MINI FAN: ‘I’VE LOST £3000’
Customer is one of more than 40 owners of classic Minis claiming that a specialist car restorer has stripped their cars and failed to complete work
Around 40 owners of classic Minis are claiming that a restorer has stripped their cars of parts and not performed restoration work, to the tune of £300,000.
They say that they have paid Christopher Handford of The North West Mini Centre in Glossop, Derbyshire, for work that has not been carried out.
Customers assert that Handford liquidised the business and vanished. The company that has moved in to Handford’s former premises says that he left the area last month, leaving behind parts including whole shells.
Complaints about Handford on internet forums date back to 2014, and range from not doing work, to not sending parts to overseas customers.
Liz Rowe, says: ‘I met Chris when I was living in Manchester. I Googled a classic car restoration company and his website had good reviews. I joined the Mini club that he was involved in, and he was friendly and welcoming. He said that he’d be able to rebuild my classic Mini Thirty from scratch, and I said that I wanted every panel replaced with heritage parts.
‘My car got me through a depressive stage in my life and it was vital that I kept it as intact as I could. Chris offered me a package including new panels, a respray and a finish to show standard. He felt that he could get this done within four months. That was six years ago.
‘I was his first customer and paid a deposit of £1500. Over the months his business picked up and my car was put on hold for other smaller car projects. As I was friends with him I didn’t mind too much, and he soon stripped my Mini down and asked for the second £1500 payment.
‘He soon went silent and I moved from Manchester. This is when I noticed that he’d defriended me on Facebook. I started to notice disgruntled customers popping up online, but he assured me that my car would be finished for my 30th birthday last year. He even mentioned that he was getting some of my parts painted for me. He also promised me a sound system and upgraded engine for the wait I’d had. ‘When I messaged him a few months ago, he said he’d had death threats and I wouldn’t hear from him again. I was contacted by the man who had taken over his unit and had to collect my car, and another Mini that he’d been storing for me but had apparently helped himself to parts from. ‘I’ve lost £3000. I had a connection with it and like any classic car owner shared so many beautiful memories, and I feel like I’m stuck and unable to ever get it back to its former glory.’ Melissa O’Gorman, media and communications officer for Derbyshire Constabulary, says: ‘We are investigating several allegations of fraud whereby victims have alleged a company has been paid to carry out restoration work on classic cars but the work has either never been done, or has been partially done.’ A spokesperson for Derbyshire county council’s trading standards team confirms: ‘We are aware of the matter and Derbyshire Police is investigating.’