Smith and Partner - Refundee is helping investors
Refundee is currently helping people who invested in Smith and Partner recover their money from their bank. This was the art investment scheme run by Luke Sparkes and Michael Conway. The scheme has been extensively covered by the Daily Mail who have described this as a “scam”.
We have been contacted by a number of people, and have started to work with them to recover their money. We believe that the chances of recovering the money are good as long as people meet certain criteria. We want to make people aware of their options and let them know how and when to use Refundee if they wish to do so.
If you paid via credit card
If you paid by credit card, you should have protection under Section 75 of the Consumer Credit Act 1974. This covers you as long as you paid £100 via credit card but it only covers you up to £30,000. If you paid a deposit via credit card and the rest via another method, you can still claim up to £30,000.
In simple terms, the protection applies if there is a breach of contract or misrepresentation by the retailer (in this case Smith and Partner). Therefore, you need to contact your credit card provider and explain to them:
What you were told you were getting and what you got
Any misrepresentations or lies you were told when you invested
It helps if you have solid examples and clear documentary evidence.
If your credit card provider denies your claim, that’s when Refundee can step in and help. You can also try to do a chargeback on your credit card but there are time limits for chargebacks (see below).
If you paid via UK Bank Transfer
As long as your bank is signed up to the Contingent Reimbursement Model Code and you meet certain criteria, we think you should be able to get your money back from your bank.
Refundee is currently helping people get their money back if they sent it via bank transfer. You may wish to report this fraud to your bank first before contacting Refundee as they may refund you. However, so far banks are claiming that this isn’t covered by the code. We are confident that in most cases they are incorrect and that you should get your money back.
If you paid via Debit card
You can try and get your money back via a chargeback. This is similar in some ways to section 75 and you can raise a dispute against the merchant (Smith and Partner). Your bank can refuse a chargeback if it doesn’t think it will succeed. In this case, you’d likely be raising a dispute on the basis that the goods/service were not as described, or haven't been delivered.
If you paid via debit card, you may need to act fast. This is because there are time limits from the date of the “presentment” (usually within a few days of making the transaction) to raise the chargeback. Generally you have 120 days but we believe this is an “ongoing service” so you should generally have 540 days. Each scheme has different rules (Mastercard, Visa, American Express) and the above timelines are a guide.
Before Refundee can help you, you will need to go through the chargeback process with your bank first. This will likely involve submitting evidence. If the chargeback is declined or refused Refundee should be able to take on your case. Unfortunately, we cannot help if you missed the 540 day deadline to raise a chargeback.
How can Refundee help?
Firstly, it’s the right thing to acknowledge that you can do this process yourself. Of course, doing it yourself can avoid having to incur a fee.
We only charge you if we’re successful (no-win, no-fee), and we specialise in UK fraud regulation. If you decided you would like our help, then you can Start Your Claim on our website. We will then investigate your case, let you know whether we can help, put together your case, and manage the process from beginning to end. Our fees are fair, industry lowest, and simple. Read more about them here.
We manage each case individually, however, the more victims who get in touch with us, the better. We can build detailed knowledge of what happened and use that across everyone’s case to improve their chances of success. That way, everyone benefits.
How would the process work?
Using Refundee, we manage everything for you. We start with an investigation to understand what happened in your specific circumstances. Then after some paperwork, we manage your case from the beginning to the end; from working with your bank through to the Financial Ombudsman Service.
These cases can take around 6-12 months, although they can be quicker or longer.
Who are Refundee?
Refundee are fraud refund specialists, and you can read about what our previous customers have said about us on Trustpilot. We’ve had good success in previous group cases, even when victims have been told by their banks that they’re not able to get a refund.
Here are the technical bits:
Refundee Ltd is a claims management company authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority in respect of regulated claims management activity FRN: 937096.
Registered with the Information Commissioner's Office; registration number: A8986071.
Registered office address: Refundee, 3rd Floor, 86-90 Paul Street, London, EC2A 4NE.
Registered as a company in England & Wales; number: 12855931.
