INVESTORS in a Bolton property firm - which collapsed reportedly owing £32.7million - could be facing 'nominal' returns on their lost cash.

Administrators for Harewood Associates, run by brothers Peter and David Kiely, have called a creditors meeting ahead of a formal announcement on their proposals for the Chorley New Road outfit.

But the Bolton News understands that because of the level of available Harewood assets, only a 'nominal' payout could be in store for 1,400 investors.

Some policy holders fear they may be only see 16 pence in the pound - even though they may have had tens of thousands secured with the company.

Until recently the firm, which offered shares in a variety of property developments, had been offering rates of return of around eight per cent.

In late May though it was revealed Harewood had gone from making a £4million profit in 2017 to posting a £4.3million loss.

One of the first warning signs came when customers were told they could not expect dividends, owed by the company, to be paid out on June 1.

An update on the current investigations into Harewood's affairs,conducted on behalf of administrators Begbies Traynor, will be given to interested parties at a meeting to be held at The Hilton Hotel, in Deansgate, Manchester, on August 9.

Joint administrator Paul Stanley, in an official notice, said: "The purpose of the meeting is for creditors to consider a decision on the approval of the administrators’ proposals and approval of the administrators’ remuneration and disbursements etc, and if the creditors think fit, to appoint a Liquidation Committee."

Begbies has established an intranet site, to handle the large volume of enquiries and correspondence generated by Harewood's collapse.

Investors had also established their own Facebook support group, to share advice on the administration process.

One Harewood customer said: "What a mess, but 16p back for every pound invested is not much, that's if we even get that."

Birmingham businessman Ruksana Kurji told the Bolton News he would "not be holding his breath" in the battle for compensation. Investors can e-mail david.jones@begbies-traynor.com to register for the meeting.

The fixed period investments offered by Harewood were not regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority so none of the investors will qualify for payouts from the Financial Services Compensation Scheme.