BUST: Hunni Homes is owned by JVIP and (inset) Director Peter Dabner
A property company in Tunbridge Wells has gone bust owing scores of investors millions.
Joint Venture Investment in Property (JVIP) Group, which is based in Southborough, is thought to have run up debts of up to £60million, despite only holding assets worth around £43million.
The company bought and sold properties in the area as investment opportunities for their clients.
But investors now face losing six-figure sums following the collapse of JVIP, which runs a number of subsidiary businesses, including estate agent Hunni Homes in High Brooms.
Attempts by JVIP Director Peter Dabner, who set up the company with his father in 2015, to close the business have been blocked by Companies House.
Mr Dabner is also a director of more than 20 other UK companies listed on the register of businesses in the country, although many are listed as ‘inactive’ or ‘in administration’.
He has been regularly interviewed in the property investment press and, along with his father Dick Dabner, is a well-known figure in the industry.
Accounts for JVIP are more than four months overdue, with the last filing in November 2019.
It is understood creditors objected to a February 1 request by JVIP to get the business ‘struck off’ the register of limited companies in the UK, due to fears they would lose their investment.
It is understood more than 100 investors are owed money, a number of which are thought to have ploughed pension funds into the property schemes set up by JVIP.
The collapse of the firm came to light last week after investors took to a property investment forum, Property Tribes, to voice their concerns.
It is understood a meeting was held with creditors of JVIP, in which an insolvency practitioner confirmed that the property firm had just £43million in assets, despite owing more than £60million, around half of which was in unsecured loans.
The news could see hundreds of creditors could lose their investment as the company has a minus £17million net position.
According to Property Tribes, a number of investors have reported the JVIP group and associated companies to Action Fraud – the UK’s reporting centre for allegations of corporate financial wrongdoing.
One angry investor told the forum: “I am now faced with most of my pension wiped out, at age 63 [and] this is very unwelcome news, which is likely to increase my own depression and associated mental health issues.
“And I’m far from the only one. There are hundreds of similarly aged, similarly pensioned individuals, who are now facing a severely depleted retirement… if they can now afford to retire at all.”
Another said he is facing ‘six-figure losses’.
The JVIP Group website has been showing as being ‘under maintenance’ since last week.
Despite attempts by the Times to contact to Mr Dabner, he has been unavailable to comment.
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