Advent Computer Training (Barclays Partner Finance)Info and discussion thread

[chippy_IT]

yea but its from the people that make the books for the adult learnin centres and all the course's its the CIW the last ones we can trust lol

[montyboy1]

yeah sry lol G,D,L

[chippy_IT]

G D L???? same question again then can i use the usa site to buy it or is the a uk site? this is only if we get money back cant pay out any more

[montyboy1]

to be quite honest i wouldnt be sure i am going to count my losse's and get out of the agreement if i can,

 

good luck,

david maidstone, kent

[belfastboy]

Yeah i think i will be trying to do the same if i can get anything back happy days seeking legal advice tomorrow

to be quite honest i wouldnt be sure i am going to count my losse's and get out of the agreement if i can,

 

good luck,

david maidstone, kent

[Alex399]

I gave them a call earlier. Not only is it a nightmare trying to get them to understand plain English, they claim to know nothing about the situation and it seems like they don't give a crap anyway.

 

Basically, Avent have had their money from Barclays, Barclays have had their money from me, so I am expected to take it on the chin and put it down to experience.

 

If anyone manages to find out where this Andrew Allchurch lives, be sure to let me know.

 

I have access to all of there addresses, all of the directors not just Andrew Allchurch but also John Whitehead, Ashley Jones and Ivor Allchurch the reason I posted Andrews details on the Facebook group is that out of the handfull of Directors he has a Significant amount of activity on his file compared to the other directors.

 

Lindsay you mentioned that you have never heard of Andrew Allchurch??? given whats happened if he is the Official Owner/Majority Shareholder of the company maybe he didn't want to be known by his own staff because of what's unfolding before us right now.

Its a serious loophole in the system regarding companies going into administration then liquidation, the system sucks really bad basically if you look into it in detail and it needs to be sorted out before others are exploiting it.

 

I really hope that there filed account records for 31-March-09 is completley accurate and maybe they do like you said Lindsay have a reserve put to one side that we do not yet know of and the administrators could be looking into, but hey I'm being way to optimistic with all of this maybe, I myself am going to see what comes of it by monday or maybe end of next week at latest.

 

Its basically a desperate attempt to keep the 6000 contracts running most likely totalling up to millions and millions, Barclays think they can get away with moving you to another training provider that might even cost less than "Advent" then they can even stand to make several millions in the process if the banks play there cards right, its a ****ing cruel world and we (Advent students) happen to be in the midst of it all.

 

Everyone please join the Facebook group! send your emails to watchdog about your story you have to tell!

Plenty of really good advice all over this thread so I would just be repeating what over people have said!

 

I'm getting so sick of this to the point that I feel like Im going to puke up my organs, I will post up all there address details in due course for anyone whose lucky enough to live nearby them and give them a freindly visit...

 

GL to all of you and my sympathy goes out to all of those laid off at Advent and all the Advent Students aswell

Edited January 28, 2010 by Alex399

[stopmybeat]

Welcome to Facebook | Facebook

Please post this link on other forums affected by this, as BBC watch dog will be viewing this group page shortly!

[cerberusalert]

Barclays spokesman Andrew Bond said: "We recognise how important this training is for people and have formed a dedicated team to help any students find equivalent or better training at no extra cost to them so they can fulfil their aims."

BBC News - Students in limbo as Hagley IT firm Advent goes bust

[Glanworth]

Hi,

 

I paid in full last year am not sure if that's better or worse still feel like i have been robbed. Good info on here glad i have found it, just hope everyone gets something preferably everything they paid back.

 

Andy from Cirencester SW England

 

 

Hi Andy

 

I too paid in full, using redundency money and savings. This was supposed to be the start of a new career! I probably had the same salesman as you - promising me the world!

Does anyone know what happens to those who paid in full (and not via any finance company)?

 

Cheers

Conor from Cheltenham

[cerberusalert]

BBC News - Students in limbo as Hagley IT firm Advent goes bust

 

Barclays spokesman Andrew Bond said: "We recognise how important this training is for people and have formed a dedicated team to help any students find equivalent or better training at no extra cost to them so they can fulfil their aims."

[iam-the_god.of+hell=fire]

hi

4 months into paying off my loan through barclays partner finance. was due to attend a workshop monday. canceled my direct debit last night but wasnt quick enough cos it was taken this morning have just emailed watchdog. not impressed :-x:-x:-x:-x:-x:-x

[Mr_Daydream]

Hi everyone,

 

I spoke to an Advent trainer this morning for a good half an hour about this fiasco! I’m a student (only 14 months into the course) and I’ve paid off 6K to Barclays Partners Finance, spoke to them today and as previously mentioned they will send out a letter and be looking to switch my training elsewhere, which is a complete joke! This is a complete fob off, and the standards elsewhere could be even worse! I don’t trust Barclays on this one and I want my money back!! All say no to alternative training and demand your money back!

 

The Advent trainer had the following to say:

- 80 sales staff laid off before xmas – early signs?

- Advent insolvency “nothing to do with the recession”

- High possibility of fraud going on :o)

- Recruited averagely 400 students a month with a turnover of £2million a month

- The director is called ASLEY JONES.

- “course is designed so students don’t complete the course which makes them more money”

 

He’s also probably going to get peanuts when it comes to pay day. He was very sympathetic and knew something was wrong earlier this week when the caterers were being paid in cash rather then BACS.

 

I’m from Manchester and if anyone knows where Robin Furness is I would like to know! – He’s not based in the Pricess st office apparently and has moved to king st 6 months ago.

 

Lindsey0796 thanks for you advise and help on here! Really appreciated

 

Anyone from Manchester on here? Lets talk and drown our sorrows L

[luke100390]

Anyone know what i should do 1st, Get in touch with the Citizens Advice (Phone or Walk in Visit) or contact Barclays about this.

 

Im not looking to carry on with the course at another company based on that i paid to do it with advent and if they offered another company, That same company could do the same thing as Advent.

 

I just want to get a refund, Or as much back as possible

[pvincent]

I'm from around Manchester too and saw Robin Furness as well!!

 

I have an old business card of his and his mobile number but its from 2006. I can PM it to you if its of any use.

 

Not sure how involved Robin Furness is in the company though. Apparently Watchdog are watching the Facebook Group about this so go post there too with your stories.

 

There''s also a picture of Advent's accounts for the last two years.

 

They made -2M in 2008 and +3M in 2009 making a net of 1M. Gross profit however was 17M in 2009.

 

Somehow it got taxed down to 3M net.

[MARTIN3030]

We have some good informed people on CAG.

I am sure we can assist with answers to some of your questions.

[stopmybeat]

i saw robin furness as well and promised the world.. would love to sue his arse yet i know it wouldnt get us newhere as he's just a sales man doing his job, selling himself to the company, getting you to put your cash you dont have into the business!

 

Welcome to Facebook | Facebook ADVENT GROUP ABOUT THE BUST UP, WATCH DOG WILL BE SHORTLY VIEWING THIS GROUP SO PLEASE PLEASE IF YOU ARE AFFECTED BY THE MATTER PLEASE JOIN IT!

[mozzer0734]

hi

4 months into paying off my loan through barclays partner finance. was due to attend a workshop monday. canceled my direct debit last night but wasnt quick enough cos it was taken this morning have just emailed watchdog. not impressed :-x:-x:-x:-x:-x:-x

I would advise people not to cancel DD to barcleys at the moment. As much as it hurts to pay for something we are not recieving they will be looking for any way they can to not pay up. So by cancelling your DD and effectivley breaking your side of the contract it will give them an excuse to not pay up. You can ring them and tell them to freze all payments, which they have to honour for at least 30 days, this way you will not be breaking contract, they wont be taking any money and it will give some xtra time for a solution to be found.

[stuartbat]

hi guys i too am a student of advent my problem is that i didn't take a loan out to pay for my course i paid for it in full as i had some inheritance money. £5000 for MCSE january of last year i have done my A+ stuff and was ready for my mcdst exam where do i stand as i don't have a loan company to nag at and i paid by debit card i think i'm tottally screwed a\nd not sure what to do next

[pvincent]

You will have to pursue Advent for breach of contract. For you it may involve legal action / suing Advent or its representatives.

 

Hopefully Watchdog will get on the case though and apply pressure.

[latty30]

Hi all, I'm in the same boat as everyone else, I started the MCSE course with advent which cost me 5 grand 18 months ago, and in that time i've only been contacted twice, once to arrange a work shop and the second to tell me the company has gone into insolvency. obviously very disapointed to put it lighty.

advent or whoever is dealing with this should now supply all the books and CDs for the courses that we have all payed for.

I've also been looking around for additional training to help with my course before all this happened and found the cbt video training helpful, if anyone want to know where to get the video training from just contact me on here

[Steelio]

Hi again,

 

Check out this link. Some info that you may find useful.

 

Administration Help: Reclaim your cash from companies...

 

Hi I'm in the same situation as everyone else but paid my loan off during the interest free period with my credit card. Will this qualify me to make a claim from the credit card company using section 75 of the consumer credit act? Not sure where I stand on this one. Will call them in the morning. If anyone else is in a similar situation please let me know.

Also believe with so many people being effected we should stick together on this one and insist on complete refunds.

[MARTIN3030]

I have flagged this up for our site team Consumer Credit Bods.

Hopefully we can get some answers here soon but for now;

 

Credit Cards – Section 75

 

Section 75 of the Consumer Credit Act imposes equal liability on the creditor for breaches by the supplier. In other words, if the company you are buying from goes bust or disappears, or if the goods turn out to be faulty and you can’t get recompense from that company, the credit card company shares responsibility to refund you for the entire amount. However, it is important to remember that this is the case only for amounts between £100 and £30,000.

Edited January 29, 2010 by MARTIN3030

[Steelio]

Thanks will keep a close eye on this site. Will also inform of outcome with the credit card company tomorrow.

[Mat_F]

I have flagged this up for our site team Consumer Credit Bods.

 

Can we get some advice on this thread as well please?

 

http://www.consumeractiongroup.co.uk/forum/students/244745-advent-computer-training-barclays.html

 

I have started the thread for people who funded their course with a Barclays Career Development Loan.

[Steelio]

Does this mean that I firstly have to try and get recompense from Advent, failing that I should be refunded by the credit card company? The sum in question is around four thousand pounds as I'd already paid up about nine hundred quid to Advent which I also intend to reclaim.