Company Voluntary Arrangement (CVA) used to prevent Company Bankruptcy (Liquidation) Before deciding your company is bankrupt, it is worth considering whether there may be a possibility of Business Recovery. One option you can consider is a Company Voluntary Arrangement (CVA).
Should your business be in a position where it is suffering from financial difficulties and is struggling to pay its creditors you may be thinking about cutting your losses and closing the company down. This process is often called company bankruptcy. The formal term is actually company liquidation. If a company is liquidated, the company's trading is stopped and its assets are sold and turned into cash or "liquidated".
Before deciding your company is bankrupt, it is worth considering whether there may be a possibility of Business Recovery. A possible option is a Company Voluntary Arrangement (CVA).
A company voluntary arrangement is a formal legal agreement with the company's creditors to settle the business's debt. For a fixed period (normally 2-5 years), the creditor accept reduced payments based on what your company can afford. Once the agreed number of payments has been made, the creditors agree to write off any outstanding debt and the business is free to continue trading debt free.
There are a number of advantages for a business if it decides to undertake a company voluntary arrangement:
Saving a company from liquidation using a company voluntary arrangement also has advantages for creditors. Ultimately, the business remains and if properly managed, can continue to trade with historical suppliers into the future. As such, business relationships which may be important for both the business and its suppliers can be maintained.
A company voluntary arrangement is not without some risks to its chances of success. One of the major risks is that normally the management team in the business stay the same and therefore unpalatable changes such as cost cutting which may be essential to the future of the business are not undertaken. If this is the case, then using a CVA may be simply putting off the day when the company is bankrupt and has to be liquidated. However, if the company directors and owners feel that the business has a future and they are prepared to undertake radical changes which will almost certainly be needed, than a company voluntary arrangement is an excellent way to avoid liquidation and preserve the business for the future.
What happens to the directors if a company is wound up?
Once a company is being wound up a Liquidator will be appointed. The liquidator will undertake an investigation into the conduct of the directors to see whether they have knowingly allowed the business to trade while insolvent thus making the creditor's position worse. If this is the case, a director may face being disqualified and held personally liable for the company's debts. As a Director we look at the options you have.
What will having a County Court Judgement do to my company
If a county court judgement remains unpaid, this could lead to more serious action being taken against the business. We look at the impact and what you can do.
Company debt restructure to improve cash flow
Ensuring that enough cash is available to maintain their business must be a priority for companies. Those that do it well will survive. Those that do not are likely to fall. As such identifying problems and implement solutions which may require a radical restructuring of debt must be a priority. We discuss some of the solutions available.
