‘Grey nomads’ win payout from failed camper firm

Consumers caught up in the $4m collapse of a Brisbane campervan company will be refunded hundreds of thousands of dollars after an investigation by fair trading officers.

HAPPY CAMPERS

CONSUMERS caught up in the $4m collapse of a Brisbane campervan company will be refunded hundreds of thousands of dollars after an investigation by the Office of Fair Trading (OFT). OFT says $692,363 will be refunded to customers of Slacks Creek-based Motorhome Conversion who had consigned vans to be sold by the firm but never received full payment.

Founded in 2005 by managing director John Jeffreys, Vincents liquidator Nick Combis was appointed to Motorhome Conversion last year when business conditions took a turn for the worse and it was subjected to an industry-wide recall of vehicles to check gas systems.

Happy campers.

The company initially sold completed motorhomes that were directly imported from Japan but later moved into refitting and building of vehicle interiors.

Mr Combis told The Courier-Mail earlier this year that his investigation revealed a number of converted motor vehicles given to the company on consignment and subject to a security agreement were allegedly sold to third parties without proper payment being made.

The OFT says its investigation into the company is continuing, but of the 17 claims made against it, nine were found to be valid. The OFT administers the claim fund set up to help consumers recover money from motor dealers and auctioneers.

JUST NOT CRICKET

POLICE were called to defuse a tense stand-off between cricket lovers over who had first dibs on playing at a popular park in suburban Brisbane.

Officers were called to Kalinga Park at Clayfield when an unsanctioned group of cricketers wanted to play at the same time as the sanctioned Brisbane North Junior Cricket Association, which rents the Kalinga Park grounds from the Brisbane City Council on weekends.

The association’s scheduled match eventually had to be called off when the other group of players refused to move.

Signs have now been erected on the field to inform others that the association has the sanctioned right to use the grounds on Saturday and Sunday between 6am and 6pm.

The association, which has plans to improve facilities at Kalinga Park including construction of a training centre, said there had been a growing problem with groups of players disrupting and delaying organised matches

Wicket at Kalinga Park. Picture David Clark

The association says the incident involving the police, which had occurred in August during the winter season, reflected a misunderstanding by some in the community about who had the right to use the grounds at certain times.

“We try to be as inclusive as possible but we pay rent to the council to use the fields for our competition and we also maintain the grounds,” an association representative says.

A Queensland police spokesperson confirms officers were called to the park but it was considered a civil matter that was subsequently resolved with the help of the council.

A BCC spokesperson said the Brisbane North Junior Cricket Association had an agreement with the council to use Kalinga Park for its games while maintaining the cricket pitches.

The spokesperson said the club had notified the council about unscheduled social games clashing with the club’s scheduled weekend matches and about wear and tear from community use which had required more maintenance than usual.

The council said it was working with the club to manage the issues, with signage suggested as a measure to educate the community about scheduled use of the cricket pitches and how to reduce wear and tear. The Royal Gurkhas Cricket Club, which also plays at Kalinga Park as part of the Nepalese competition, said its players were not involved in the incident.

Signage has been erected on all cricket ground areas at Kalinga Park after a recent incident between casual cricket players and competition cricketers. North Brisbane Junior cricket has first rights to the grounds as they rent them from Brisbane City Council, Kalinga Friday 13th November 2020 Picture David Clark

FRUITY LOOK

QUEENSLAND fruit producer Piñata Farms has unveiled new branding just in time for summer. The Wamuran-based producer of some of the country’s best pineapples, strawberries, raspberries and mangoes has introduced new logos, colours and packaging for its produce, uniforms, vehicles, farm signage and even stationery.

Pinata boss Gavin Scurr says the new look was the first significant brand update undertaken by the company in the past decade.

Gavin and Rebecca Scurr launch Piñata's new look. Picture: Katja Anton Photography.

“The Piñata name is well recognised and loved by consumers and we wanted to leverage off that and modernise our look across all aspects of our business, including labels and packaging for four very different produce lines,” Scurr says.

The cornerstone of the new look sees the corporate Piñata Farms logo revitalised to give a first impression of a smile while the previous corporate bright light green has been refined to become a more earthy, forest green.