At least 100 skips are left on driveways as firm goes into liquidation
MERCURY TRACKS DOWN BOSS, WHO SAYS HE’LL COLLECT THEM
THE owner of a skip hire company has apologised after around 100 skips were left on driveways after his firm went into liquidation.
1st Choice Skip and Grab Hire Ltd, of Enderby, before it seemingly “disappeared”, left full skips uncollected and customers with no way of contacting them.
A number of residents have been left to stress over when and how their skips will be collected, while a number of builders have not been paid as a knock-on effect.
Martin Disney, who has been a builder for 20 years, said he realised something was not quite right when he struggled to arrange a skip collection for an elderly customer for two weeks after completing work on her home.
But he said the skip company could not be reached.
He told the Mercury: “There’s a full skip left on an 89-year-old woman’s drive, but now everywhere says they’re permanently closed.”
Martyn said he will not be paid until the skip has been removed and there are others in the same boat.
“Never in my 20 years of being a builder have I ever been in this predicament,” he said. “I don’t know what else to do.”
Hoping to get some answers, Martyn visited the firm’s base in Enderby, only to find that the landlord had been left with “£80,000 worth of rubbish to get rid of”.
Martyn’s customer, Jean Haywood from Wigston, pictured, said she was “losing sleep” over the worry the skip had caused her. “It’s just a nightmare because I just can’t see how we’re getting rid of it,” said Jean. “We ordered it in good faith, paid for it up front and then we’ve been left holding the baby.
“I’d love to see it gone, but it’s been two weeks now, but we can’t see any sign of it going.
“I can’t sleep for worry. I mean, it’s all right having a garden gnome in your garden but a skip’s something else, isn’t it?” According to its Google profile, 1st Choice Skip and Grab Hire Ltd is permanently closed, the website no longer exists and the associated phone number is no longer in use. Eventually, the Mercury was able to track down the owner, who said he does not want to be named, but explained that the “unexpected” liquidation of his business had left his hands tied.
He claimed that an affiliated business had gone under, leaving him without payment and causing a domino effect that ultimately cost him his skip hire firm.
The situation was complicated futher, he said, by computers with a tracker of all the company’s hired skips being seized along with other assets, which has caused the skips to have gone uncollected.
“I couldn’t collect the skips until liquidators gave me permission to – now it’s just me and one other person trying to collect around 100 skips that we’re finding out about from Facebook messages and calls,” he said.
After being in the business for 15 years, he added: “Believe me, I didn’t plan for this. Nobody is more gutted and hurt than me.
“We haven’t abandoned anybody, we’re coming round to collect them, we’re just a couple of days behind.”
I’d love to see it gone, but it’s been two weeks now, but we can’t see any sign of it going
Jean Haywood, 89