Saving a Business When a Petition Arrives
Company traded as a children’s play centre, Turnover of £400,000, Employed 4 staff, Assets of £15,000
Turnover of
£400,000
Staff Employed
4
Assets Of
£15,000
The Problem
- Largest creditor was HMRC, owed £73k for unpaid VAT and PAYE
- Other trade creditors of £15,000
- Petition to wind up the company issued by HMRC received – hearing due to be heard in 30 days
- Creditors accrued because the centre was forced to close for 3 months due to a collapsed roof
Solution
- Immediate action was taken to review the sustainability of the Company without the debt – the core business was viable
- Contact was made with HMRC to explore options of a payment plan – this failed as HMRC demanded all of the arrears to be paid prior to the hearing date
- Parker Andrews were instructed to place the company into Creditors Voluntary Liquidation (“CVL”), allowing the business to be marketed for sale
- A sale was agreed with the Liquidator upon appointment – far in excess of the likely break-up value of the assets
- All staff were retained and transferred to the purchaser, therefore no redundancies and far lower level of creditors in CVL compared to a compulsory winding-up
- Parker Andrews instructed a solicitor to attend the hearing to have the petition dismissed as the company had entered CVL prior to the hearing date – this was granted
Conclusion
- Company entered CVL rather than Compulsory Liquidation
- The petition to wind up the company was dismissed
- Business assets and goodwill purchased at far higher value than likely in a Compulsory Liquidation, resulting in a dividend to unsecured creditors
- Jobs saved after all members of staff transferred to purchaser of business
- Creditors were informed and dealt with by Parker Andrews
- Sufficient funds realised to allow a dividend to unsecured creditors
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