OLCI in Administration ???

[Drexyn]

I just received a letter today from a company called ERR, Engineering Real Results. They state that they are the administrators of OLCI and have accepted a transfer of my contract with them and i'm now bound to their terms and conditions.

I know nothing about this company as yet so i'm concerned about the remaining parts of my training i still have to complete as they have also made a point that i will be hearing from their finance department concerning future payments for my training. I paid OLCI in full so now this is very concerning.

Anyone spoken to these people or know what the script is?

Cheers

Trev

 

[jjcale]

Hello mate

I have been through the same thing. I received a letter saying college's have transferred and another letter stating they will no longer tutor me which is valid as i finished my course in 2012 BUT i have been working on my NVQ 3 2356/2357 since then...handed it in in Nov 2013...then again in Feb and then for the third and last time in May. In this time the bloody college goes into administration, literally as i was supposed to get my certificate!

I tried ringing and ringing. 4 different numbers and it all went to automated voice msg. So i took a day off work and went straight to the Training centre in Watford. I finally got an email address off the manager there of the lady who is dealing with all this and i have been in contact with her since..but its an uphill battle. Anyway now they said they can send my portfolio in but i now need my practical assessment certificate to go along with it which i assume they mean the AM2 which i might have to do now which will cost me about 700 quid. This is on top of the couple of grand i paid OLCI for the full course...Im waiting on a final response from this woman to see what i have to do..i have addresses and email.. and if anyone has a number for a direct line pls swing it my way!

 

[Stretch44]

Hi All. So confusing all this isn't it. My position is I sent in my portfolio for 2357 six weeks ago. Course paid off (£6K). Can't get through too ERR. Can't get return email. Did get through on phone once and guy said he wouldn't be able to tell me anything about my result other than just wait, wait, wait, wait. Should be two weeks he said. Six weeks later, nothing. Been rewiring three houses and doing a ton of little domestic jobs. Can't sign anything off. Have to give that duty to other spark I get work from. ERR seems very mysterious. OLCI was without doubt the worst college I have encountered (and I've taught in quite a few). So, do we feel optimistic that ERR are going to do right by the students they've inherited or are we all going to be shafted and left with nothing?

 

[Drexyn]

Ok so i just received a training pack through the door today from ERR and it's for .....wait for it ....... a domestic Installers course. I am absolutely gutted at this right now but as i mentioned previously i get what i deserved having paid in full.

This brings me to my next course of options. Do we all get organised as a group of students who have been jilted by the training providers and take this to 1. the press or 2. a legal solicitor and we all collate all of our information and take the case directly to these cowboys who have basically fleeced us all and are laughing all the way to the bank with our hard earned cash?

We deserve to receive the quality training that we paid for and of course the right certificates that we all have a signed contract of agreement for as well. As for the directors of these companies, well they are laughing all the way to the bank on our money.

I have a few things to finish off this week and by this weekend i should be in a better position to start the ball rolling and look into all of the options on the table. I sent an email to ERR on 07/08/14 to the admin address i highlighted previously and so far no response.

I will start getting names and details of people and start building as much info as i can before seeking legal help so that if we have the option of a case, then i can work out the financial aspects and start the ball rolling.

 

[trev]

This brings me to my next course of options. Do we all get organised as a group of students who have been jilted by the training providers and take this to 1. the press or 2. a legal solicitor and we all collate all of our information and take the case directly to these cowboys who have basically fleeced us all and are laughing all the way to the bank with our hard earned cash?

Total and utter waste of time, money and effort. OLCI is insolvent, this means it has no money so any judgment that you get will not be worth anything. ERR could and probably would get any claim you make against them thrown out very easily simply by asking you to provide proof of an existing contract between you and them.
Companies go under all the time, it's a fact of life. Usually it's the suppliers who are left out of pocket, sometimes it's the consumers who have paid in advance as some of you guys have. Sadly, if you cannot get ERR to honour your agreements with OLCI (which realistically there is no reason why they should) then this has to be chalked down to experience.
Put your unsecured claims in with who ever is handling the insolvency, hope that there will be a payout at the end of it (unlikely) and move on.
Sorry but that's the best advice I can give.

 

[trev]

So, I just got a reply (of sorts) from a guy [email protected] Here it is word for word-

Dear Trevor
Thank you for your email which has been passed to us for reply.
We cannot, with the greatest of respect, respond directly to your email.
Again, with the utmost respect, a gmail account is not something we would expect from an executive of a forum.
Any/all our contact(s) would be with Mr Freakley.
Kind regards
Eric

Now why they are reluctant to answer is beyond me, they have an opportunity to set the record straight and let you guys know exactly where you stand with regard to what has/hasn't been done and what the way forward is, if any.
I never claimed to be an executive of this forum. I clearly stated that I am a member who is trying to help a bunch of trainees out but obviously Eric is a condescending little ----- who thinks he can talk down to people. This is usually a good indicator of how a company looks at it's customers, it's like the old saying- you can tell a lot about a man from his friends.
Who this Mr Freakley is, I have no idea.

So there you go boys and girls, make of that lot what you will but I think it's pretty obvious that they have been dodging you and are going to continue to do so. So I think your next port of call is your local branch of Ofsted but I think you're going to have to get yourselves organised and speak with one voice. This is where a facebook group will be invaluable, you'll need to appoint a spokesperson and give him or her written authorisation to act on your behalf otherwise Ofsted are going to invoke the Data Protection Act (rightly so) and refuse to talk about individual cases.
If I can help any further, you know where I am.

 

[trev]

More from Eric, "Mr Freakley is the owner of the electrician's and plumber's forum and yes, we are in contact with him on the matter"
Had he referred to him properly in the first place I'd have known who he was talking about.

 

[Gaz2750]

Right I have just read all the posts on hear. This really doesn't look good for us. I, like all the others have phoned/emailed with NO result. I paid for my gas course upfront (4k) on my credit card. Have any of you guys tried to claim through your card provider? I have phoned MasterCard tonight & have to phone again tomorrow but it didn't sound hopefull. Has anyone tried 0844 264 2970? That's a new number passed to me tonight but haven't tried it yet? If I get no joy from my credit card I really don't know what to do next. Can anyone help? I really can't afford to loose 4k (I found this forum by typing in google "problems with olci")

 

[Gaz2750]

Hi there have you had any luck with contacting err? I am 4k out of pocket and only done 10 days training for my gas! I'm totally let down. I paid on credit card and tomorrow I will find out if I can make a claim-but they didn't sound hopeful on the phone tonight. Do you know any1 who has tried to claim?

 

[Drexyn]

I received a letter today from the training team requesting that i send in a copy of my receipt from OLCI or a financial record of payment made to OLCI to confirm my course was fully paid. They are stating they have not received the said documents from OLCI when requested, how convenient of them.

I have been instructed to send proof of payment by post and NOT by email.

It looks very much like this is going to continue in a long drawn out process only for me to be told to cough up or move on. This is verging on the ridiculous and i have to be honest i did anticipate this to happen so am i really surprised...... absolutely not.

I will look at getting a Facebook page set up shortly and start offering out invites in due course, it's time to start acting in a more organised fashion. I have friends in the media who will be very interested in this as well and a couple of calls can make a lot of difference and a very uncomfortable time for our new providers.

There is nothing worse than a few reporters digging into company records and financial affairs to find out a few hidden gems. Could be interesting viewing ... watch this space.

 

[trev]

Well one not so hidden gem is that OLCI and ERR appear to have directors in common although I doubt that there's much mileage in this if I'm honest mate. Companies go under on Friday and a new one sets up on a Monday all the time, it's one of the failings of limited liability. The new company starts with a clean slate because in law it's nothing to do with the old one.
I understand your frustration but I really can't see you getting very far

 

[Drexyn]

New Facebook page up and running now.

If you want to join please send me a message and i will add you on to it.

The group is for OLCI students only who have been transferred to ERR.

The group name is - OLCI/ERR Students

I will add when i can.

 

[Rockyanne]

New Facebook page up and running now.

If you want to join please send me a message and i will add you on to it.

The group is for OLCI students only who have been transferred to ERR.

The group name is - OLCI/ERR Students

I will add when i can.

Can't find the page on facebook?

 

[Drexyn]

Ok i will try a link to it instead and see if that works.

https://www.facebook.com/groups/359593530856480/

Just a footnote to the link, it is case sensitive and the OLCI & ERR are all capitals as is the S in Students.

Try that instead if all else fails.

 

[Drexyn]

Just a quick update to all former OLCI students, we now have a Facebook group running and at present we have 18 members, i will keep it open for further invites for two more weeks from today then i will close the group and continue with the members who have joined.

This will start to take up a considerable amount of my time and effort going forward therfore i will be setting all my focus on the action group and all the legal perameters that will ensue.

Thanks for your interest and get signed up soon.

Details in previous post for the page.

 

[trev]

I'd keep it open for longer than 2 weeks mate, there are likely to be a hell of a lot of people in the same boat as you. You might have to shout about the group a bit too.
What are you hoping to achieve mate if you don't mind me asking? Your mention of legal things makes me wonder.

 

[Drexyn]

I'd keep it open for longer than 2 weeks mate, there are likely to be a hell of a lot of people in the same boat as you. You might have to shout about the group a bit too.
What are you hoping to achieve mate if you don't mind me asking? Your mention of legal things makes me wonder.

Hi Trev, I appreciate your interest in what i plan to do but i cannot answer your question until i have collated all the details from everyone who is in the group and found what the common issues are. Until then all i can say is that every avenue will be looked into.

As for the timescale, i'm afraid two weeks is the best i can give until i close the group for any further invites, that way i can sit down and work through each individual issue and collate all the data together to create a portfolio of common issues, i also have a holiday to take somewhere along there as i definately need one.

Once all details have been collated we as a group will look at the best options for persual and take things from there. So far we have in excess of 20 members and it is growing steadily now. I think it is right that we get organised and start a process where collectively we cannot be ignored any further. It is also fair that we give ERR the right to reply in a timely manner.

 

[trev]

Fair enough mate, just remember though. Your contracts were with OLCI not ERR, if they want to tell you to go away then they will and there's not a great deal you can do.
I'm just a bit concerned that you were going to instruct lawyers on this because we all know that they don't come cheap.

 

[Rockyanne]

Hi. I have been joining in behalf of my partner but kept getting declined.

 

[Rockyanne]

Can't find the page on facebook?

Hi. I have been joining in behalf of my partner but kept getting declined. Please accept my request. Thanks

 

[Rockyanne]

Hi. I have been joining in behalf of my partner but kept getting declined.

New Facebook page up and running now.

If you want to join please send me a message and i will add you on to it.

The group is for OLCI students only who have been transferred to ERR.

The group name is - OLCI/ERR Students

I will add when i can.

Hi. I have been joining in behalf of my partner but kept getting declined. Please accept my request. Thank you