Motor dealership Lookers Plc said an investigation into ‘potentially fraudulent transactions’ found fraud led to a loss of £327,000 - and reported a drop in profit and revenue.
In financial statements for the year ended December 31, the group reported a pre-tax loss of £45.5m, down from a pre-tax profit of £41.9m the previous year.
It also reported revenue dropped from £4,828m to £4,787.2m, which it said was driven by the total 5 per cent increase in used car revenue and a total 6.7 per cent increase in after sales revenue.
The results were published following an audit investigation from Grant Thornton, and with additional work from Looker’s internal team and its auditor, Deloitte.
Lookers announced it was to delay publishing its full-year results in March after it identified “potentially fraudulent transactions”.
The following day, Lookers announced its newly-appointed chief financial officer Cameron Wade was to resign with immediate effect.
The group said the investigation found cash expenses fraud which led to a loss of £327,000, which accumulated over several years.
Phil White, executive chairman, said the last 12 months have been “extremely challenging” because of “accounting issues” and the impact of Covid-19.
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“Significant restructuring activity has been necessary to ensure we lay the right foundations for the future.”
“The Investigation into our financial systems and accounting controls, the delay in the publication of our 2019 results and the subsequent temporary suspension of our shares have been a great disappointment.
“As Chairman of Lookers, I would like to apologise unreservedly to all our stakeholders for the uncertainty this has caused.”
He continued: “We emerged from the initial lockdown in a strong position and are well equipped to deal with the second lockdown in England.
“We have an industry leading portfolio, underpinned by a talented and dedicated team which means that we can look to the future with confidence.”
“My focus now is to restore the listing of our shares and to strengthen the board to take advantage of the many opportunities that lie ahead for Lookers, which is fundamentally a great business.”