Director banned for TV repair scam

31 Jan 2007 10:45 AM

A director of a television and satellite installations and repairs business has been banned for seven years by the High Court from acting as a director following an investigation by the Companies Investigation Branch (CIB) of the Insolvency Service.

Garry Mark Hall, was the director of several Essex based businesses offering television and satellite installations and repairs as authorised repair agents for various manufacturers and retailers. The businesses all operated under one trading style - Visual FX and included Mr Hall's sole trader business, Visual FX Service Centre Limited ("Service Centre") and Visual FX Limited.

Mr Hall deliberately misled employees of his sole trader business into believing they were employed by the limited company, Visual FX Limited. In fact Visual FX Limited had never traded and never had any employees since it was established in 2001. Mr Hall used the company to avoid liabilities following an adverse Employment Tribunal decision and claims made by other sole trader employees.

Not only were employees misled as to their correct employment status, Mr Hall also misled Stratford Employment Tribunal and Romford County Court as to the true identity of the respondent in enforcement and legal proceedings. Mr Hall further attempted to carry on this pretence during the course of the investigation, which led to the winding up of Visual FX Limited in the public interest in February 2006. Mr Hall's misleading and deliberate use of the trading style Visual FX to evade liabilities of his sole trader business is an abuse of the limited liability concept. As a result of this deception, decisions reached by statutory authorities have not been enforced.

The ban prevents Mr Hall from being a director of a company, or being involved in the formation, promotion or management of a company for the duration of his disqualification.

Notes to Editors

1. Gary Mark Hall, of 10 The Lintons, Sandon, Chelmsford, CM2 7UA, gave an undertaking not to be a director of a company in terms of the Company Directors Disqualification Act 1986. The undertaking came into force on 22 January 2007.

2. Visual FX Limited was wound up on 1 February 2006 following a DTI petition presented under section 124A of the Insolvency Act 1986

3. The Insolvency Service administers the insolvency regime investigating all compulsory liquidations and individual insolvencies (bankruptcies) through the Official Receiver to establish why they became insolvent.

4. The Insolvency Service carries out confidential enquiries on behalf of the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry through Companies Investigation Branch. The Service also authorises and regulates the insolvency profession; deals with disqualification of directors in corporate failures; assesses and pays statutory entitlement to redundancy payments when an employer cannot or will not pay employees; provides banking and investment services for bankruptcy and liquidation estate funds; and advises ministers and other government departments on insolvency law and practice.

5. All public enquiries concerning the affairs of the company should be made to: The Official Receiver, Public Interest Unit, 21 Bloomsbury Street London, WC1B 3SS. Public Enquiries: 020 7637 1110.

Further information about the work of The Insolvency Service is available from www.insolvency.gov.uk