A man who lost £19 million of investors’ money in a failed investment scheme has been disqualified from running any other business for 14 years, it has been revealed.
The case centres around Walsham Chalet Park, trading as the Dream Lodge Group, and director Simon Moir who ran an investment scheme where people could invest in part or an entire holiday chalet and would receive returns based on the holiday rental income.
Launched in 1998, the company was run successfully until January 2019 when the park began to struggle, before eventually entering into administration and placed into creditors voluntary liquidation in September 2019.
But it was only until after a financial investigation that insolvency experts discovered that the group owed creditors some £23 million, which included £19.4 million of investors’ money.
It was found that 161 investors had paid Walsham Chalet Park £14.2 million to invest in holiday chalets that were never built. £1.8 million, meanwhile, had been paid to the group to invest in chalets at Coleford Park, Whitecliff, Gloucestershire. It later emerged, however, that the company did not own the site.
It was also revealed that the director issued falsified accounts to the company’s bank in order to secure financial support.
For his actions and involvement in the scheme, Mr Moir was handed a 14-year disqualification order – one year less than the maximum term. The director could also be made bankrupt after creditors acted against Mr Moir in the Insolvency Court.
Commenting on the case, Sue Macleod, Chief Investigator for the Insolvency Service, said: “Simon Moir presided over a scheme where people thought they were investing in holiday chalets with the promise of generous financial returns. But it was nothing more than a ruse and Simon Moir’s actions have caused substantial losses to investors, many of whom have lost their life savings.
“Simon Moir has been banned for 14 years. This is a significant period of disqualification, just a year under the maximum term, and will ensure no more investors will be victim to his schemes.”
For insolvency and creditor support, please get in touch with our expert team today.
