BCBM Ltd. - Open letter to Ownerships syndicate members

BCBM – WE’RE HERE TO HELP

An open letter from Andrew Barton.

In January 2008, Challenger Syndicates went out of business in similar circumstances to those now facing Ownerships. At that time, along with my colleagues who worked for Challenger and literally thousands of owners, I found myself facing an uncertain future.

Amid all the mess and confusion John Cunliffe and I quickly started to work on a way forward. We immediately enlisting the help of nominated syndicate representatives to design the kind of shared ownership boat Management Company that they wanted. We urgently helped organise an EGM for each boat, so the owners could make important decisions on the issues that were suddenly facing them. All we asked in return was to be allowed to present what our new company BCBM could offer them in terms of syndicate management going forwards.

Then, as now, we operated on the principle that it’s the owners’ boat and the owners’ money, so it’s for them alone to decide what should happen. However, we offered to help wherever we could in the short term and I am delighted to say that almost all of the boat syndicates decided to appoint us to manage their boats.

Over the last two and a half years we have worked immensely hard to ensure that we deliver what we promised. Our business is based entirely on owners being happy with the service we provide; if not then they can vote to go elsewhere. We are proud to say that this year all the syndicates re-elected BCBM again as their management company.

To Ownerships owners, we would say one thing; we have already been through what you are facing now. So we feel well positioned to be able to share our experience with you if you are looking for some re-assurance, help and support during these troubled times. We are readily available to talk to and would be happy to help keep everything on track for a smooth transition, regardless of which direction you decide to go. We would, of course, be delighted to be able to present our services to any Ownerships syndicate.

We believe confidence in shared ownership took a knock in January 2008 and this is bound to be the case again now. However, our approach to syndicate management has rebuilt confidence among the former Challenger owners.

We offer totally transparent accounting with 24/7 access to your bank account. Every owner receives monthly income and expenditure accounts which reconcile back to the syndicate bank account, along with copies of printed bank statements. This way, every owner knows all there is to know about the boat’s finances.

We facilitate your AGM’s, taking minutes and ensuring that all necessary documents are sent to owners before the meeting. This ensures that everyone can consider the major issues before the event, so the discussions and decisions you make are well informed.

We also have the ability to move any Ownerships boat at short notice to one of our top marinas in the case of a boatyard or marina threatening to ‘chain up your boat’ due to non-payment of bills. (Something we understand may be causing some owners great concern right now.) We can look after your investment and ensure its complete safety at all times by utilising our professional and dedicated network of contacts throughout the waterways.

In short, you can rest assured; whenever you need it, at BCBM we’re here to help.

Please feel free to contact Andrew at:-

Tel 01270 628 076

Mob 07768 741 213

andrew.barton@bcbm.co.uk