Fair Trading Act breaches ‘likely’ at Intagr8
Commerce Commission issues formal warnings to failed telco's managers.
Defunct telco Intagr8 probably did breach the Fair Trading Act, says the Commerce Commission, but no penalty will be imposed.
Auckland-based Intagr8 sold packages of phone services and hardware to small business customers but collapsed in December owing an estimated $4 million.
The commission said it began investigating the company after receiving 29 complaints between April 2014 and October 2015.
It said the complaints alleged Intagr8 misrepresented the price of the equipment and services supplied and buyers were not told they were signing up to a rental agreement with a finance company.
The equipment, including telephone systems, CCTV monitoring and security systems, printers and photocopiers, was financed through third party finance companies that entered into a 60-month rental agreement with customers.
The commission said it “has concluded there is sufficient evidence to establish that Intagr8 likely breached the Fair Trading Act. However, it will not file court proceedings as any penalty imposed by the court would either remain unpaid or be at the expense of creditors.”
It issued formal warnings to Intagr8’s sole director and shareholder Murray Taylor and national sales manager Stephen Morrisey, who resigned from Intagr8 in March 2015.
Mr Taylor went to Australia when the company collapsed and has not returned.
The commission’s investigation report also recommended that compliance advice letters be issued to finance companies Advaro, TRL Leasing, Equipment Finance and UDC.
Creditors listed by liquidators Damien Grant and Steven Khov include Vodafone, Voyager Internet, UDC Finance, Westpac, ANZ and the IRD.
The vestiges of Intagr8 were sold to RS Comms, which was itself acquired by Dwayne Smith’s NZ Technology Group this year.
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Staff reporter
Wed, 04 May 2016
Wed, 04 May 2016
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Fair Trading Act breaches ‘likely’ at Intagr8
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