Leicester Balloon Company & Steve Gregory Scam

BEWARE! Now trading as 'Balloon Elegance UK'

2011-03-13T10:45:00.003+01:00

Steve Gregory has now changed the name of his company to Balloon Elegance UK.
All potential customers should be aware of this tactic.

Steve's new websites:
www.ballooneleganceuk.com
http://leicesterballoons.webs.com

Go whistle for your money!

2009-02-15T23:56:00.002+01:00

Steve Gregory and his Leicester Balloon Company have had their website taken offline by their webdesigners. I have saved an image of how the website looks as of 15th February 2009. The image is below. However, due to the vast image size the text is difficult so read so i have pasted it below. If you click on the imge you will just about be able to read that it says exactly what i am posting below:

WEBSITE OFFLINE
Unfortunately, Steve Gregory of Leicester Balloon Company has still not paid us for the design of this website so we have taken the extraordinary action of taking the site offline . . . again!

We are aware that Steve Gregory and Leicester Balloon Company are in a great deal of debt but we believe he has been in this position for some time and therefore shouldn't have instructed us to create the site if he has no way of paying for it.

We have successfully gained a CCJ against Steve Gregory at Leicester Balloon Company but the bailiffs at Leicester County Court where unable to enforce the warrant as Customs and Excise already have 'dibs' on much of Steve Gregory's property.
We are also aware of at least eight other suppliers that Steve Gregory and Leicester Balloon Company has failed to pay.

We can also confirm that Leicester Balloon Company has 5 CCJs against them totalling more than £4200; only one of which has been settled.

Steve Gregory and Leicester Balloon Company quote Champions UK, Avon Cosmetics, Ramada Jarvis Hotel Leicester (formerly Grand Hotel), Next, M&S, Manchester United, Leicester City F.C, Nottingham Forest F.C, BBC, Central TV, McDonalds, NSPCC, Donnington Race Circuit, Hilton, Café Royal, Tesco, Asda, Willie Thorne, Dennis Taylor, Matalan, Sainsburys, Leicester Tigers, Dickie BIrd, William Roach (Coronation Street), Paul Nixon (England wicket keeper) as satisfied clients. I do hope such big names had more joy doing business with Steve Gregory and Leicester Balloon Company than we did!

Incidentally, Steve Gregory and Leicester Balloon Company also claim to be members of NABAS, The Balloon Association. We have contacted NABAS and they confirm he is not.
If you would like to chat to us about Steve Gregory and Leicester Balloon Company please drop us an e-mail to leicesterballoonsowememoneytoo@googlemail.com

12th Feburary, 2009.

After a period of receiving small amounts of money from Mr Gregory, he has failed to answer our e-mails or letters again and has still not settled his account. We have no option but to take his site offline yet again.

22nd July, 2008 Update.

Mr Gregory has finally got in contact with us demanding that we take this page down as it is not correct. He claims that he doesn't owe Customs and Excise money; as we were told by Leicester County Court. I will, however, be taking the word of Leicester County Court over Mr Gregory.
I would also like to thank the numerous people who have e-mailed us to say they are having or have had similar problems with Mr Gregory. Your support is very welcome!

14th August, 2008 Update.

Mr Gregory has again been in touch now stating (following legal advice) he is going to sue us because the information above is 'liabless' [sic] and 'slanderous'. We tried to explain the slander laws do not apply here as they relate to false statements injurious to a person's reputation made ORALLY and that libel (a false publication that damages a person's reputation) doesn't apply as everything on this website is true.
Mr Gregory also claims that his company ". . . are prepared as we have always been - to offer payments on an installment plan and via the courts if need be." and yet, to date, we have not had a penny.

14th August, 2008 Update 2.

Mr Gregory has offered to pay his outstanding invoice by installments spread over the next three months:
"Remove it [this website] for 7 days and on the 7th day as you said a ( goodwill gesture ) of £100 will be paid via my mastercard - failure to do so will result in it going back on - followed by £100 14 days later and the remaining balance split over 2 months."
We agreed and decided to give Mr Gregory a last chance sending him a clear schedule of payments that he accepted.

21st August, 2008 Update.

Seven days later we received an e-mail from Mr Gregory stating that he had put money into his MasterCard account but it had not cleared (why didn't you just give us the money directly Mr Gregory?) and that he would be able to pay us the next day. Mr Gregory asked for our contact details so he could telephone us with the card details.

22nd August, 2008 Update.

No surprise that Mr Gregory never contacted us today as he promised. We have now put this site back online and urge other people that have been let down by Steve Gregory and Leicester Balloon Company to get in touch.
leicesterballoonsowememoneytoo@googlemail.com

3rd September, 2008 Update.

Two comments received by people let down by Steve Gregory and Leicester Balloon Company (details removed to protect identites):
"he took several thousand pounds worth of stock from xxxxxx and never paid."
"leicester Balloon Company have owed me money since December. Not much, less than £100, but still outstanding, nevertheless. he has a page promoting his business on xxxxxxx and has never paid for it, at one point claiming this was because he could not find the site even though I pointed out to him that everyone else had paid so presumably they had found it! I have sent a solicitor's letter which he has ignored."

8th September, 2008 Update.

Another comment from a disgruntled fan of Steve Gregory and Leicester Balloon Company:
"We were offered 2 large helium cannisters (should inflate 1600 balloons) rent free for £200 for the whole year. This was an incredible deal and naturally we accepted Steve Gregory's offer. And paid £200 cash. When the day came for our first balloon order for a wedding with a balloon arch and 10 table clusters we needed to inflate approx 50 balloons. We discovered that the cannisters we purchased had enough helium to inflate just 20 balloons! We then had to purchase another helium cannister which meant we were out of pocket just so that we could fulfill this order and unlike Steve Gregory not let anyone down!
Steve has not responded to any of my phonecalls to return the money he took DISHONESTLY from me. So if you are reading this Steve how about returning my money for the EMPTY cannisters you sold me?"

Send us your comments:
leicesterballoonsowememoneytoo@googlemail.com

A Review

2009-01-27T13:45:00.001+01:00

On a review of Leicester Balloon Co,
leicestergirl writes:

DO NOT USE HIS COMPANY
leicestergirl - Nov 27, 2008

One star is too many for this company. He takes your money and doesn't provide the goods. And when finally you get to speak to him, he fobs you off and promises to give what you have paid for, but then leaves you in the lurch as he doesn't do what he promised!

UPDATE: Steve Gregory and Leicester Balloon co has had this review removed. Freedom of speech anyone?

Share alike!

2009-01-18T00:45:00.002+01:00

Come share with me

For all of you who would like to share stories on Steve Gregory and his Leicester Balloon Co can now do so.

Please email:leicesterballooncoscam@googlemail.com

That isLeicester Balloon Co Scam @GoogleMail.com (without the spaces)

Once again Leicesterballooncoscam@googlemail.com

Property Ladder

2009-01-16T19:49:00.001+01:00

In the current recession most of us cannot afford to pay our heating bills, let alone move house.
But, Steve Gregory and his Leicester Balloon Co have moved from their old terraced HQ to a nice Detached property.

Leicester Balloon Co old address:
54 Dominion Road, Glenfield, Leicester, LE3 8RA
This had been the home of Leicester Balloon co since 2001.

New address:
10 Park Rise, Leicester, LE3 6SH

I.O.U to I.V.A

2009-01-12T13:13:00.000+01:00

Many of us have not heard of IVA's but they are government legislation to allow people to basically get out of payting their debts. Your debts need to be a minimum of £15,000.

I.V.A (individual voluntary agreement) loosely translated 're-negotiate your debts.'

We have all seen the advert's on TV.

'Call us and using government legislation we will wipe 75% of your debt off.'

I think this is unethical. If you have a debt, of course you should honour it.
But, regardless of what i think it is legal to get out of paying.

Borrow money, buy goods then tell the creditors you can't pay. The poor creditor then is brow beaten into wiping some of the debt just so that he collects something rather than nothing. And payment terms can be as little as £10 per week.

All I.V.A's are public information and surprise surprise Steve Gregory has an I.V.A not because he was given a 125% mortgage by the irresponsible lending of Northern Rock. But because he took goods and borrowed money from people and then didn't want to pay.

The information is stored on and official government website in the public domain.

Report Requested For: STEPHEN DOUGLAS GREGORY
Report for Individual Voluntary Arrangement Case

Individual Details
Surname GREGORY
Forename(s) STEPHEN DOUGLAS
Title Mr
Occupation
Date of Birth 16 May 1958
Last Known Address 54 DOMINION ROADGLENFIELDLEICESTERLE3 8FA

Insolvency Case Details
Case Name GREGORY, STEPHEN DOUGLAS
Court Leicester County Court
Type Individual Voluntary Arrangement
Number 0117177
Arrangement Date 16 March 2006
Status Current

Insolvency Practitioner Contact Details
Main Insolvency Practitioner
GERARD NICHOLAS RATCLIFFE
Firm DEBT MATTERS LIMITED
Address Mansell HouseAspinall CloseMiddlebrookBolton
Post Code BL6 6QQ
Telephone 01204 678 200

Insolvency Service Contact Details
Insolvency Service Office
IPU
Contact Enquiry Desk
Address 4th FloorCannon House18 Priory QueenswayBirmingham
Post Code B4 6BS - Click Post Code for Map of Office (The Insolvency Service is not responsible for the content of external sites.)
Telephone 0121 698 4180
(Click here to find the email address for this office.

Source:

http://www.insolvency.gov.uk/eiir/IIRCaseIndivDetail.asp?CaseId=95106487&IndivNo=1&Court=LEICS&OfficeID=95&CaseType=I

Who are they?

2009-01-12T13:03:00.000+01:00

Steve Gregory and his Leicester Balloon Co claim that they are members of NABAS

NABAS according to Nabas.com is: the only independent national trade association for balloon decorators, retailers, wholesalers & manufactures and suppliers of balloon related services such as gas & air in the party and promotional balloon industry.

Yet they say Steve who?

Incredible isn't it?

Steve Gregory and Leicester Balloon co on http://www.leicesterballoonco.com/ uses the logo on his website and they say he is not even a member!

Dear Jon

Thank you for your email.

Leicester Balloon Company is not a member of NABAS – many thanks for bringing this to our attention.

We shall be getting in touch with them with regard to the logo etc.

Kind Regards

Kate

Kate Walker
NABAS Administrator
NABAS
The Balloon Association
Katepwa House
Ashfield Park Avenue
Ross-on-Wye
Herefordshire
HR9 5AX
Tel: 01989 762204
Fax: 01989 567676
email: info@nabas.co.uk
http://www.nabas.co.uk/

NABAS The Balloon Association is a company Limited by Guarantee, registered in England & Wales No.4040643

I wonder whether Willie Thorne or Dennis Taylor have ever heard of Steve Gregory and his Leicester Balloon Co?