Knock, knock: bailiffs at the door is no joke

In yet another twist in the tortured tale of Michael Stainer’s activities, bailiffs turned up at the Grand on Thursday 4th June. They were looking for the “owners” or “directors” of Kentish Sites Ltd for either payment of £8,563.31 for the supply of electricity or else they would apply for a warrant of entry “to disconnect the supply, if need be by force.”

Given the complexity of the electrical arrangements at the Grand, with holiday lets, commercial areas, shared services and of course private flats, the risk of the two lifts being deprived of power was a great concern. This obviously called for a immediate investigation to protect the interests of residents. What emerged was, in typical Grand fashion, a tale in the true Stainer tradition of ducking, diving and dodging, and not the first energy-related example.

Kentish Sites was established in 1994 and its two directors were Michael and Doris Stainer. Its last accounts were filed on December 31st 2018. The company was wound up on January 21st 2019. Unusually in the sorry saga of Stainer’s companies, the petitioning creditor for once wasn’t HMRC but EON Energy.

A quick phone call to EON’s solicitors, Knights PLC confirmed the details. They had secured judgement for £22,763 against Kentish Sites in August 2018, and on not receiving payment, decided to petition for the winding up order.

So far, not very interesting. But here the plot thickens. Previously, on April 1st 2018, the supply on this account was switched from EON to Yu Energy. Usually switching suppliers requires a zero balance when transferring, but not, apparently in this case, and it was Yu’s bailiffs who turned up on June 4th. Yu have confirmed that the supply is still in the name of Kentish Sites Ltd, and that they were totally unaware that they were supplying electricity on credit to a liquidated company. For the record, electricity is paid for in arrears on what is called a credit meter, and this is a credit agreement.

So, from January 2019, Yu had unknowingly been supplying electricity on credit to a liquidated company. So who is responsible for this? The Stainer’s resigned as directors on November 21st 2018 following their bankruptcies on November 8th 2018. No new directors were appointed, unlike the other companies where “Robert Graham Moss’ became a director.

It is now clear that Yu have also been supplying some of the private flats owned by Doris Stainer and used as holiday lets. These accounts are also in the name of Kentish Sites Ltd. Payment is made however, by Seaside Hosts Ltd, set up in September 2018, just before bankruptcy overtook the Stainers.

So, what do Yu do now? Pursue Doris Stainer for the flats she owns? Pursue Seaside Hosts? They have no contract with this company. Or simply disconnect all the meters or replace them with prepaid meters.

Everyone in Folkestone knows that Michael Stainer has continued to run the show, representing the freeholder, Hallam Estates in the High Court in London, and managing litigation in the First Tier Property Tribunal. But can Yu act against him?

At this moment, while YU are considering their position, the appropriate insolvency enforcement agencies have been advised. Steps have been taken to ensure supply to the residents’ areas, including the lifts are secure, so at least this fear is removed.

What is 100% clear is that Kentish Sites has consumed electricity to the sum of £31,326, a significant proportion of which was supplied to a liquidated company, and that individuals within the current management regime within the commercial areas were complicit in this. Do we need to name names? We think that our loyal followers of the Stainer saga already know the answers.

The Shepwayvox Team

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