Administration
Why winding up petitions are more efficient than county courts
We recently spoke with a client who for the previous three months had been chasing a customer with an outstanding invoice of just over £50,000. The client was considering litigation in the county court to retrieve the money and I suggested that a quicker and more cost-effective route might be to issue a winding-up petition.…
Read MoreHow should builders and tradesmen collect overdue debts?
According to figures released by the Office of National Statistics, the building and construction industry contracted 1.9% in the third quarter of 2015, which suggests contractors will be tightening their belts this year as the market becomes more competitive. This is particularly bad news for roofers, plumbers and other subcontractors (‘subbies’). Why? Because in a…
Read MoreF1 Racing Team Lotus, faces creditor pressure with a winding up petition
Big Insolvency news this week as one of the leading Formula 1 teams, Lotus, has been issued with a creditors winding up petition. Lotus were summoned to appear in the Companies Court on Monday 6th July and managed to have the hearing delayed for 2 weeks, so they can have some time to negotiate with…
Read MoreInsolvency Regulation in Desperate Need of a Revamp
In July 2010, I called for an urgent review of insolvency regulation, and more than two years later there is little evidence to suggest much has changed.
Read MoreComet Administration a Wakeup Call for Zombie Companies
In December 2010, I warned that struggling businesses that relied on Christmas trade to maintain solvency were asking for trouble.
Read MoreDodgy Football Fat Cats like Peter Ridsdale Must Be Punished
Last month, the Insolvency Service banned football club chairman Peter Ridsdale (pictured) from holding company directorships for seven-and-a-half years. Under Ridsdale’s chairmanship, Cardiff City football club accrued debts exceeding £42m between 2006 and 2010. During the same period, Ridsdale secretly and unlawfully transferred more than £345,000 from Cardiff City into his personal bank account, and…
Read MoreWhy Didn’t Insolvency Service Prosecute MG Rover’s Phoenix Four?
The former directors of MG Rover Group (MGRG), who pocketed over £40 million as the company spiralled into administration, should have been punished with lengthy disqualifications forcing them into early retirement and out of business management. Instead, Peter Beale, John Towers, Nick Stephenson and John Edwards – known as the ‘Phoenix Four’ – received bans…
Read MoreHow to Protect Customer Deposits Without New Legislation
Britain must have new legislation to ensure cash from deposits and voucher sales is returned to customers when a retailer goes into administration, according to the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Scotland (ICAS). The call follows the recent insolvencies of retailers such as music chain Zavvi and furniture supplier MFI where customers lost cash paid…
Read MorePremier League Boss Tries and Fails to Defend Football Insolvency Rules
Premier League head Richard Scudamore has attempted to defend the football creditors’ rule, following a lawsuit filed by Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs (HMRC). HMRC, quite correctly, claim the rule on paying soccer creditors first is ‘unfair, unlawful and unacceptable.’
Read MoreGovernment’s Pre-Pack Administration Reforms Too Soft
A few weeks ago, the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State responsible for the insolvency regime, Ed Davey, unveiled a series of proposals aimed at reforming ‘pre-pack’ administrations. These include forcing insolvency practitioners (IPs) to give creditors prior warning about the sale of significant proportions of a company’s assets to a connected party. Under the terms of…
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