THE NORTON SAGA BIKERGLORYBACKGROUNDThe online rumours and claims started around two years ago all was apparently not well with Stuart Garners newly re incarnated Norton. Sections of the motorcycle media and consumer organisations were approached by unhappy customers, detailing their grievances. A UK bike builder published details of his own problematic relationship with Norton on his website, and other complaints popped up in a variety of contexts, from the BBC to Classic Bike. But nothing was followed up, and the rumours kept on coming. Prompted by an email from a disgruntled customer, we decided to investigate since no one else seemed to be bothering. When Norton did get extensive coverage, it appeared to concentrate on spinning the companys PR activities, such as their dubious ventures to the Isle of Man. We collected evidence in the form of statements, signed correspondence, and interviews with a variety of individuals Norton customers, suppliers, and dealers including highly respected individuals with many years experience in their field. All of them were contacted again pre publication to ensure anything attributed to them was accurate. In cases where a source preferred to remain anonymous, they provided evidence of their identity and their relationship with Norton. All source details are listed at the end of the piece. The picture they painted makes for disturbing viewing. Problems have not gone away, despite the 2. EXEFG Government backed Santander loan aimed at boosting exports and underwritten by the tax payer. Were publishing registered company accounts for 2. Mr. Garners previous directorships and extracts from a company report on Norton, along with key allegations and evidence. ALLEGATION 1. Norton Motorcycles have consistently failed to fill orders on time, despite holding deposits of up to 1. In some cases customers have waited almost two years for a bike or a refund, at which point they have had little option but to seek legal advice. Little Fighter Saga Download' title='Little Fighter Saga Download' />EVIDENCECustomers who contacted us provided accounts which are remarkably consistent. A deposit is paid up to 1. The bike fails to materialise, and despite fresh delivery dates being promised, very little happens after that until the threat or commencement of legal action eventually results in the situation being remedied. Richard Anderson is a solicitor who has successfully acted for eight such customers, with another two cases currently being examined. He said Clients had paid money for a product which was not forthcoming. In such circumstances recovering funds becomes the objective, and in order to facilitate that, we were obliged to instigate serial winding up proceedings against the company on behalf of individual clients. At which point Norton satisfied the debt in question. Richard AndersonBike builder Steve Hillary was one such customer, and published his account of his experience online. In a nutshell, Hillary waited two years for a bike, having paid a 1. It took the threat of a winding up order for him to finally get his money back, despite a personal meeting with Nortons CEO, during the course of which the charismatic Mr. Garner made promises about delivery which were never kept, another familiar refrain from customers, suppliers and dealers alike. Going to a solicitor was the last resort. I was just fed up being lied to. Steve Hillary Clare from Cornwall name disguised ordered a twin seat Cafe Racer for her husband as a 2. February 2. 01. 1 at which point no such machine, parts or necessary tooling actually existed, and no twin seat CAD drawings had been prepared,  according to a separate source see below. Having initially put down a 1,5. July 2. 01. 1 Norton rang her saying a cancellation slot could be secured via payment of the balance. Reassured by positive Norton coverage in MCN on 181. Clare took out a loan and paid up. Nothing happened. The Life and Death of Cormac the Skald Kormaks Saga Online Medieval and Classical Library Release 7. Originally written in Icelandic sometime between 1250. In the generally upbeat annals of American military aviation, the plump, snubnosed little fighter called the Brewster Buffalo stands out as a turkey. The. The Street Fighter series unique cast of world warriors have made for some amazing action figures over the years, once Hasbro got done screwing things up. In March 2. 01. 2, three weeks before a winding up order taken out on Clares behalf was due to be enforced against them, Norton finally paid out. The stress of the experience is still with her. We ordered and paid a 1. Feb. 2. 01. 1 at the factory itself, supposedly due for delivery in June. June came and went with no news. Little-Fighter-2-Dark-7.jpeg' alt='Little Fighter Saga (mod)' title='Little Fighter Saga (mod)' />We kept phoning and struggled to get through. Eventually we reached them and were told by the Sales Manager, Craig Lormer that there was a problem with  the parts for the dual seat, hence the delay, and that the bike was now scheduled for delivery in late September. However, in July they phoned to say there was a cancellation slot so they could guarantee us delivery for a single seat caf racer on a dual frame in 2 weeks if we paid in full to secure the slot. I thought this strange but the papers incl. MCN were full of praise for them. Calls went unanswered. I eventually received a call from Craig  to say that the factory had temporarily ceased  production due to problems with their suppliers We were willing to maintain the order as long as they returned all our money bar the deposit and gave us a new delivery date. They refused on both counts Craig advised we would have to cancel the order ab initio to get our money back, which I did. He sent me an email in  Sept to say that the refund request was being processed and,  presumably because he knew he was about to leave the company, he also supplied me with the invoice I had requested on numerous occasions. Then we heard nothing more from him. Clares Statement  Norton themselves admitted to the BBC in late November 2. May 2. 01. 2. We also have a statement from another customer with an outstanding order August 2. Awaiting bike for 1. Robs Statement  MATTERS ARISINGA simple internet search will turn up page after page of irate customer comment. They could all be making it up, but the fact that a disparate group of individuals, from territories scattered across the globe, are autonomously exposing their own difficulties with the same small company, strongly suggests otherwise. ALLEGATION 2. Norton have experienced severe problems obtaining spares, exacerbated by deteriorating relationships with manufacturers and suppliers, at least one of whom had to take legal action to recover monies owed to them by Norton. EVIDENCEFritz Egli, legendary MD of Egli Racing, became Nortons Swiss importer. This was what he had to say about his relationship with Norton. Unfortunately our relationship with Norton has been problematic. There have been a number of ongoing issues, particularly a chronic shortage of spares. Fritz Egli Egli is currently involved in talks with Norton aimed at resolving serious difficulties he has experienced with the company. As a result, he was unable to comment further, but will be keeping BG informed of developments. A senior ex manager at Norton now employed elsewhere, who can not be named but whose identity is known to us, witnessed problems relating to suppliers at first hand. Many suppliers were significantly overdue payment. This caused the vast majority of product supply to move to a pro forma plus debt basis, i. This was extremely difficult to manage due to the insufficient funds available within the business. Manager, Ex Norton This view was corroborated by Steve Gentil, director and co founder of Xtreme Motorsports, who was contacted by Garner to fabricate frames for the 9. Garner fell out with Xtremes predecessor, PAB Coventry. Gentil said Our relationship with Norton in general and Stuart Garner in particular was problematic. Embed Pdf Parameters.