Firm files court papers seeking to appoint administrators
Electricity retailer Tomato Energy is seeking to appoint administrators after failing to get its spiralling debts under control, a court filing confirmed.
Tonight one former TE staff member branded bosses’ handling of the saga “shoddy and embarrassing” as they embarked on the task of finding alternative employment in what the Office for National Statistics (ONS) yesterday reported is a slowing jobs market.
The firm, which has bases in Basingstoke and Wolverhampton, has been under pressure from Ofgem, the regulator, for most of this year for breaching industry liquidity thresholds.
Earlier this week Ofgem said it intended to impose a £1.5m fine on TE, which has around 14,000 customers, for failing to reduce its £3m of debts.
Yesterday the company filed a court notice of intention to appoint administrators.
One disgruntled former TE staff member told WM News: “The directors of TE assured staff, many of whom have now lost their jobs, that everything was in hand and the company’s finances would be rectified imminently. Sadly that was not the case.
“The whole thing was terribly managed, and now many of us are looking for work in a very bleak jobs market in the lead-up to Christmas.
“That the TE directors could play their staff’s livelihoods like this is shoddy and embarrassing. One does wonder if they treat their own families in this way.”
Earlier this year Ofgem placed an order on TE prohibiting it from taking on any new customers.
Ofgem, announcing its intention to fine TE, said: “We are proposing a financial penalty requiring it to pay £1,500,000.
“This is for breaching the standard licence condition that requires it to obtain and maintain liquidity at a level that enables it to pay its ongoing financial liabilities.”
Last month TE made a number of its staff, including the communications team, redundant.
WM News has approached TW for comment.
