winding up

[SadDepressedLady]

Hi I am the sole director of a very small limited company. I have one debt for which I am being pursued by a HCEO. I am not trading and haven't since Oct 2012 - there are no assets of the business left - not that there were many to start with.

I cannot afford to liquidate - I've been quoted £4000! If I had that I would be still trading lol
Can I wind up? Can I just inform the creditor that I am winding up or is this illegal? I am struggling to understand how I can close the business down.

[wales01man]

Re: winding up

Companies house can dissolve the company thats the end of it you need to search and find out why and how they do it in my case i didnt file accounts
If its a ltd company with no assets the HCEOs cant take anything unless you are named on the writ they have

[SadDepressedLady]

Re: winding up

Thank you.

The HCEO has just placed a levy on my OH's car and a horse trailer owned by a different company altogether - he says he will just take anything and everything. I am due to send accounts to HMRC and have just filed accounts with CH.
what a minefield!
The HCEO is a bully and a liar, but will not even talk to us - he just walks the property, talks on his phone and then asked my OH not to ask questions before just driving off.
If I had the money I would pay him, but I don't and there is just nothing belonging to the company left. I am worried sick.

[wales01man]

Re: winding up

as far as i know the hceo cant take anything that you prove dont belong to the company someone on here will tell you more im sure

[FlamingParrot]

Re: winding up

Thank you.

The HCEO has just placed a levy on my OH's car and a horse trailer owned by a different company altogether - he says he will just take anything and everything. I am due to send accounts to HMRC and have just filed accounts with CH.
what a minefield!
The HCEO is a bully and a liar, but will not even talk to us - he just walks the property, talks on his phone and then asked my OH not to ask questions before just driving off.
If I had the money I would pay him, but I don't and there is just nothing belonging to the company left. I am worried sick.

If the debt was in the name of a LIMITED company, neither you nor your OH or any directors or shareholders are personally liable for it, unless any of you have signed a personal guarantee. The whole point of being LIMITED is not to be liable for the company's debts. What was this debt originally for? What steps did your creditor take that led to a HCEO getting involved? Is this a tax debt?

With regards to winding up the company, see this for reference --->http://www.companieshouse.gov.uk/inf...pCompany.shtml

[FlamingParrot]

Re: winding up

This may be useful.

[Eloise01]

Re: winding up

If the debt was in the name of a LIMITED company, neither you nor your OH or any directors or shareholders are personally liable for it, unless any of you have signed a personal guarantee. The whole point of being LIMITED is not to be liable for the company's debts.

There is an exception to this though. It doesn't apply in this case at this time, but it should be made clear to the OP that it is there. If the director(s) of a company are negligent or trade whilst insolvent (and that can include buying supplies which you have no funds to pay for and which you know or suspect that you will not have funds to pay for) then a court can rule the director(s) liable. That is one of the reasons why it is "limited liability" and not "no liability" - the limited does not just refer to the requirement that directors pay a token amount towards debts if the company incurs them. I don't know how often this might be invoked generally, but I've used it a couple of times to (successfully) go after employers who deliberately forgot some of the legal niceties with regard to their staff and thought the fastest way out was to wind up the company.

[SadDepressedLady]

Re: winding up

It is a limited company - the debt is in the name of the company. It was for animal feed purchased in late March - the DD from my account bounced for two months - April and May. I asked the company I owed if I could pay in instalments and they refused to discuss it with me, I sent them £65 but they sent the cheque back and the next thing I knew I had a HCEO on the doorstep. I had never received court papers - had no idea what was going on. The company would not speak to me about it at all. I stopped trading in October. Nothing has been bought or sold since then. I owe nothing else to anyone else in the name of the company. He put on the first wpo that he was taking "anything and everything on the premises to pay the debt". The charges include an inventory that he never did.
The HCEO has a writ in the name of the company. My OH paid £530 on my behalf, but now he can't afford to pay them for me and neither can I. So he came back yesterday, looked all over the farm yard. We literally have nothing but my OH's cattle left. The HCEO was told that the car does not belong to the company, neither does a horse trailer that he saw. He has left a FORM 55 NoS with the car and trailer listed - despite my OH proving he owns them and not me. (we are not married either) He is not a director of the company. The company has nothing - no bank account, no stock, nothing. I am terrified he will take the car and my OH's cattle - when it is nothing to do with him - it is my mess. The other issue is that another bailiff has a levy on the car for the council tax. He saw evidence of this, but has still listed the car anyway. Surely the council bailiff will have something to say if the HCEO takes the car??
The HCEO refused to speak to me and would only speak to my OH despite the fact that it is nothing to do with my OH.
The other issue is that on the list of fees and expenses there is NO mention of the £530 paid already. I am being charged interest on the full amount. There are so many issues here that I don't know where to start.

[Eloise01]

Re: winding up

There are others better qualified than me to comment on the debt issues ( you may have guessed that this isn't my area) but if you attempted to pay then that would probably be sufficient to maintain your limited liability, because you were acting responsibly in attempting to pay your debt. The fact that no other debt exists also establishes that there has been no pattern of irresponsible actions which could suggest negligence on your part. So a little bit of good news in that.

Someone is going to ask though, so I'll do it for them - can your OH prove that he made payment of £530 and who did he make it to?

[SadDepressedLady]

Re: winding up

He paid via bank transfer to the sheriffs office as we were asked to do. Do you think we have lost the money?

[labman]

Re: winding up

SDL,

I posted on your other thread earlier saying I'd asked two people who are really highly experienced with HCEO's to look at your thread. I also said they work, so they may not be able to look in until later.

Please could I respectfully ask that you wait to see what they have to say. They are better qualified than anyone else I know on this forum to answer your questions.

I do know this is hard for you - waiting is the last thing you want to do when you feel like you are at the moment, but it's important you get the best we can offer, and the people I've contacted are the best I know of on the site.

I'll post a link to this thread from your other thread for you so they are aware it's here.

Take care, and please try not to worry.

[labman]

Re: winding up

I see Pepsie has already replied, and stated that Ploddertom will look in later. They are the two to whom I sent messages. If Pepsie states they can sort this out for you, they can sort it out.

It is very unusual for LB to condone advice off forum, but where exceptional circumstances warrant it, clearly it is fine. I will contact the owner of Legal Beagles to let her know that this is likely to go off site. Trust Plodder and Pepsie - they are HIGHLY experienced and very very skilled and knowledgeable.

Can I remind you what Pepsie said at the end of her post on your other thread:

Other than myself there is a member called Ploddertom who is also well versed in HCEO matters so between us we can get you on the right track to sorting these problems...I will send you a PM later tonight to get the info needed, meanwhile go and put the kettle on and have a cuppa to calm yourself...a choccy biscuit with that would work wonders for me

I'd take her advice!

[labman]

Re: winding up

SDL,

I've sent a message to the site owner to say this poster needs help which is best provided off site. I'm sure Pepsie and Plodder will be back later. I'm going to send you a quick pm only to say hello.

[Celestine]

Re: winding up

All fine by me, Plodder and Pepsie will help. Enjoy that cuppa tea x