By SONJA KOREMANS
THE parent company of Peter Stewart Ford in Warwick has been placed into receivership.
Spiralling debt and owner mismanagement are believed to have led to a receiver being appointed to the privately owned Southern Cross Automotive Group.
The company’s headquarters are in Toowoomba with car dealerships in Dalby, Roma, Warwick and Chinchilla.
The business has more than 200 staff making it a major employer in the region.
A Peter Stewart Ford representative said there had not been any job losses at the dealership and it was “business as usual”. He declined to comment further.
The highly regarded business employs about 20 staff.
Receiver Peter Hedge of Hedge and Associates in Sydney took control of Southern Cross Automotive Group yesterday.
Mr Hedge said the insolvency did not reflect the company’s ability to continue operating as a viable business.
“It’s been necessary to relieve the previous owners of the management of the company for the purposes of being able to keep the business trading during the transition to a new owner,“ Mr Hedge told media yesterday.
“It is effectively like a change of ownership.“
He said he did not anticipate that any jobs would be lost.
Some businesses have lost money through their dealings with the previous management.
Mr Hedge said those owed money by Southern Cross Automotive Group would be repaid where possible after the business and assets were sold.
