A business no longer has to be in formal insolvency before the Insolvency Service can investigate directors’ abusing their powers over Covid loans.

Since December 2021 the service has been given powers to crack down on company directors who dissolve their firms to avoid making repayments on government backed loans.

These powers are retrospective to allow conduct that took place before the law comes into force to be investigated.

So far the service has banned three individuals from acting as company directors, for dissolving their companies to avoid paying back Covid support loans.

Directors can be banned for up to 15 years under the new powers.

Last year, before the new powers were granted the service successfully petitioned the Courts to wind up five limited companies that have been involved in abusing government loans, introduced to help businesses during the pandemic.

Directors should be aware of their legal obligations to run their businesses according to the various laws...

According to the law firm Pincent Masons more than a third of UK company directors disqualified in April and May 2022 had abused the Government’s coronavirus loan or job support schemes.

37 directors were banned by the Insolvency Service for fraudulent claims in the two-month period and 140 had been banned for abuse of Covid schemes in the year to March.

Now the Chartered Institute of Internal Auditors is warning that ongoing tough trading conditions are creating the “ideal environment for fraudulent activity”.

And Financial Reporting Council (FRC) chief executive Sir Jon Thompson has warned of the “devastating impact fraud can have, including bringing entire companies to their knees” and called on directors to review and strengthen their internal controls to prevent financial losses.

During the Pandemic K2 Partners published a Board Briefing to help directors to understand their duties and liabilities and at the time we made the point that it...

As the Insolvency Service is quite rightly vigorously pursuing those who have made fraudulent claims for help during the Covid crisis, they are likely to be scrutinising all businesses more closely.

The number of company directors convicted of criminal activity during the pandemic has risen 205% to 122 in the year to 30 September, up from just 40 for the same period to 30 September of last year. The National Audit Office has also estimated that up to 60% of Covid BBL claims could be fraudulent or defaulted on.

There are plenty of other pressures on businesses and in particular their directors in trying to return to more normal activity in the face of a disrupted supply chain, rising energy prices and recruiting difficulties.

But it is not all doom and gloom. Times like these can also be seen as an opportunity to take a close look at what your business is offering and whether it can be tweaked to better meet the current conditions, not least the climate crisis.

It also seems a good...

Closing an insolvent business is a horrible experience but disqualification from being a director is even worse.

In a recent case in the North of England the director of a retail business was disqualified for 11 years after it was concluded that he had overstated his turnover when claiming a Covid Bounce Back loan.

The regulations state that eligibility for a loan was in doubt given that they should be for less than 25% of the previous year’s turnover.

It appeared that the business had already ceased trading the previous year but insolvency officials said he should have known that turnover had been insufficient to qualify for the loan, which was paid out in May 2020.

It also found that he had failed to provide sufficient records to establish what the funds were used for.

This situation emphasises the duties on directors to not only keep accurate and detailed financial records but also to ensure they comply with all their duties when applying for a Covid-related BBLS or CBILS...

A recent High Court ruling on directors’ duties after insolvency has said that they cannot buy assets from their liquidated companies at below market value.

The ruling was made after solicitors for the company’s second liquidator who took over the case, Stephen Hunt, argued that Brian Michie as former owner and director of the construction company, System Building Services Group Ltd, had “unfairly bought a two-bedroom house from the original insolvency practitioner involved for £75,000 less than it was worth, 18 months after his company went out of business”.

The company went into administration in July 2012, and then into a creditors’ voluntary liquidation in July 2013 following which Mr Michie bought the property in Billericay, that was owned by his company, for £120,000 in 2014 from the previous liquidator Gagen Sharma.

The case revolved around whether director’s duties survived the insolvency of a company and specifically those...