ASIC launches Zone RV criminal investigation over caravan company's collapse

More than 100 customers collectively lost more than $10 million when Zone RV failed. (ABC Sunshine Coast: Josh Dye)

ASIC has commenced an investigation into Zone RV after the luxury caravan manufacturer collapsed owing $42 million.

The regulator is probing several alleged breaches of the Corporations Act after the liquidator's allegations.

Customers remain millions of dollars out of pocket and ASIC is appealing for anyone with information to report it.

The corporate regulator has launched a criminal investigation into a failed Queensland luxury caravan company amid fresh allegations the former director illegally paid dividends to shareholders.

Zone RV collapsed in December owing $42 million to creditors before the Sunshine Coast business was wound up in January.

More than 100 customers, many of them retirees, collectively paid millions of dollars in progress payments for caravans that were never built.

These customers will not receive a cent from the liquidation process, the liquidator Cor Cordis confirmed.

A new owner purchased Zone RV's assets in April to continue the brand but the majority of creditors were left empty-handed.

A Cor Cordis report alleged Zone RV's founder and sole director David Biggar knowingly traded the company long after it was insolvent, accumulating huge financial losses.

Mr Biggar's company relied on taking new customer deposits to repay debts before it collapsed, the liquidator said. (YouTube)

After sustained public pressure ASIC has now opened a formal probe into the company's affairs.

ASIC is investigating "suspected contraventions" of multiple sections of the Corporations Act, including criminal offences of a director acting recklessly or dishonestly, according to the letter ASIC sent to people required to give evidence.

The letter states the investigation spans a period of more than four years from July 2021 to December 2025 when the company collapsed.

Mr Biggar's yacht was moored at Mooloolaba Marina in February before he left the region. (ABC Sunshine Coast: Owen Jacques)

An ASIC spokesperson confirmed the watchdog's probe but declined to answer specific questions about it.

"We understand these are difficult circumstances for creditors, including those who had paid for caravans that were not completed," the spokesperson said.

The investigation hinges on when Zone RV became insolvent and whether Mr Biggar acted dishonestly by incurring more debts when the company was failing.

The company's former chief financial officer Kim Hodgkins warned senior management in late 2023 that the company was insolvent, acc