Gmund Cars Ltd & Andrew Mearns FRAUD £1Million stolen

[Dicker]

Barty, this had been building up for a while.

Nothing to do with Court case! I have known and dealt on occasionwith Andrew over the past 20 years or so. With Gmund and his previous entity (can't remember the name now)!
My experience of him and his business had always been positive as no doubt many others experienced similar, I liked Andrew, in the dealings I had on buying 3 x RS air cooled cars over a 10 year period. I knew numerous persons who at the time also had a positive view of the set up in buying his RS cars.

I also remember paying for one on a cheque book in 2006 and I left with the car, which at the time surprised me. Not good practice in todays business landscape, but reflective of the time and trust we once had in doing these type of transactions. Andrew said "Don't worry everybody knows one another in the Porsche World, if I need to get you, I will". There was no issue I hasten to add.

I also have met the guy with the Boxster / Stickers who arranged the plane and sign on the open day, who got seriously shafted on a very desirable 924 GT model by Andrew. I have read the subsequent posts on this forum with dismay.
Makes me wonder where and why this all went wrong, it seemed Andrew had a great business, positive reputation promoted and sponsored by PCGB, this was built over a long time.

Everybody involved has been so negatively affected by this deceit, it is very sad to read. I genuinely hope the innocent parties are able to obtain closure from the legal process.
Just adding this update as like others I could have easily been in the situation of being taken advantage of, given the trust I had with Gmund over the years. Proceed with caution going forward, especially with the tightening market.

Barty964rst, Lucky you. As I have described earlier in this thread, I bought my car off Andrew in July 2003, so twenty-years ago - and he was trading as Gmund then. I bought a car off Andrew after an Andrew recommendation to get it pre-purchase inspected by a local specialist. The inspection gave it a clean bill of health and a recommendation that it was a good car. It turned out to have significant crash damage and a bunch of associated problems that cost thousands to rectify.

I checked with every previous owner and built a stack of evidence, 'had spoken to previous owners - most knew about the damage and had disclosed it when the car was sold and passed on - until Andrew dealt with the sale to me.

So, as he was the trading as a respected marque specialist and was meant to add value to buyers by checking all potential sales stock as being correct and in a sellable condition, he either failed in that or deliberately misled me. I know which I would chose.

The third-party that inspected the car barely looked at it (declaring in the report that it had parts that European cabrios don't have!) and was, in my personal opinion, at least negligent - if not in collusion with Andrew - as they did his servicing at the time.

Did Andrew 'do the right thing'? No. he and the inspecting company played ping-pong with me. At least the other firm suggested going 50/50 on the rectification but that was dependent on Andrew - and guess what? He went silent and hid behind his legal support - now thought to be his lawyer wife.

Certainly felt then and still does, that Andrew was 'enabled' by a support mechanism that went beyond his dealership. He could sell cars that could reach 100mph+ speed as being fit-for-the-road that, OK, may have passed an MoT (in this case from the inspecting garage) but were subsequently found to be dangerous.

That he is in the position that he is now is purely down to him, his recklessness and greed but that position was supported and enabled by others, some well reported and others that seem remarkably silent in this discussion. All involved should be concerned because eventually, the truth will come out. If they have a conscience, it should be feeling pricked through this public unravelling of Andrew Mearns and others.

Part of my closure will come with the legal process but you dismiss how many thousands in related costs Andrew Mearns has caused innocent buyers.

 

[911UK]

it's been a few months since I've heard of any update, anyone know where the court case has got to ?

Bankrupt supercar dealer denies charges of fraud and thefts of Porsches – Car Dealer Magazine

A supercar dealership owner has denied a string of charges relating to fraud and stealing customers' Porsches. Andrew Mearns, who ran Knaresborough-based

cardealermagazine.co.uk

Andrew Mearns, who ran Knaresborough-based Gmund Cars, appeared at York Crown Court, pictured, yesterday where he pleaded not guilty to the 16 charges against him, which are said to date between 2015 and 2020.

He faces 13 charges of fraud for personal gain against customers, reported the Yorkshire Post. They include one of undertaking work other than agreed.

Mearns, who now lives in Wales, also faces three charges of stealing a Porsche.

He is accused of stealing a £130,000 Porsche 356 in 2019 that belonged to Adrian Pyrah, a £160,000 Porsche Turbo in 2018 that belonged to John Hebson, and a £65,000 Porsche 911 Carrera in 2018, the owner of which wasn’t named.

Other victims of Mearns named in court were David Bell, Robert Hayes, Matthew Lancaster, Anthony Place, John Reeder, Matthew Saphier, Marcus Singh and Peter Whitby, said the Post.

The trial is expected to involve 25 witnesses and last three weeks, meaning it needs to be heard at a larger court yet to be decided.
Mearns, 54, who has been declared bankrupt, was given unconditional bail until the trial.
Gmund Cars was run by him from 2006 until it was dissolved in June 2020. It specialised in modifying and selling classic models.

 

[GilesHanna]

it's been a few months since I've heard of any update, anyone know where the court case has got to ?

Just had a letter from the police re my car !

 

[911UK]

Just had a letter from the police re my car !

what's the update ? @GilesHanna

 

[GilesHanna]

Essentially it says the car I own will be determined by the courts .
The police have explained that if it appears my car was on sale or return and that owner has not been paid for its goods - despite it having changed owners twice since sold by Gmund - it may be determined that the unpaid could approach me for their car back.
I bought by a very reputable dealer who is known to me ( personally ) and it was bought out of OPC Silverstone as a px - I essentially would have to pursue the seller and then they’d have to go to sytner .

The court case is towards the end of the year and I will need to wait 3 months after the trial - before the police can issue a letter of ‘no interest’

I’m not totally worried - but can’t be done with the aggro

 

[GilesHanna]

 

[Zimbo]

Might be worth you writing to NYP and advise them of your reg number as the correspondence that you have posted actually shows two different registration numbers.

 

[jonttt]

Wow, as so often seems the case with the legal system it appears that the innocent are just as disadvantaged as the guilty. Imagine if you where in a position (which I presume you are not) of wanting to change the car.

I guess the only silver lining in this is that for this to play out that way it must mean that Mearns has been found guilty of fraud/theft of the vehicle/cash in the first place……but then again the law can be an ass and i would not even assume that would be the case

 

[911UK]

View attachment 98657

Hiya @GilesHanna thanks for sharing and keeping us updated, greatly appreciated

whilst there is a question over ownership, but there is enough case law on this
our interest is the criminal case against Mearns, keep us updated on dates

 

[FZP]

the Mearns....scrote

 

[GilesHanna]

Hi Guys. Just a small update . I have spoken to North Allerton Police and there is a lot of info to take in. It goes something like this.
Essentially if he is charged with theft . He will have been insured and the person who has not had his money will claim. Case closed.
If on the other hand he is charged with fraud - it’s not that simple. Essentially the owner who sor’d the car CAN come to me for either the car or the money not paid as I essentially have his goods.
It is unlikely ( I imagine ) he’ll come after the car as he wanted it sold - the police have advised there is NO interest in the asset - just the money.

I bought the car through Jonathan Franklin and he bought the car out of opc Silverstone . He need to go after them for the money if it comes to it….
It’s all very annoying - I’ve also spent a few £££ on it - so it goes on.

Ironically I thought about px’ing the car a few weeks ago…as I wanted a manual car - however thought better of it as the car is lovely.

Cars for me an outlet for my mental health and the plotting and planning of a project and getting on the road and seeing mates at shows are vitally important to me.
- I’ve made a decision not to get stressed about this at present as it doesn’t feel good.

 

[jonttt]

That is probably your best strategy, the law can be an arse, then police can be an arse (their default cop out is everyone can sue everyone we can ignore the actual crime, been there a few times in business) and administrators are more interested in making money than looking after creditors (been there a few times also). Its easy to say its only a piece of metal, especially when its not your piece of metal but we are only custodians of these cars for a period of their life in any case so enjoy it for what it is. As you imply ownership of these historic cars is more than just the metal bits ;-)