The sudden collapse of Queensland's luxury caravan manufacturer, Zone RV, has left over 100 customers in a state of financial uncertainty. The company, which owed $42 million, went into administration in December and was subsequently liquidated in January. Melbourne-based Essential Caravans stepped in to purchase Zone RV's assets, ensuring the production of luxury vans at their Sunshine Coast factory. However, this deal has left existing customers, who had collectively paid millions in progress payments, feeling short-changed. Some customers had paid over $160,000 for caravans that were never built. Essential Caravans' director, Jamie Johnson, expressed empathy for these customers but emphasized the financial constraints that prevented him from assuming their debt. He offered a olive branch by proposing to sell new caravans to affected customers at cost price, which would still require them to pay an additional $160,000. The liquidation process, which ranks customers as unsecured creditors, may only offer a few cents on the dollar. Mr. Johnson also vowed to scrap Zone RV's previous practice of forcing customers to make progress payments, instead adopting an industry-standard 10% deposit and no progress payments until the caravan is ready. The liquidator, Cor Cordis, is now focusing on investigating former Zone RV director David Biggar for allegedly illegally trading while insolvent. The sale to Essential Caravans has been praised for its positive outcome, but the process has been described as 'frustrating' due to the involvement of multiple stakeholders. The sale will be finalized on March 6, with another creditors' report expected in April.
