Friday 9 January 2009

Post Xmas quandary

Just what am I supposed to do with all the gift vouchers I got from Zavvi, Woolworths, MFI, Adam's, The Officer's Club and Whittard of Chelsea?

My latest blogpost: Post Xmas quandaryTweet this! Posted by Mark Wadsworth at 15:06

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13 comments:

Nick von Mises said...

Put them in an envelope and post 'em to 10 Downing Street with a note of thanks.

Or post them as collateral at the BoE for a draw down from the special loans facility.

9 January 2009 at 15:53
Anonymous said...

Keep them - they will soon be worth more a £1 note (or Browney).

9 January 2009 at 15:54
marksany said...

eBay them; there's bound to be a buyer who doesn't watch TV or read the papers.

9 January 2009 at 16:49
JuliaM said...

Agree with Mark - eBay is the place to go. Pretty sure there'll be more than one person, though...

9 January 2009 at 16:55
Bill Quango MP said...

Take your Officers Club to TimeC 1215 limited, Whittard to PIC private equity partners,and demand they honor them as they are the same companies in everything but law.

You could try Iceland for your woolies ones.

No one wanted the MFI even before they went under.

I saw a woman in woolworths on the last trading day wanting a refund on a tube of glue.
The staff were pointing out their no refunds policy.
She demanded to speak to the manager..who finally arrived and probably for the first time in her career was able to tell this irate customer "Frankly,I don't give a damn."

9 January 2009 at 18:03
Guthrum said...

Interesting point in Insolvency Law, were these companies accepting money for goods they could not supply, or are gift vouchers goods in themselves ?
Anybody got a spare £500 000 to give to a Lawyer to find out.

I think you will find that they will be treated like Tsarist Russian Railway Bonds- Caveat Emptor.

10 January 2009 at 09:56
Mark Wadsworth said...

G, I guess voucher holders just rank as unsecured creditors, but nobody's going to waste £500,000 on legal fees to force them to redeem a £20 gift voucher.

Vouchers cannot be goods - if they were, then
a) The administrators owe you nothing at all - in the same way as if I had bought a DVD (clearly goods) for £20.
b) VAT would be charged on issue of vouchers.

But your point stands, if the directors sold vouchers knowing they were insolvent or unable to redeem them, that is a serious offence.

10 January 2009 at 10:33
Anonymous said...

G,

I'd love a lawyer to start digging around Olan Mills on that basis, a company that up to Christmas Eve was taking deposits yet went into administration on Boxing Day.

Really, that's shitbaggery of the highest order.

10 January 2009 at 12:43
marksany said...

If you don't have any joy with eBay, I have some Farepak vouchers I can swap with you.

10 January 2009 at 14:06
Ross said...

I've never understood the point of gift vouchers anyway, you spend £10 that could be spent anywhere to buy a token valued at £10 but can only be spent in one place. Who the hell came up with that idea?

10 January 2009 at 14:28
Mark Wadsworth said...

R, the voucher is a gift that gives twice. It is impolite to just shove a £20 note in an envelope, so you give a voucher (smiley faces all round) and then the recipient swaps it for what he or she actually wants (more smiley faces).

Maybe some enterprising chap will buy up all these vouchers for (say) 1p in the £1 and then try and get 2p or 3p in the £1 off the administrators?

10 January 2009 at 14:39
Anonymous said...

I'll give you $1 million for them.

Tim
PS That's $1 million Zimbabwe dollars

10 January 2009 at 17:41
Bill Quango MP said...

Olan Mills

Their website says voucher and giftpack holders are creditors and must apply to the administrators.

Penny in the pound.

11 January 2009 at 01:27

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