Earth Mobile Ceased Trading can anyone help

MoneySavingMacca

I sent my old mobile phone off to be recycled to a company called Earthmobile. Found them using topcashback who had quoted the best price to me (£95.50)

I sent my phone off on the 3rd August Special Delivery and it has been recieved by them. However I looked on the website today to find that they have ceased trading on 9th August. :mad:

http://www.earthmobile.co.uk/

I've tried ringing their offices but typically there is only a message stating the same as on the website.

What can I do? I don't think there is much but any help would be very welcome!

Silk

Hi Macca,
Theres already a thread regarding it here
https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/2649157

MoneySavingMacca

I found out about all this an hour ago. Hope there's a happy conclusion to this but I can't see it! So annoyed!

seaniboy

Guys_Dad wrote: »

Back when the Utilities were being sold off in the 80's, a number of British Gas shares were sold immediately by small investors or a quick profit. One of the companies buying the shares - and one that had been trading for some time - was liquidated by the stock exchange or another authority immediately after the Gas flotation.

Thousands of investors had sent their certificates in and were awaiting payment at that time. None of them got their money as they had agreed to sell the shares and, once received, became the assets of the business, even though not paid for. The sellers became unsecured creditors and, I believe, received 10p in the £ or so.

And tracing the original owners of the shares was easy as they all had numbers on them that were recorded by the registrar. Now if they didn't get their share certificates back, just why do you thing this case is any different?

Shares are dictated by markets, and can have a value of nothing based on such events.

In/corporeal (movable/personal property) is that of the person who can prove ownership and has value of more than the price of shares, no payment means you are STILL the legal owner of mobile phones, all your emails from EM are proof of such, regardless if evaluation or payment was agreed but processing of such payment failed towards yourself.

The property "mobile phone" should be returned at your request (recorded delivery*), or full payment as agreed (where such agreement exists - again via recorded delivery*), refusal of either is theft by withholding YOUR property whilst being evaluated or the right to AGREED payment (which would transfer ownership to the company) and non payment of such agreed payments means legal OWNERSHIP remains with you.

As a side note even allowing a friend/relative etc to borrow something then they deny you return is THEFT, the action of denial of access to the rightful and lawful owner is as shoplifting, THEFT, a CRIMINAL matter.

DONT let the uneducated or incompetent police officer who dont want the paperwork tell you otherwise (escilate every senior office you have to to the chief constable if they refuse).

A police report must be done to the Crown for each reported case of THEFT who then decides are CRIMINAL charges in the general public interest of theft & will CRIMINAL charges be laid before a judge/jury in such circumstances.

The more police of "theft" against this company the more investigation in this companies affairs will happen by the purser - the Crown towards any criminal activity or activities.

Then and only then you will all be in a better place of EVER knowing if the director/s are cowboys as anyone bar a few criminal activites can set up a LTD COMPANY, then they can be barred from being director/s in future scam companies if the Crown proves criminal intent to defraud consumers (you the seller).

A police report copy & CRN must be obtained by you as proof for small claims court in a CIVIL court along with your evaluation/agreed payment terms emails along with proof of request of return or payment (where agreed) within say 14 days otherwise you will start CIVIL proceedings against the company reclaiming the cost of the STOLEN mobile phone, this cost maybe at market or retail price and include deduction for age as the judge sees fit, that will still work out more than any liquidator.

YOU legally OWN the "mobile" not the company, nor the liquidator - voluntary or otherwise.


Another side note: A dog or box of CD's where no proof of ultimate ownership exists and/or funded purchase/s from a joint a/c in the case of say a "seperation" is a matter straight for CIVIL court, no Criminal activity has taken place.


Possession does not make one a legal owner.


Lastly good luck everyone, moreso iphone OWNERS, £250 approx is a hard, indeed a very hard hit to take.


*ALL requests MUST go to the companies or individuals REGISTERED office (available from Companies House).

Guys_Dad

I said that the logistics would be the problem. MSE members may claim retention of title, but it is quite possible that the phones sent to EarthMobile may have already been sold, possibly through Ebay. Some people have been waiting for 2 - 3 months for payment and Earth Mobile have been selling on Ebay till just recently.

Or, if the guy is an absolute crook, he may have negotiated a "fire sale" of the whole stock to an overseas buyer who is arranging shipping or the whole stock as we write.

What it comes down to, as I wrote, are the logistics and practicalities as well as the relative minor value of individual items (in terms of business). At this point, you have no "other end" such as a liquidator or administrator to deal with - at least no real live person is there on a day-to-day basis, answering the phone or sending replies to letters.

You have no right of entry into Dennis' premises and unless there are people at the other end who are being paid to tie up phones to sellers, then where do you go?

Just suppose that there was someone at the other end appointed and assume that the company has no cash money left. So who is going to pay the person's wages to match phones to sellers and who is going to pay for the postage to send the phones back to you? No one, unless an administrator is appointed.

If an administrator is appointed, then they will demand a fee which can only be met from sale of the phones to a 3rd party. What will then happen is that the net proceeds minus admin costs and secured creditors costs will be divided up pro rata amongst all the creditors.

My guess is that, with administrators hourly rate and the sheer number of creditors that Earth Mobile will have, the time taken will be long and the rate in the £ will be low.

This is what happens when companies go bust. It is very messy, a lot of innocent people get their fingers burned and lose money. Despite the previous, somewhat wild post, this is a civil matter. The police won't want to know unless the owners have broken the law - and the change of registered director so late in the day may be a bit suspicious. Remember that it is/was a limited company, so even if Russell has paid himself a whacking great salary over the years and has accumulated a big car/house on the proceeds, as long as he stopped trading when it became apparent that the company was in trouble, he will have acted within the law and the police just will not want to know.

Silk

seaniboy wrote: »

Shares are dictated by markets, and can have a value of nothing based on such events.

Goodness me this is going to be a long post :rotfl:
What has the "value" got to do with it ???
The example used by GD was shares but it could have been cars or TV's etc all GD was doing was trying to get you to understand the problem.

seaniboy wrote: »

In/corporeal (movable/personal property) is that of the person who can prove ownership and has value of more than the price of shares,

There you go again with "value" and "shares" ??? whats the difference, the value of a mobile phone is determined by the market as to what it's worth as is share prices.

seaniboy wrote: »

no payment means you are STILL the legal owner of mobile phones, all your emails from EM are proof of such, regardless if evaluation or payment was agreed but processing of such payment failed towards yourself.

I've explained to you twice before that this is not the case ROT was transferred to Earth Mobiles when you agreed to sell it to them after you gave it to them. unless you explicitly stated that title would not transfer untill after payment

seaniboy wrote: »

The property "mobile phone" should be returned at your request (recorded delivery*), or full payment as agreed (where such agreement exists - again via recorded delivery*), refusal of either is theft by withholding YOUR property whilst being evaluated or the right to AGREED payment (which would transfer ownership to the company) and non payment of such agreed payments means legal OWNERSHIP remains with you.

No it doesn't see above regarding ROT !

seaniboy wrote: »

As a side note even allowing a friend/relative etc to borrow something then they deny you return is THEFT, the action of denial of access to the rightful and lawful owner is as shoplifting, THEFT, a CRIMINAL matter.

I agree but there is a difference between letting someone Borrow something and agreeing to Sell them something

seaniboy wrote: »

DONT let the uneducated or incompetent police officer who dont want the paperwork tell you otherwise (escilate every senior office you have to to the chief constable if they refuse).

:rotfl::rotfl::rotfl:

seaniboy wrote: »

A police report must be done to the Crown for each reported case of THEFT who then decides are CRIMINAL charges in the general public interest of theft & will CRIMINAL charges be laid before a judge/jury in such circumstances.

:rotfl::rotfl::rotfl:
!!!!!! it's a company that ceased trading not the great bullian robbery and untill we find out the guy is the modern "Fagin" the police arn't going to be interested.

seaniboy wrote: »

The more police of "theft" against this company the more investigation in this companies affairs will happen by the purser - the Crown towards any criminal activity or activities.

Yet again as explained it is not "Theft" in the eyes of the law.
What has happened is that your status in life has now changed and you have become a creditor of the company
As a creditor you now have certain rights and amongst them is the ability to find out and ensure that the company has been wound up to your best advantage.
If you find that there are any wrong doings such as criminal intent etc etc then you can take it further

seaniboy wrote: »

YOU legally OWN the "mobile" not the company, nor the liquidator - voluntary or otherwise.

As explained you don't legally own the mobile if you have agreed to the sale and If a liquidator is appointed then the mobile has to be disposed of in a way which benefits all creditors together and not individuals.
The only phones that don't fall into this cat. are ones which have been received on or after the date they post notce of ceasing to trade and any that you have not agreed to them to purchase.

samborakid

I wondered if anyone could help me as I don't know where I stand in terms of my rights and what I am owed. Earth Mobile are a company similar to Mazuma, etc where you trade in your old phone for cash. Which I did, and received confirmation from them mid June that they'd received my phone and payment would soon follow.

2 weeks later, I'd heard nothing so rang them, and they said they'd push it through manually as the computer had made an error.

Cut to today, I rang once more and now the phone number has a recorded message, as does the website, stating that as of 9th August, Earth Mobile ceased trading. But they have my phone, and I don't have my £30. Is there anything I can do?! Thanks.

samborakid

I called Consumer Direct, who were only able to pass on the information to Trading Standards, as Earth Mobile haven't displayed any type of contact information on their website. They gave me the number for an insolvancy company which, they said, would be able to give me the address for any administrators of Earth Mobile. Turns out, Earth Mobile are still 'active' meaning it could take months for them to declare themselves offically not trading. So I now have to try and find an address for the invisible company myself.

maxtweenie

Instead of starting another thread, just read THIS one.

CtrlAltDelete_2

As if by magic...here is his home address

Russell Tilbury
59 Longbourn,
Windsor,
Berkshire,
SL4 3TN

Tel: 01753 864 757

Other occupants: Russell Tilbury, Katie Iliffe, Panagis A Milionis, Monique L Veal

Kind of figures that he would transer the company to his girlfriend Katie.

Source:
http:// www. 192.com/people/search/

Edit:
Looking on Rightmove the property was bought on 25th Sept 2009 for a whopping £545,000!!!

BTW - Earthphones owes me £250!