A PRESTIGIOUS car dealership has suddenly shut down – leaving some customers saying they have lost money or cannot retrieve motors they had entrusted to the firm.
Targa Florio Cars, a luxury dealer based in Chichester, West Sussex, recently closed without any clear public explanation, with their website taken offline, its telephone line no longer operational and its Google listing showing it as “permanently closed”.
Renowned for selling high-class cars, ranging from top-of-the-range Audi SUVs through to Ferrari supercars and even classics, the dealer’s site at Walnut Farm Science Park has since been discovered empty with the landlord advertising it to let again, according to Car Dealer Magazine.
What’s more, the firm’s Auto Trader advertising page has also been removed – although older adverts can still be found on other platforms such as PistonHeads.
One major concern now is that some of the cars Targa Florio held were reportedly on a “sale or return” basis, meaning customers placed their motors with the dealer to be sold on their behalf and expected the proceeds once a sale was completed.
Multiple customers have posted online alleging that their cars were sold but they have not received the money, with any attempts to contact the business gone unanswered.
One reviewer on TrustPilot claims the company sold their car and then “ghosted” them, while another states they were told in November that their car had sold but received no replies to repeated emails and WhatsApp messages through December and early January.
There are also allegations elsewhere online that warranty-related invoices remain unpaid.
Some customers on Facebook have revealed they’re trying to trace the director, William Kirkham, saying they have been left “high and dry”.
Curiously, there has been no official announcement that the business has entered liquidation or that administrators have been appointed.
Sun Motors has made an attempt to contact the dealership, as well as Kirkham, but has yet to receive a response.
Car Dealer Magazine, with the help of an accountancy expert, revealed that the company appeared to hold substantial value in stock with their cars – but had very little cash available.
Indeed, their findings discovered that in 2022 and 2023, more than £2.5 million of the company’s value was tied up in vehicles while cash in the bank was under £10,000 in both years.
In 2024, cash rose but only to about £44,764, while the 2025 accounts are not due until September.
They are certainly not the first high-end car dealer to experience difficulties as, in September, we reported that GVE London, a hugely popular supercar dealer and social media viral sensation, had fallen into administration.
And similarly, they left customers scrambling to get their luxury motors back once the bad news was announced.
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