Lawyers acting for shareholders of the former Quindell group have issued a letter of claim on behalf of 342 claimants.

The group of ‘retail investors’ contends that Quindell misled shareholders through a series of announcements to the stock exchange. The expected value of the potential claims is around £9.4m.

These came in the form of historical published accounts, culminating in various disclosures, restatements and revisions, before the final release of Quindell’s 2014 annual report and financial statement, released in August this year.

Merseyside firm Your Legal Friend said its clients want to know what prompted auditor KPMG’s qualification of the 2014 accounts.

The Gazette understands that the unpublished letter of claim also refers to revenue and profit projections linked to noise-induced hearing loss claims and statements related to various acquisitions.

The firm also asks for background to the events of October and November 2014 which ended with the departures of several directors from the Quindell board.

Your Legal Friend said it has been contacted by more than 1,100 investors, a number which continues to grow each week.

In June, the firm appointed Philip Marshall QC as lead counsel for the potential group action. Marshall has previously acted in investor actions against Tesco PLC and RBS Group PLC.

Quindell this year sold its professional services division, including its legal services, to Australian firm Slater and Gordon and has since changed its name to Watchstone Group PLC. In a statement, Watchstone Group said it ‘plans to vigorously defend all claims’ and that the letter of claim is not expected to adversely impact the company's previously stated reduction of capital and return of capital.