ScottishPower is one of a number of parties which may find itself being sued in the wake of the collapse of warranty insurer Powerplan.
Administrators said on Friday they are now considering taking legal action against any comp-anies or individuals which had any dealings with the warranty firm at any time in its history.
The statement came with the good news that the repair services should be up and running again by the middle of next week. However, many of the 750,000 customers who bought policies through Scottish Power electrical shops will still be left out of pocket. Over the next few days, administrators, the MacDonald Group, (TMG) will announce that repairs can go ahead on the basis that customers call in maintenance men themselves and then pass bills on for payment.
However, there will be a ceiling on the amounts paid out, based on a proportion and on the size of the claim. Small bills may be settled in full, but customers may have to pay for part of larger repairs themselves.
A spokesman for TMG said: “A £50 bill, for example, might be paid in full. But only part of a £200 bill may be reclaimed.”
Customers who bought the policies primarily because of a “cashback” promise will also be disappointed. They will not receive a penny of the money pledged when their contracts end.
Furthermore, the admin-istrators are investigating whether legal action should be taken against any bodies involved with Powerplan to recover the sums customers are missing out on.
This could include Scottish Power, which sold the contracts via its electrical retail shops before selling them on to Powerhouse, or any other companies or individual subsequently involved in the saga.
Originally published in the Scottish Sunday Herald and written by Teresa Hunter.
Many thanks to Alex for that find.
However, it would appear that all is not well in the Powerhouse camp despite the recent press release that purported that all the problems would be addressed.
More info on Powerhouse at The MacDonald Partnership