What could be good news should not really be good news. Made.com, whose bankruptcy led to the appointment of administrators by the British office of PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC), was bought by the British textile group Next.
But his debts will not be seized: only the trademark, domain names and intellectual property of the site and models have been seized, for a check of 3.9 million euros (3.4 million pounds). All this through an operating subsidiary, MDL. In short, Next does not buy Made.com, but uses the few assets that are still attractive.
This money should allow the structure’s coffers to be rescued, but it should not go to consumers: in the event of liquidation, these are not legally priority creditors.
The company’s financial creditors – investors in particular – come first, employees come second. Customers are the last to receive the refund, most of the time.
Deliveries at the discretion of carriers
The PwC statement also suggests two scenarios: customers whose orders have left the warehouses “are being delivered”, specifies a press release, while Made.com had abruptly suspended its communication on this point before the appointment of directors, and that the situation had not been resolved. clarified since then. 4,500 orders would be processed.
But the cabinet highlights an important point: deliveries will be made through “delivery service providers who have agreed to continue to support the company”: in other words, transport companies that have decided not to make deliveries, because they have not settled. with these deliveries. , for example, cannot be executed. Contacted, the carrier VIR, the main link with Made.com on the French market, did not respond to our requests. He had suspended deliveries last week by order of the company, and was awaiting instructions.
For customers whose orders are not delivered, PwC is even more succinct.
For them, the order seems lost, and with it, the money paid. Made.com emphasizes that it does not make cancellations or returns.
PayPal Refunds
While solutions remain few, customers have seen some success through PayPal, which offers its own refund solution in these types of cases. On the bank’s side, the explanations are more complex. And for good reason, “it is a British company that is subject to a specific procedure of the applicable law in the United Kingdom”, emphasizes Paul Vialard.
An explanation that Kirsten Vangsgaard does not fully understand, on the consumer side. Herself a victim of the bankruptcy of Made.com, she created a Facebook group where several hundred customers meet.
Online bank Oney, which allows free installments in three or four installments, remains just as adamant, stressing that it paid Made.com and wants to be reimbursed no matter what.
In an attempt to have an opinion, Kirsten Vangsgaard’s consumer group turns to a lawyer who specializes in these matters.
According to a census carried out in the group, the average amount lost by injured customers is around 1,000 euros.
Source: BFM TV
