Credit, Collections & Insolvency News
Fresh figures from the Valuation Office Agency show that a new business rates appeal platform has caused the number of firms registering a challenge to their bill to fall by 94% across England. The Check, Challenge, Appeal (CCA) system was established in April 2017 to coincide with the most recent business rates revaluation. Following its…
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Twenty firms – including IBM and Unilever – have been suspended from the Prompt Payment Code for failing to pay suppliers on time, the Chartered Institute of Credit Management (CICM) have announced. Diageo, GlaxoSmithKline and Kier businesses are also among those that have failed to honour their Code commitment to pay 95% of all supplier…
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The Treasury Committee has published a unanimously-agreed report on the Impact of Business Rates on Business. The Government must explain whether it is deliberate that, since Business Rates were introduced in their current form in 1990, the revenue they have generated has outpaced inflation. Throughout this inquiry, the Committee has been told that Business Rates…
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A landmark judgment could see company directors and shareholders pursued for millions of pounds for funds paid into tax avoidance schemes. The ruling, handed down by Chief Insolvency and Companies Court Judge Briggs, will see the directors and shareholders of Implement Consulting Ltd having to pay back over £3 million to the company and its creditors…
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The Insolvency Service has published its latest England & Wales insolvency statistics for Q3 2019 (July-September) indicating that underlying corporate insolvencies (seasonally adjusted) rose by 0.4% in Q3 2019 compared to Q2 2019, and rose by 1.6% compared to Q3 2018. There were 4,355 total company insolvencies in England and Wales which was 0.4 per…
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Around 1.5 million businesses face a greater risk of having their energy supply disconnected than the average household, and of exploitation by unscrupulous energy brokers. This is all due to a lack of protections in the microbusiness market, according to a new report from Citizens Advice. Microbusinesses, which make up 96% of all UK businesses,…
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International accounting and advisory firm Mazars has published a study canvassing public opinion on the UK economy and the audit system The study indicates that the public strongly supports audit reform, with nearly two-thirds (62%) stating that they don’t have trust in the current audit system to provide independent and accurate assessments of a company’s…
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Ofgem has appointed Total Gas and Power to take on supplying Rutherford Energy Supply Limited’s (trading as Uttily Energy) 280 business customers. This follows an appointment process run by Ofgem to get the best deal possible for customers. For existing customers, energy supplies will continue as normal as they switch over to Total Gas and…
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681,000 UK individuals and businesses are so far behind on their tax bills that they have been forced to reschedule their payments with HMRC, research UHY Hacker Young shows. Taxpayers are able to reschedule their tax payments with HMRC by agreeing ‘time to pay’ arrangements. These allow taxpayers to pay their taxes over a longer…
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The Federation of Small Business (FSB) is calling on Sajid Javid to bring forward radical interventions to address an unprecedented long-term slump in small business confidence, slowing economic growth and a widening trade deficit when he publishes the 2019 Autumn Budget on 6th November. Writing to the Chancellor, the group calls for a major reduction…
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The Office for National Statistics (ONS) data has shown that UK retail sales were flat last month after a decline in August, with volumes in the three months to September up 0.6% on the previous quarter. An increase in online sales in July was largely responsible for the growth. Sales were up 3.1% year-on-year in…
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Business lenders Ultimate Finance and Bibby Financial Services (BFS) has announced its support for the Business Finance Council’s SME Finance Charter, in a bid to improve access to finance and help for businesses during Brexit and beyond. The Charter provides a framework for financiers to outline specific commitments to SMEs in relation to preparing for…
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Paul Uppal has stepped down from his role as Small Business Commissioner. Fiona Dickie, the Deputy Pubs Code Adjudicator, will provide oversight in the Small Business Commissioner role until early November, pending the appointment of an Interim Commissioner. An open recruitment campaign to appoint a new Small Business Commissioner will get underway immediately. The role…
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