Still no word from Sarnia as Liquidators are appointed

Wednesday 29 August 2018

A week after the estate agency appeared to collapse, there has still been no response from Sarnia Estate Agency despite Liquidators being appointed to the firm which allegedly owes thousands of pounds to customers.

The Guernsey Registry listed the firm for strike off last week, after the owners failed to pay the company's registration fee of £250 despite repeated reminders.

Now, Directors of Grant Thornton Limited, Jamie Toynton and Ben Rhodes, have been appointed as  liquidators to Sarnia Estate Agency Limited.

In a statement they've said they have very little information at present.

"Our investigations are ongoing and we will be contacting creditors in due course. The Company is insolvent and it is not yet known if the Company will have sufficient realisable assets to make any distribution to creditors. 

"Creditors wishing to make a claim should in the first instance contact Grant Thornton on corporate.recovery@gt-ci.com."

Pictured: One of the strike off listings against one business linked to Quinten Hubbard

A number of other businesses linked with the man believed to own Sarnia were also listed to be struck off including Ricochet Ltd, Charroterie Developments, Quay Trading (Guernsey) Ltd, Q Guernsey Ltd and GSY Media Ltd. 

This does not mean these companies have been struck off yet, or are in liquidation, but they could be if the firm's validation fees are not paid by 22 October, or if the registered owners ask for their registrations to be disolved prior to that. 

They are all believed to be owned by Quinten Hubbard. Mr Hubbard, any other representative of Sarnia Estate Agency or the firm's former Director Alex Ford, who is believed to have resigned before the estate agency collapsed, have yet to respond to questions asked by Express.

Pictured: The Sarnia story initially broke mid August when one customer went public asking where her money was

The situation initially came to light when one woman, Lottie Barnes, went public with her fears over nearly £2,000 she had paid Sarnia Estate Agency as a deposit and first month's rent for a flat she wanted to lease.

Last week she said she had been unable to contact Sarnia - which recently moved out of its High Street offices - over the last few weeks, including on Tuesday 21 August, when she was meant to be getting the keys to her new home.

Instead she told Express she could have been left homeless as she was meant to be moving out of her current home, and would have found herself with no where to go.

Luckily her understanding landlord let her continue renting her existing flat although she had to find the money for rent, having spent all of her cash on payments to Sarnia.

During the following few days a number of people made further claims they had lost money they had paid to Sarnia, with  some also asking questions about house deposits they had paid for properties they wanted to buy.

At the end of last week, Guernsey's Economic Crime Division said a criminal investigation wasn't underway but said any Sarnia customers can ask for their advice if needed.

Pictured: The Sarnia story continued to develop with more people asking where their money was before Guernsey's Economic Crime Division felt compelled to make a public statement

A spokesman said they wanted to "provide public reassurance to reports circulating in the media and upon social media with regard to Sarnia" and the "developing situation."

The ECD said it is aware of all of the news reports "but no criminal investigation has been put in place at this stage." However, the ECD said staff are recording details of individuals who have been in contact "for a variety of reasons" this week and they plan to get back in touch with those people in the next week.

The spokesperson said "ECD are not discouraging individuals from making contact with us and we would be pleased to speak to any member of the public who would seek our advice.

"Indications are such that the company has been listed for strike off by the Guernsey Registry. However at this time the ECD are unaware of any public statements having been made by Sarnia Estate Agency."

The Guernsey Financial Services Commission has also said it wants to "determine the facts."

In a statement a spokesperson said as an estate agent Sarnia is registered with the GFSC so is covered by its anti money laundering and combating the financing of terrorism framework, but it isn't  licensed by the Commission so it doesn't have the same strict rules to follow as in other industries.

The spokesperson said, “Sarnia Estate Agents is registered with the Commission as a Prescribed Business solely as part of the Bailiwick’s anti-money laundering and combatting the financing of terrorism framework. In common with all Prescribed Businesses, which includes Accountants, Estate Agents and the Legal Profession, it is not licensed by the Commission nor is it subjected to prudential or conduct supervision. At this early stage, the Commission is seeking to determine the facts and as such, it would not be appropriate to offer any further comments.”