The Hannay Partnership in The Wirral has been wound up, after falsely claiming to produce magazines, which supported the emergency services.
It came following an investigation by the Insolvency Service, which brought the case to the High Court in Manchester.
In the hearing, the court heard that the Hannay Partnership, which was established in 2013, claimed to publish 3 quarterly magazines in support of the emergency services. The titles were To The Rescue, Survivor and On Call.
From February 2015, it cold-called local companies, societies and schools to sell advertising space. This generated an average weekly income of £7500.
However, the court was told that sales staff made a “variety of false and misleading claims” to secure their business.
The claims included staff pretending to be members of the emergency services, misrepresenting print runs and circulation and also stating that proceeds would go to the emergency services.
The Insolvency Service was told that the company printed 6000 magazines a year across all editions, which were then distributed for free. However, the investigation revealed that only 450 were published in 2017; and 200 in 2018.
They also found no evidence that they were distributed to emergency service personnel, or that any financial contribution had been made by the company to the services or associated charities.
“The Hannay Partnership manipulated the national goodwill towards our emergency services, using deliberately misleading practices to secure revenue that was then not used for the advertised purposes,” said Scott Crighton, Chief Investigator for the Insolvency Service.
“We welcome the court’s decision to wind up the Hannay Partnership in the public interest, stopping this unscrupulous behaviour in its tracks and ensuring that businesses and individuals that choose to contribute financially to our emergency services can do so in confidence that their donations will be passed on.”
The Official Receiver has been appointed as liquidator.
