What debts can be included in the sale?
When you sell your company, all debts stay with the company. This will free you from debts such as:
• Bounce-back loans
• HMRC debt, such as Corporation Tax and PAYE
• Rates
• Overdraft and company credit card debts
• Rent arrears
• Utility debts, such as electricity, gas and water
• Mobile phone, landline and Internet provider debts
There is no limit to the amount of unsecured debts that you can include in a company sale. On the day of sale, the debt will stay with the company and the responsibility will pass on to the new Director.
What liabilities can be included in the sale?
It is typical that when you start up a company, liabilities will follow. A liability is anything which you may be tied into in the future. The good news is that when you sell your company, all of the liabilities are sold with it. This means that you can include:
• Property leases
• Equipment hire
• Service leases, such as mobile phone contracts, broadband contracts, IT contracts, HR support contracts and many more.
Every liability that is under the company name will be included with the sale. The only exception is if you have a personal guarantee for the liability. If you do have a personal guarantee, the debt would still remain with the company. The company could also chase the signer of the personal guarantee for settlement.
What is Limited Liability?
“Assuming no fraud has taken place, ‘limited liability’ means you will not be personally liable for any financial losses made by the business. A limited company can give you added protection, should things go wrong.
A limited company is a distinct entity from its owners… The company will exist beyond the life of its shareholders. If they retire or resign, the company will continue to exist…”
“But what happens if the company is in debt at the point of your resignation, or if it falls into debt after you resign? In the majority of cases, the simple answer is: nothing! This is because of something which is known as ‘limited liability’, a feature which is often seen as one of the main benefits of operating under the structure of a limited company. Limited liability essentially means that the debts of the company belong to the company and not the directors personally.”
What does HMRC say about selling a company?
When you sell your company, it is important to do it properly. This means that you need to follow a legal process for it to be successful.
HMRC says:
“You should appoint new directors before you resign as a director yourself“ and you should “tell Companies House of these changes“.
We are very familiar with this process. We will appoint new directors with Companies House. When these appear on the Companies House register, we will then resign you as a Director/Directors.
What about liquidation?
If you have ever known someone who has gone through the trauma of a liquidation, you won’t need us to answer this question.
Not only are liquidations expensive and time-consuming, the liquidator has a legal duty to investigate the conduct of any Directors associated with the business.
If the liquidator decides that the Director has not acted in the company’s best interest, they will request that the situation is put right. This always means repaying money. The liquidator will appoint a solicitor to collect money from you personally as they will argue it is your “fiduciary duty” to take care of the company’s interests. You will then have to appoint your own solicitor to defend your actions (if they can be reasonably defended). The costs of legal defence is often huge, the situation is enormously stressful. Then if you lose you will have to repay all of the money, interest, charges and possibly the other sides costs too. This is why you see so many personal bankruptcies caused by company liquidators.
When you sell your company, these issues can’t happen. The buyer will take the company in its current state, fully aware of all its debts and liabilities and they will step into your shoes. Problem solved.
Liquidation (not recommended)
- Completed in 2 years, but can be delayed significantly if wrongdoing is identified
- A full investigation into Director conduct
- Doesn’t immediately prevent bailiff and debt collector action
- Listed as liquidated on Companies House, which can impact your future businesses
- Usually conducted face-to-face
- All bank accounts frozen
- Liquidator owns all assets
- Not allowed to use customer base
Company Sale (Our Solution)
- Completed in full within 24 hours
- Absolutely no investigations into Director conduct
- No bailiff or debt collector visits or calls
- Your reputation will be kept intact
- You will not appear on the Insolvency Register
- No face-to-face meetings ever
- We do not take control of your bank accounts
- You can keep any assets
- You can keep your customer base
Dissolution
- Completed within 4 months
- You can only dissolve a company without debt. Dissolving a company with debt is against the law.