Press release: Car parts boss banned after failing to deliver customers’ orders

Ali Cakirgoz, 61 of Waltham Abbey, is subject to a disqualification order which prevents him from acting as a director for 12 years.

Total Engine Replacement Limited was incorporated in February 2015, advertising replacement engines on numerous websites that were all registered to the company.

But Trading Standards and the Insolvency Service began to receive complaints from customers who said they hadn’t received their products and couldn’t get hold of anyone at Total Engine Replacement.

The Insolvency Service carried out an initial investigation into the company’s activities before gathering enough evidence to place Total Engine Replacement into compulsory liquidation in September 2016 after a petition was presented by the Secretary of State.

Investigators found that despite accepting payments from their customers, Total Engine Replacement failed to deliver any of the products they had promised. Customers who then attempted to complain were left frustrated as the company left emails unanswered and disconnected telephone numbers.

In little over a year, Total Engine Replacement failed to provide goods to the value of at least £58,000 to around 58 customers.

The director, Ali Cakirgoz, did not co-operate with the enquiries and when asked, failed to maintain adequate accounting records. This meant investigators were unable to establish exactly how much money was received, where the money was paid into and what were the company’s current levels of assets and liabilities.

Following the disqualification, Ali Cakirgoz is now prevented from acting, directly or indirectly, as a director of a company having allowed Total Engine Replacement to trade with a lack of commercial probity and failing to maintain adequate accounting records.

Irshard Mohammed, Investigation Supervisor with the Insolvency Service, said:

Ali Cakirgoz had a total lack of regard for his customers. But thankfully his bogus sales activities finally caught up with him and we have been able to put the brakes on his deceitful activities.

Both the winding-up proceedings and the subsequent disqualification action show that we will use the full weight of our powers to take firm action against both companies and individuals that operate in such an unscrupulous way.

Notes to editors

Total Engine Replacement Limited (CRO No. 094600350) was incorporated on 26 February 2015 and was registered at 10-12 Marshgate Lane, Marshgate İndustrial Estate, London E15 2NH.

Details of Ali Cakirgoz’s disqualification undertaking

On 6 April 2018 the Court made a Disqualification Order against Mr Cakirgoz, effective from 27 April 2018, for a period of 12 years. The matters of unfitness which Mr Cakirgoz did not defend in the disqualification proceedings were that:

• During the period between February 2015 and October 2015 Mr Cakirgoz caused and/or allowed the company to trade with a lack of commercial probity in that it failed to provide goods to the value of at least £58,065 paid for by at least 58 customers
  • Engines were marketed for sale through a number of similarly named websites and orders taken either over the phone or by email
  • Quotes were provided and sales invoice raised in the name of the company
  • Quotes were provided and sales invoices raised in the names of unconnected 3rd party companies
  • The engines were not delivered as promised and customers were unable to contact the company as their websites were taken down, email addresses unanswered and telephone numbers disconnected
  • The company was not registered at the registered office address
  • Between 26 February 2015 and 28 October 2015, at least 59 complaints totalling £58,065 were made to Action Fraud by customers who had not received the goods that they had paid for
• Mr Cakirgoz failed to maintain, preserve and/or deliver up adequate accounting records for the period February 2015 to October 2015 and as a result it has not been possible to fully ascertain:
  • How much money has actually been received by the company and the full details of all of its customers
  • Which bank accounts the funds have been paid into
  • What has happened to the known funds of £86,691 paid to the company
  • What the current position with regards Assets & Liabilities is

Disqualification

A disqualification order has the effect that without specific permission of a court, a person with a disqualification cannot:

• act as a director of a company
• take part, directly or indirectly, in the promotion, formation or management of a company or limited liability partnership
• be a receiver of a company’s property

Disqualification undertakings are the administrative equivalent of a disqualification order but do not involve court proceedings.

Persons subject to a disqualification order are bound by a range of other restrictions.

The Insolvency Service (England and Wales)

The Insolvency Service, an executive agency sponsored by the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS), administers the insolvency regime, and aims to deliver and promote a range of investigation and enforcement activities both civil and criminal in nature, to support fair and open markets. We do this by effectively enforcing the statutory company and insolvency regimes, maintaining public confidence in those regimes and reducing the harm caused to victims of fraudulent activity and to the business community, including dealing with the disqualification of directors in corporate failures.

BEIS’ mission is to build a dynamic and competitive UK economy that works for all, in particular by creating the conditions for business success and promoting an open global economy. The Criminal Investigations and Prosecutions team contributes to this aim by taking action to deter fraud and to regulate the market. They investigate and prosecute a range of offences, primarily relating to personal or company insolvencies.

The agency also authorises and regulates the insolvency profession, assesses and pays statutory entitlement to redundancy payments when an employer cannot or will not pay employees, provides banking and investment services for bankruptcy and liquidation estate funds and advises ministers and other government departments on insolvency law and practice.

Further information about the work of the Insolvency Service, and how to complain about financial misconduct, is available.

Contact Press Office

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