Electric Scooter Company Files Chapter 7 Bankruptcy

Written by CFB Blogger. Posted in Blog

Vectrix, an electric scooter company based in New Bedford, Massachusetts, has filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy in U.S. Bankruptcy Court. The company, which lists its assets between $1 million and $10 million and its estimated liabilities as between $10 million to $50 million, had filed Chapter 11 bankruptcy in 2009 and had agreed to sell most of its assets at that time. According to its Facebook page, Vectrix was founded in 1996 “with one objective—to create core technology that would provide clean, efficient, reliable and affordable transportation”. According to articles in the Boston Business Journal by David Harris and Transport Evolved by Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield, the Vectix MaxiScooter is sold in this country and in Europe. The vehicle was designed to “encourage commuters out of their cars and onto two wheels with an easy-to-ride, easy-to-maintain maxi scooter…The Vectrix VX1 Maxi-Scooter was designed to appeal to non-bikers, while its twist-throttle single-gear drivetrain and hand-operated brakes meant almost anyone could ride it.” A main challenge for those who may have been considering switching from their automobile to a scooter was its price. Transport Evolved reports, “With gasoline 250cc maxi-scooters costing as little as £4,000 [c. $6,700 USD] in the UK and vespa-style 250cc scooters selling for £3,000 [c. $5,000 USD] or less, the £5,995 [c. $10,000 USD] Vectrix VX1 was simply too expensive for many commuters to consider.” The article continues, ”Then there’s fuel economy. While there’s a fairly large difference between the fuel economy of a petrol car and an electric car, most maxi-scooters and scooters today are capable of fuel economies ranging from 70 mpg all the way up to 100+ mpg. For most commuters, the switch from a petrol car achieving 40 mpg to a scooter achieving over 100 mpg is more than enough. Worse still, with such a high fuel economy it takes a long time for any fuel savings of the £2,000 [c. $3,300 USD] additional purchase price to pay off, especially if you’re commuting a short distance every day.” In addition, it seems that although many Americans enjoy two-wheeled transportation, they perceive it more of a weekend pastime than in terms of their daily commute.  Indeed, in most parts of the country, two-wheel transportation would be practical only a few months a year; with the exception, perhaps of California, Texas, Arizona, New Mexico and Florida. Other problems facing the scooter company include battery-pack and power control circuitry problems as well as unreliable support from franchised dealers. The Client First Bankruptcy attorneys are among the most knowledgeable consumer bankruptcy attorneys in the U.S., representing thousands of clients in Chapter 7 and Chapter 13 bankruptcy cases. Call us toll-free 800-383-6004 Monday-Friday from 8:30 a.m.-6:00 p.m. Central Time. For vital and accurate information about bankruptcy filing, you can log onto our easy-to-navigate, interactive website at www.clientfirstbankruptcy.com 24/7.