If you are self-employed and you are owed money from a company (construction) for an unpaid invoice and you start court proceeding's can they close the company down before it gets to the court date and if they can is their any way of stopping them doing this

Thanks

If you are self-employed and you are owed money from a company (construction) for an unpaid invoice and you start court proceeding's can they close the company down before it gets to the court date and if they can is their any way of stopping them doing this

 

 

Thanks

Think Companies house have a process for this, where they stop the company being closed down in this way to avoid debts.

If you have started a legal action then you can inform CH that the company is liquidating to avoid its respionsibilities and that the assest the comapny have shoudl be ringfenced to protect the rights of existing creditors and other interested parties such as yourself. If this is agreed then the director of the company become individually liable so their personal assets may be considereddf to settle any debts.

However, it is bloody difficult to enforce the debt is they do a runner and put everything n the mother's name. You have to be very presistent and these people know all the wrangles so will stretch the matter out and make it too expensive to pursue.

3 decades ago commercial debt was collected in a rather different way that involved cars full of large people and as this is not an acceptable option these days the chancers will continue their games.

thanks for the reply's its not for me I belong to a FB page for construction workers and it would appear this company is starting to get well known for not paying there are 4/5 on this site alone that are owed money one person being owed 11k

I have pointed them to this site as they seem to think its going cost about 5k to take him to court (using a solicitor) and they think their is no point because they will just shut down and start again hopefully they will take my advice and Join here

not very good at research but I've been having a google and I don't think this company has any assets because another firm seems to own all their assets (floating charge )

This happens everyday.

Open a ltd company, pile up thousand of pounds in debt, then close the company down and reopen next day with a different name.

To prevent closure of a ltd company, the creditor should know that they're closing down and check with companies house, but usually when they get around to do it, the 90 days have passed and the company is defunct.

There are directors who have been doing this for 20/30 years and still get away with it.

Used car dealers are the most prolific.

before these lads throw good money after bad would anyone be able to read and explain this floating charge to me I have the charge no registered at company's house

Thanks

before these lads throw good money after bad would anyone be able to read and explain this floating charge to me I have the charge no registered at company's house

 

Thanks

https://uk.practicallaw.thomsonreuters.com/0-107-5773?__lrTS=20170419145345838&transitionType=Default&contextData=(sc.Default)&firstPage=true&bhcp=1

Seems to be a legal way of avoiding assets being taken.

I read something like that on another site and that's what I thought but you would think there would be something in the agreement that they must keep their company sound and debt free I did read the agreement but didn't understand it

they were know for trying/not paying subbies occasionally before this floating agreement but it looks like in last 2 yrs they just don't give one word is getting around and I believe they are finding it hard to get subbies to do the work but that doesn't help the 5 blokes(the ones that I know of) they shafted or the blokes that don't know its a toss up if they pay you or not

Its not as if its a few ££££ 1 bloke owed 11k and another owed 8k so taking a bit hit for these blokes I cant believe they can legally get away with this its shocked me

Yes, it is shocking.

As a rule of thumb, I only deal with tradesmen without a ltd company and before handing money over I check on the land registry that they are homeowners (£3 cost).

This doesn't give me a cast iron guarantee that they will not run away, but at least if they do I could put a charge on their property via the courts.

With a ltd company you are literally giving money to a ghost entity that can disappear next day and nobody would be responsible for debts.

Yes, it is shocking.

As a rule of thumb, I only deal with tradesmen without a ltd company and before handing money over I check on the land registry that they are homeowners (£3 cost).

This doesn't give me a cast iron guarantee that they will not run away, but at least if they do I could put a charge on their property via the courts.

With a ltd company you are literally giving money to a ghost entity that can disappear next day and nobody would be responsible for debts.

I thought that Trading Standards had brought a few cases to court, where companies were using various ways of avoiding debts in this way ? That there had been some criminal convictions, where directors had basically committed fraud, as they had no intention of paying contractors or supplying services to customers. If you set out to deliberately cause a financial loss to another party and gain as a result, then that surely is fraud.

Perhaps the legal bods on CAG might be aware of evidence needed For Trading Standards/Police to at least be interested in investigating.

I thought that Trading Standards had brought a few cases to court, where companies were using various ways of avoiding debts in this way ? That there had been some criminal convictions, where directors had basically committed fraud, as they had no intention of paying contractors or supplying services to customers. If you set out to deliberately cause a financial loss to another party and gain as a result, then that surely is fraud.

 

Perhaps the legal bods on CAG might be aware of evidence needed For Trading Standards/Police to at least be interested in investigating.

All well and good, but the contractors still didn't get their money because these directors are very careful to have no assets in their name.

Who cares that they are convicted?

They still have the money.

I thought that Trading Standards had brought a few cases to court, where companies were using various ways of avoiding debts in this way ? That there had been some criminal convictions, where directors had basically committed fraud, as they had no intention of paying contractors or supplying services to customers. If you set out to deliberately cause a financial loss to another party and gain as a result, then that surely is fraud.

 

Perhaps the legal bods on CAG might be aware of evidence needed For Trading Standards/Police to at least be interested in investigating.

when another bloke posted last night saying that they owe a bloke working beside him 8k I wondered if it was fraud as their seems to be a pattern forming here they all seem to be owing about 8k (one claiming 11k)