What can dozens of people from West Brabant do now that they are afraid of going into the ship at the Sustainability Center of the Netherlands for thousands of euros? They have paid a lot of money for the installation of solar panels, but the company has been bankrupt for a month. There are fifty creditors who owe a total of 900,000 euros.
We put the question of what victims can do to lawyer Theo ten Velde of Lawyers Collective Tilburg. He specializes in civil law. The lawyer emphasizes that he can only say something about it in a general sense, because he is not involved in this case.
The issue revolves around the Dutch Sustainability Center in Terheijden, which has been declared bankrupt. Dozens of people have been duped by this company. They paid thousands of euros in advance for the installation of solar panels, but in reality nothing came of it. The tax authorities, banks and suppliers also owe a lot of money.
First of all, Ten Velde refers to the responsibility that people have themselves. “Think about why a deposit would be necessary. We’ve come to think it’s pretty normal, but making a deposit isn’t required by law. Sometimes it makes sense: if you buy a tailor-made suit, that suit cannot be sold to someone else, for example. But with products that the neighbor can also buy, such as solar panels, that does not necessarily have to be logical.”
Anyone who makes a down payment automatically runs the risk of losing that money, says Ten Velde. “For example, if a company gets into financial difficulties. They can prevent this by working with companies that are affiliated with a guarantee fund. This will compensate damage in the event of a bankruptcy, for example.”
But what can victims do now? According to the lawyer, one possibility is to file for bankruptcy of a company with other victims. It has since been declared bankrupt a month ago. The victims are already at the back of the line with creditors.
“If the court declares bankruptcy, a trustee looks at the financial situation of the company. It maps out what assets there are, how high the debt is and how many creditors there are.”
If there is any money left over, any arrears of staff salaries and debts to the tax authorities are paid first. This is followed by other potential creditors, such as companies and private individuals. The money is then distributed fairly, but Ten Velde knows from experience that this is often a pittance of the actual debt amount.
That also seems to be the case now. Of the total debt of 9 tons, the tax authorities will receive 348,000 euros. The solar panel company has not paid payroll taxes and sales tax since 2020. According to the bankruptcy trustee, who is investigating the bankruptcy, there is no money in the company’s account. There are also no goods of value present.
However, there is another possibility, says the lawyer. If victims suspect fraud or fraud, they can report it to the police. If that is the case, a driver can be held liable for the financial damage.
“But then it must be proven that money has been deliberately funneled away or that they have extorted money from others,” explains Ten Velde. “Unconsciously making a mess of it is not punishable.”