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Congratulations on your role as a director—a title that exudes prestige and financial rewards. Perhaps the champagne flowed when you first assumed the position. However, being a director also entails significant responsibilities, especially when the company faces financial hardships. Understanding Your Duties Upon becoming a director, you committed to act in the best interests of the company, its shareholders, employees, and creditors. In times of financial difficulty, this duty of care becomes even more crucial. If insolvency looms, your focus should shift towards safeguarding the interests of creditors over shareholders. While promoting the company's success is a regular priority, your [...]

Andrew is a Chartered Accountant and Insolvency Practitioner. Having trained as a Chartered Accountant at a small local firm, qualifying in 1986, he moved to the Corporate Recovery and Insolvency department at Ernst & Young's Manchester office. In 1999, he successfully completed the Joint Insolvency Examinations and became a Licensed Insolvency Practitioner. Following this, Andrew went into industry, concentrating on companies listed on the Alternative Investment Market, initially at a vehicle telematics company and latterly at a market leading personal insolvency business where he became the Group Operations and Finance Director. In 2004, Andrew returned to public practice and set [...]

In the digital age, small businesses are increasingly reliant on electronic communication, making them susceptible to scams, especially those impersonating reputable entities like HMRC. Scammers often use sophisticated tactics to trick unsuspecting individuals, and small businesses can be particularly vulnerable. One common approach is through fraudulent emails, where cybercriminals pose as HMRC officials. Here's how small businesses can spot scam emails and protect themselves from falling victim to fraudulent activities. Check the Sender's Email Address Legitimate HMRC communications will always come from an official domain. Be wary of email addresses that don't end in "gov.uk." Scammers often use similar-looking addresses [...]

Overdue payments The client has received a Statutory Demand or County Court Judgement. HRMC is chasing for payment and there is no time to pay agreement or the time to pay agreement has been broken. Time is taken up “fire-fighting” creditors because they are not being paid in time Suppliers are requiring cash on delivery Wages day is a crisis day If each month there is a worry about whether there are funds to pay the wages and PAYE and/or pension contributions are falling behind. Directors cannot afford to pay themselves from the business. Balance sheet test Does the company [...]