DUBAI // Scottish oil and gas worker Euan Ramsay moved back to the UK with his family in August after eight years in the UAE, and called in Ex-Pat Relocations to handle the move.
He paid Dh25,000 for a door-to-door service but was forced to pay out thousands more when he learnt that his possessions had been abandoned hundreds of miles away at a port in England.
“The items were due to be shipped to Grangemouth, near Edinburgh, about three hours from our new home,” Mr Ramsay said.
“Three or four days after we had left the UAE, I sent Ex-Pat Relocations emails to check that our stuff was en route.”
Mr Ramsay received an email from Michael Wood, who was dealing with delivering the items as operations manager for the UK side of the business, asking for further payments to release the goods from customs.
“We had been told by [Lionel] Davis that we had paid all the fees in Dubai, so it was a surprise,” Mr Ramsay said.
“I’ve got two children who were about to start school so we wanted our things as soon as possible, and paid the bill.”
A week later Mr Ramsay received another email from Mr Wood saying he had resigned from the business and that the company had ceased trading, so the expat was forced to pay out more money for another company to deliver his container to Scotland.
Mr Wood claims payments had been withheld from the Dubai side of the operation, holding up the delivery.
“During Euan’s effects arriving at port, I was promised daily by Lionel Davis that he had transferred money to Expat UK,” said Mr Wood, who claims to be taking his own legal action against Ex-Pat Relocations.
“Lionel kept coming up with the excuse that there were problems with the bank. I have not had any access to a bank account in Dubai. I’m owed in excess of £30,000.”
nwebster@thenational.ae
