Often consumers in one state, such as New Jersey, pay businesses from other states to assist them in efforts such as moving or shipping. When the item that the customer expected to be moved or shipped fails to arrive, about it can cause problems for the company that they hired. A company that customers from across the country paid to deliver boats from one state to another recently brought down its website and stopped answering phone calls. This came after the business filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy protection.
The boat transport company, Able Boat, filed for the Chapter 7 recently, and when they did, they may have left several customers out of luck when it comes to the money that they had paid to have their boats shipped. This included one man who says that he gave the company a $1,700 deposit just prior to the filing.
The company asserted in the bankruptcy filing that it had made more than $2 million from 2010 through 2011. However, it is unclear how much of that cash remained in the company at the time of the filing. Debts and liabilities in the amount of $72,000 were also listed.
The Chapter 7 bankruptcy filing will likely give the boat transporting company time to sort through its financial difficulties without intervention from creditors. Like some companies in our state of New Jersey, the business may have suffered during the recent recession. As the bankruptcy process continues, the company will seek to receive not only protections and a discharge of debts, but also a fresh financial future and a chance to begin again if the owners so wish.
Source: Tampa Bay Times, “Lutz boat transport company files for bankruptcy, leaves clients in wake,” Jessica Vander Velde, Oct. 8, 2012
