12:35 pm, July 3, 2024
Peter Waddell will not have his voting rights at Big Motoring World restored after a High Court judge threw out his application for an injunction.
Waddell was ousted in March from the car supermarket group he founded, following a breakdown in relations with investment group Freshstream.
Ahead of a full trial on the issue, likely to take place later in year, the 58-year-old applied to the High Court for an interim injunction that would see him handed back voting and information rights as majority shareholder of the business.
Car Dealer spent two days in Court 6 of the Royal Courts of Justice’s Rolls Building in May as both Freshstream and Waddell laid out their cases.
During the hearing, Waddell was accused of ‘bullying and ‘intimidation’, which he denied.
After hearing hours of evidence, mediator Murray Rosen KC reserved judgement on the issue, ahead of preparing a full written ruling.
Now, just over a month later, the judgement has been made public with Rosen deciding to throw out Waddell’s application for an interim injunction.
The experienced legal expert said Waddell had displayed ‘dangerous conduct’ and ‘cannot be trusted’ if restored to power.
He also said the Scot had shown himself ‘unable to accept the reality’ of the situation he finds himself in.
The ruling states: ‘He [Waddell] has demonstrated himself as highly disruptive, hostile and offensive to many others involved in the group and its business.
‘The danger to the group that he alleges is vague, without enough evidence to justify a reversal of its stance.
‘The contention that his previous success and acumen are unchallenged entirely misses his dangerous conduct over the recent past: experience is the safest guide to the near future.
‘I fear that he cannot be trusted (even if he gives undertakings) if he is restored to power as an interim measure, overturning the current regime.
‘Whether or not rational on his part, to impose any greater control in Mr Waddell’s favour would for now risk his trumpeting it to wreak attrition and revenge on those within or related to the group, to its and their serious detriment, in ways which are seriously hazardous, uncontrollable, unpredictable, and unlikely to be quantifiable.’
‘Restoration would lead to resignations and distress’
During the hearing, a string of allegations was made against the used car supermarket boss, who was labelled as ‘abusive, racist, sexist, misogynistic and irrational’.
Edward Davies KC, representing Bluebell Cars, of which Freshstream is an investor, told the court that Waddell was accused of ‘physically slapping or punching’ the manager of one of his sites – a complaint which, he says, was later upheld by an independent investigation.
The court was also told that a complaint of racist comments from Waddell was upheld as well, with the company’s report returning ‘findings of bullying behaviour’ towards employees.
In addition, Waddell is said to have made references to sex and used other offensive language ‘in the context of important meetings’.
NatWest is also said to have considered ‘de-banking’ the group as a result of his behaviour, while the company was left ‘in the last chance saloon’ with Black Horse.
In his ruling, Judge Rosen added: ‘The likely outcome of restoration would be serious disruption to the management of the group, resignations amongst senior management and distress to employees, especially those who have suffered from the abusive behaviour of Mr Waddell or perceived by him to have participated in the investigations into his behaviour.’
The judge said ‘there would also be the material risk of a breakdown in the group’s relationships with vitally important counterparties, including its bank, NatWest, and one of its key lenders, Black Horse, whom Mr Waddell’s misconduct had offended’.
He added: ‘For those reasons, expressed as concisely and discretely as I can manage within the timescale appropriate, the application for interim injunctions will be dismissed.’
The case so far
- Big Motoring World’s Peter Waddell fuming as used car supermarket says he’s taking ‘leave of absence’
- Peter Waddell threatens High Court action after shock removal as Big Motoring World director
- Day 1: Big Motoring World founder Peter Waddell appears at High Court as future hangs in balance
- Day 2: Peter Waddell lays out demands as High Court hearing enters second day
- Day 2: Peter Waddell’s conduct comes under intense scrutiny as High Court case continues
- Used car supermarket founder Peter Waddell accused of ‘bullying’ and ‘intimidation’ as High Court ponders case
- Meet the mediator who will decide whether to grant Peter Waddell’s High Court demands
‘Questionable process’
In his own evidence, Waddell denied claims of misconduct and said an independent investigation into the allegations was ‘very questionable’.
The court was told that the inquiry began on March 7 – the day Waddell was appearing on stage at our Car Dealer Live event as a headline speaker – with Waddell’s solicitors asking for full details of the allegations on March 13.
After making further chases on March 18, they were told a day later that it would be ‘inappropriate’ to provide details of the allegations to Waddell and his team.
Waddell was later signed off sick by a doctor, and despite being ‘eager to co-operate with the investigation’, his requests for more time to respond were denied.
His lawyer, Paul Chaisty KC, said the independent investigator was then ‘instructed to come to a conclusion’ on April 9 despite having concerns that he had not yet spoken to Waddell.
When asked by the judge if he thought the investors had been motivated by a desire to get rid of Waddell, Chaisty replied: ‘Absolutely.’
‘The investigation should have been undertaken within the basic principles of justice,’ he later added.
‘We say a very questionable process was adopted.
‘The investor did not act reasonably when it decided to trigger the investigation because of the historic nature of those allegations.’
Waddell’s camp also claimed he had been ‘denied natural justice’ as he was ‘not heard’ in the disciplinary processes and did not have ‘proper detail of the allegations raised against him’.
In the ruling, judge Rosen wrote: ‘The Claimants express fear that without Mr Waddell’s control, the group is being or may be mismanaged.
‘They have pressed for information and explanations but in the meantime, they submit that their “contractual rights and interests are simply being ignored and by-passed to [their] detriment” and they “now have no effective power to control what [they] regards as wrong decisions which are adversely affecting the business and therefore [their] investment in the same”.’
The full ruling can be found here. When approached by Car Dealer, Waddell vowed to fight on and take the case to a full trial.
