Actura New Zealand collapse: Parents may have lost million of dollars after school space trip cancelled

Kiwi parents who paid for their children to attend a once in a lifetime Nasa space camp could have lost millions of dollars following the collapse of Actura New Zealand, a victims’ group fears.

Auckland mum Deb Lawson has begun rallying the approximately 200 families across the country who have been affected following Friday afternoon’s liquidation.

Based on the company’s targeted numbers, Actura New Zealand wanted to sign up 20 students from each of the 25 schools it dealt with, with each trip costing about $14,000 per student, Lawson said.

Based on those figures, the total estimated loss could tally anywhere up to $7m, she said.

Lawson said the targeted sign-ups didn’t take into account those who booked independently or schools with more or fewer than 20 students on the trip.

One email sent to the Herald from Australia said 52 students from a Queensland high school were booked to attend the space camp.

“My parents had paid the full $13,000 to Actura in order to attend... so from the school alone, parents have just lost around $650,000,” the student estimated.

The Herald has tried to contact the company to query the estimated losses but received no response.

The Herald has also received emails suggesting parents felt pressured into paying their entire balance in return for a discount.

One woman said that after paying the second instalment on May 3, she received an email saying they would receive a $1000 discount.

“We moved some money around to make that possible. In total $12k invested, and lost,” she said.

An email from an Actura staff member to an Auckland parent dated October 26 promised an 8 per cent discount on the cost of a trip to the Nasa space centre in the US if payment was made in full by the end of October.

Another parent, whose daughter is at Westlake Girls’ High School, understood the school was sending two groups to the camp with more than 30 children in total.

“Some parents even paid for two girls to attend,” she said.

“We had paid a deposit and three instalments totalling around $7000. I had a reminder email to pay our last instalment which we did on May 26th.

“We also received an email on March 14 encouraging us to pay in full, rather than stick to our instalment plan. Luckily we didn’t.”

In a poll conducted on a private Facebook page for affected families, 64 per cent of families had already paid the full amount before their child attended the camp.

Lawson said she has lost $11,500, including $5000 her son had earned through his first job.

One parent said he paid $25,000 for his two daughters to attend the space camp at the end of the year.

“Now we’re very sad and upset. It’s very stressful for the family.”

Another man said he had been doing odd jobs to pay for his son’s programme.

“I had spent around 12k NZD. I paid the second last instalment of $2600 last night and in the morning I got the liquidation message.

“Beyond the financial cost, we faced challenges in obtaining visas, and now all the excitement has vanished. My community and I were thrilled that my son would be learning technology directly from Nasa.

“It was a chance for the next generation to experience what we couldn’t.”

The Herald has received more than 30 emails from families as far away as Singapore who are also out of pocket by the company’s sudden demise.

Liquidated day before salaries due

A former Actura employee, who did not wish to be named, told the Herald they only found out about the closure in a company-wide Zoom meeting on Friday afternoon.

“We were blindsided by this. It’s not something we were aware of.”

Distraught staff members spent the weekend on the phone with parents and teachers.

“The company advised us to cease all communication but that didn’t sit right,” they said.

“We took it upon ourselves to speak to parents and teachers. The least we can do is to talk to them.”

They said all the employees were still in shock and felt powerless as to what they could do.

“For our peace of mind and integrity, it is important to answer these calls.”

However, they said employees have also been left stranded by the sudden closure.

“We have lost our jobs and we haven’t been paid for the last month.

“Friday was payday and we haven’t been paid. No pay, no job. Just cut on Friday afternoon.”

Another employee said the company liquidated the company one day before staff members’ monthly salary payments were due.

They said all employment contracts were terminated and staff received zero compensation and remuneration.

Actura Australia has taken down its website and Facebook pages.

The Herald attempted to email the company and received this response: “Thank you for your email. Unfortunately, Actura has ceased all operations. This inbox is no longer monitored.”

The Herald has also attempted to contact former chief executive Charles Chung.