Lastminute in bounced cheques debacle

Lastminute.com investors were said to be furious after the Web start-up sent out cheques that bounced. Investors who paid for more stocks than their 35 share allocation were entitled to a refund. While some cheques have been slow to arrive, other customers were refused payment when they tried to cash them. Some had cheques returned stamped with "payment countermanded by order of the drawer". A Lastminute.com representative remained coy about the cheque debacle, claiming he knew nothing about any bouncing. He told The Register that, in his personal opinion, "these stories are hoaxes". Funny that, because a red-faced Lastminute last week admitted the cock-up to the BBC. It told the Working Lunch programme: "There might be a few more cases like this but we would be horrified if there were many more. "We are very surprised at this event and can only say we will do everything we can to rectify the situation as soon as possible. There has been absolutely no block cancellation of cheques." ® Related stories Lastminute: what the papers say Lastminute jumps – but punters get next to no shares