

[/ QUOTE ]
I'm no accountant but I would have thought that if the value of asssets covered the liabilities, then the company wouldn't have failed...........

 

[[2574]]

Theoretically a business should be placed in to administrators hands by the directors immediately upon the directors becoming aware (or should have been aware) that the Company was insolvent. The word "insolvent" means that the Company is unable to meet its financial commitments so quite possibly assets could be greater than liabilities but still forced in to administration by cashflow difficulties.

Someone above makes reference to HMRC (Inland Revenue) being a creditor in preference to the banks - that is unlikely - the banks will have a first legal charge over the assets and will rank ahead of HMRC. HMRC are preferential creditors in a winding up but only preferential to the unsecured creditors.

rob

 

[savageseadog]

[ QUOTE ]
I'm no accountant but I would have thought that if the value of asssets covered the liabilities, then the company wouldn't have failed...........

[/ QUOTE ] I used to buy assets from liquidated companies. In my experience most companies fail due to cash flow rather than being technically insolvent, but many book assets are only worth what they are on an ongoing trading basis, once the bubble is popped that's that, suddenly the company is insolvent.
As for dealing with the situation the first thing the administators will do is make sure they can get paid and oh boy do they get paid. They are not a charity and completely ruthless, they will very swiftly liquidate anything that is needed to create cash.
Lets say for example the administrators want to make a quick £20K they could go to Bavaria and offer them title to the boat in return for that money, that could be accomplished in a day. The best move is an interim injunction on the boat wherever it is (not just if it's in the UK as I said above), do not delay, don't use a high street solicitor.
PS don't take the administator's word for anything, I've been lied to (and been witness to lies) by administrators and liquidators. Don't forget that the administration could turn into a receivership overnight.

 

[graham]

Would the first priority be to pay the staff up to date ?

 

[Twister_Ken]

You're right about HMCE, I'm wrong, and out of date...

"For insolvency cases commenced prior to the 15 September 2003 the preferential creditors included certain debts due to the Inland Revenue, Customs & Excise and in respect of Social Security contributions, known as 'Crown debts'. The Enterprise Act 2002 abolished the preferential status of 'Crown debts', leaving remuneration and holiday pay of employees and contributions to occupational pension schemes as the main preferential liabilities in insolvency cases."

 

[courtesan]

Good morning Ladyh
Imagine you are having as pleasant a weekend as me and my family? We are in a very similar situation over a Bavaraia 31. I would be very interested in sharing my thoughts with you and coming together from a legal perspective, as I would with any other PO customers in a similar predicament. Would you mind calling me on 07768844516 at any convenient time.

 

[moondancer]

Re: PETERS OPAL BA Peters - BMF leadership

If customers do lose money then I assume that the BMF will have to review its position on its leadership?

 

[peterb26]

Re: PETERS OPAL BA Peters - BMF leadership

I feel for you guys that are in this predicament. Everytime I have purchased a boat I have always worried on the final day when payment went through. I was always more lucky than you.

It seems to me to be the next best thing to fraud for a company to take final payment money one day and then to collapse financially 24 hours later.

You have my sympathy.

Incidentally, its not very safe to post mobile numbers on here in open forum, I would always PM them to each other. Whilst the vast majority of forumites are lovely folk, there are some idiots who will abuse this trust as I know myself.