Consumers who think they might be owed money by a travel agency which has been closed down following an Insolvency Service investigation are being encouraged to come forward.
The Insolvency Service said Zulu Travel Services Ltd was wound up by the courts in June after investigators found it was being run by a disqualified director and had failed to keep company accounts or pay bills for services it had used.
The agency also failed to cooperate with an investigation into its affairs, leaving the investigators unable to find out the extent of the company’s business, including whether it had ever actually sold any holidays or flights to customers.
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The official receiver was appointed as liquidator by the court and has taken over the company’s affairs to identify any assets it may have and make any possible returns to the agency’s creditors.
David Usher, chief investigator at the Insolvency Service, said: “Zulu Travel Services was engaged in trading practices which totally disregarded business rules and regulations.
“It left other businesses out of pocket after using their services and misled members of the public, who could have bought holidays that they believed were Atol-protected.
“We are pleased this company has now been removed to protect the public and advise those who might be owed any money by the company to contact the official receiver.”
Zulu Travel Services was registered variously to addresses in Birkenhead, Chester, Manchester and London from its incorporation in October 2022. Dr Darren Anderson was listed as its sole director.
The company claimed to sell flights, hotels and holidays through its website, which displayed Abta and Atol protection logos.
However, the company had not been eligible for Abta membership, and, in March 2023, the organisation had requested that the business cease using its logo.
Zulu Travel Services continued to use the Atol-protected logo on its website and emails, despite there being no evidence that it had an Atol licence.
The travel agency also booked holiday accommodation on several occasions in which Anderson had stayed as a guest, and then failed to pay the bills.
An Insolvency Service investigation found that Anderson was already banned from running a company for 15 years – the maximum length of disqualification – under his previous name of Timothy Ahlbeck. His ban had started in April 2021.
Driving licence records suggested that Anderson had earlier been known by two other names: Timothy Richard Skelding and Miles Prestland-Windsor.
However Anderson failed to provide relevant documents to investigators, and they could not establish his true identity or discover if Anderson was the sole appointed director, or whether anyone else took part in the management of the business.
Investigators found that the company had held a bank account between November and December 2022, but the account had no transactions.
It had filed accounts with Companies House for October 2022-October 2023 showing current assets of £1,307,400 and shareholder funds of £3,408,400, but investigators found no evidence to verify that these accounts were accurate.
They discovered that Anderson had made three attempts to get an Atol licence for the company, and had declared that he was not a disqualified director as part of the application.
He had also claimed on the application that his assets included the house in Wolverhampton in which he was living at the time, although in fact he had been renting the property.
Despite offering to cooperate with investigators, Anderson claimed he was then resident in the Netherlands, while he was actually living in Hathersage in the Peak District, where he was tracked down by an investigator.
Investigators were unable to trace details of customers, discover if the company employed staff, or even had any trading premises, due to its failure to cooperate.
The full scale, financial details and nature of Zulu Travel Services Ltd’s business, and the amount of loss incurred by its customers and suppliers remains unknown.
The winding-up order was made by District Judge Matharu in the High Court, Business and Property Courts in Manchester on June 5, after the company declined to file any evidence in opposition of the order.
Enquiries concerning the company should be made to the Official Receiver of the Public Interest Unit: 16th Floor, 1 Westfield Avenue, Stratford, London, E20 1HZ. Email: piu.or@insolvency.gov.uk
Image: Shutterstock.