Press release: Lengthy ban for director of Manchester spare parts business

Ayaan Khan was the sole director of Salford Auto Spares Ltd (SAS), which was incorporated in 2011 and traded in motor vehicle scrap parts.

The company latterly operated from leased premises in Swinton, Manchester, and went into liquidation on 4 May 2016 owing more than £112,000 to creditors.

Following the company’s insolvency, the liquidators received claims from at least 98 individual customers, who said that they had made full payments in advance to SAS prior to the liquidation but goods had not been delivered to them at liquidation, leaving them as unsecured creditors. In particular, 64 customers notified the liquidators that they were owed amounts totalling at least £18,869.

In giving the undertaking, Ayaan Khan did not dispute that between 12 April and 18 April 2016, when SAS was insolvent and was preparing to cease trading on 19 April 2016 before entering into liquidation, he caused the company to make transfers out of its bank account totalling £50,180.

He also did not dispute that the transfers were not in the best interests of the company and were to the detriment of its creditors generally. Due to the lack of information provided, these transfers remain unexplained.

Ayaan Khan’s disqualification undertaking was accepted by the Secretary of State on 16 April 2018 and came into force on 7 May 2018.

The disqualification prevents Ayaan Khan from directly or indirectly becoming involved, without the permission of the court, in the promotion, formation or management of a company or limited liability partnership for the duration of his ban.

Robert Clarke, Head of Insolvent Investigations North at The Insolvency Service, said:

In full knowledge that the company was failing, this director has chosen to seek to defeat the claims of creditors, and his improper actions caused losses to others which were wholly avoidable.

Directors who show such blatant disregard for their fiduciary duties can expect to be investigated by the Insolvency Service and removed from the corporate arena for a lengthy period.

Notes to editors

Mr Khan’s date of birth is April 1982 and he resides in Oldham.

Salford Auto Spares Ltd (CRO No. 07505349) was incorporated on 25 January 2011 and latterly traded from leased premises in Rutland Street, Swinton, Manchester, as a trader in motor vehicle scrap parts.

Mr Khan first became a director on 25 January 2011 and was the sole director when SAS entered into liquidation on 04 May 2016 with an estimated deficiency of £112,351 as regards creditors.

In giving his undertaking, Mr Khan did not dispute that:

Between 12 April 2016 and 18 April 2016 Salford made funds transfers totalling £50,180 from its own bank account to an account with another bank. It has not been possible to verify the nature, purpose and recipient of these transfers by reference to the accounting records of Salford delivered to the liquidators, and I have failed to provide information in this regard.

The Disqualification Undertaking was accepted by the Secretary of State on 16 April 2018 and will come into force on 7 May 2018.

A disqualification order has the effect that without specific permission of a court, a person with a disqualification cannot:

  • act as a director of a company
  • take part, directly or indirectly, in the promotion, formation or management of a company or limited liability partnership
  • be a receiver of a company’s property

In addition that person cannot act as an insolvency practitioner and there are many other restrictions are placed on disqualified directors by other regulations.

Disqualification undertakings are the administrative equivalent of a disqualification order but do not involve court proceedings.

Persons subject to a disqualification order are bound by a range of other restrictions.

The Insolvency Service administers the insolvency regime, investigating all compulsory liquidations and individual insolvencies (bankruptcies) through the Official Receiver to establish why they became insolvent. It may also use powers under the Companies Act 1985 to conduct confidential fact-finding investigations into the activities of live limited companies in the UK. In addition, the agency authorises and regulates the insolvency profession, deals with disqualification of directors in corporate failures, assesses and pays statutory entitlement to redundancy payments when an employer cannot or will not pay employees, provides banking and investment services for bankruptcy and liquidation estate funds and advises ministers and other government departments on insolvency law and practice.

Further information about the work of the Insolvency Service, and how to complain about financial misconduct, is available.

Contact Press Office

Media enquiries for this press release – 020 7674 6910 or 020 7596 6187

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Link: Press release: Lengthy ban for director of Manchester spare parts business
Source: Gov Press Releases

Press release: Environment Agency kick-starts River Witham recovery

The Environment Agency (EA) has released hundreds of thousands of roach and bream larvae into the River Witham on Friday (25 May 2018), to kick-start the river’s recovery process following a major pollution incident in early March.

Following the pollution of the river in March, which is estimated to have caused the death of at least 100,000 fish, the EA has been working to bring those responsible to justice, as well as to ensure that the river recovers as quickly as possible.

Pollution killed at least 100,000 fish

The EA has staff dedicated to the pollution incident full-time and is continuing to take regular samples of the water quality in the Witham as the river recovers.

The release of the larvae into the river forms an important first step on the road to recovery, which could take many months or even years as the river’s complex ecosystem gets back to full health.

The fish larvae have come from the EA’s national fish farm in Calverton, which produces around 450,000 fish of 9 species each year for re-stocking. Calverton Fish Farm is funded by income from fishing licence fees, and last year it delivered more than 6 million advanced reared larvae back into the wild.

First step in river’s recovery

Environment manager Simon Mitchell said:

The release of thousands of larvae, reared by our own fish farm in Calverton into the River Witham, marks an important step on the road to the river’s recovery.

According to our latest estimates, the pollution incident in March caused the death of no fewer than 100,000 fish – although the exact figure is likely to be higher. As a river is a complex ecosystem with different species recovering at different rates, the full recovery process may take many months or even years.

We take pollution incidents like this extremely seriously and will always seek to prosecute those who negligently damage our precious environment and wildlife. We have staff continuing to work on this pollution incident full-time, as the river progresses through the recovery phase.

Re-stocking is made possible through fishing licence fees, which fund Calverton Fish Farm. An annual fishing licence is available from only £30, and is easily bought online.

Link: Press release: Environment Agency kick-starts River Witham recovery
Source: Environment Agency

The Licensing of Houses in Multiple Occupation (Mandatory Conditions of Licences) (England) Regulations 2018

These Regulations impose duties on a landlord of a house in multiple occupation (“HMO”) in relation to the size of rooms available as sleeping accommodation, their maximum occupancy and compliance with local housing authority household waste storage and disposal schemes.

Link: The Licensing of Houses in Multiple Occupation (Mandatory Conditions of Licences) (England) Regulations 2018
Source: Legislation .gov.uk

Weekly Threat Report 25th May 2018

GDPR and what it means for cyber security

The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) comes into force today, 25th May, setting clear instructions about the appropriate technical and organisational measures that must be in place to securely process personal data.

While there has been a lot of messaging around GDPR, what you may not know is that the NCSC has been working closely with the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) to develop a set of security outcomes. The guidance…

Link: Weekly Threat Report 25th May 2018
Source: NCSC Reports