Where to go for business debt advice?

Bumbelina

My husband's business is about to go down. He operates in partnership with his father, and there is a bank overdraft secured on his father's house. Basically, a few months ago he paid £26k upfront to a company to place advertisements for him and they have gone bust, taking his advertising budget for the next 2 years with them. So he has no adverts to bring in new business and has existing contracts to honour, but can't pay the printers to get the work done. He's considering bankruptcy but having read some of the posts on here I'm worried that he might be subjected to a bankruptcy restriction order and not be discharged for years and years. He ran a company a few years ago which went into liquidation and he was disqualified as a director for 8 years, which was about 2.5 years ago.

He doesn't know where to turn for advice. Would CCCS or National Debtline be able to help, or are there specialised organisations that help where business debts are involved?

Entrepreneur_en_faillite

CCCS will be able to point you int he right direction, there are no 'free' agencies able to help with business debts to my knowledge, but If anyone does know of any please post them or email to me!

I fear that the possiblility of a BRO is very real, especially as he was a disqualified director.

Sorry I can't be of more help - the best I can do is say to call CCCS 0800 138 1111, and let us all know how you get on.

Addicted2Chocolate

why would he be likely to be BRO? he is disqualified but a partnership is not a ltd co, he has not therefore broken terms of the disqual order by being involved in partnership. If he does go bankrupt the partnership would be dissolvd and the father would have to acocunt to OR for your husbands share in partnership ....
see http://www.insolvency.gov.uk/freedomofinformation/technical/techmanvol1/Ch49-60/Chapter53/part3/part3.htm

Addicted2Chocolate

for advice , found below on https://www.inaolvency.gov.uk
These are not the only organisations that may be able to help you. The Insolvency Service cannot accept responsibility for the information, advice, or other services provided by these organisations.

Who are they? How they can help? How can you contact or find them?
Advisory Conciliation And Arbitration Service (ACAS) The Advisory Conciliation and Arbitration Service (ACAS) is a public body funded by taxpayers. It offers free help and information on work-related issues. Call the National Helpline on 08457 474747. Lines are open Monday - Friday 9am - 4:30pm. The ACAS website contains details of the local ACAS offices: https://www.acas.org.uk
Business Debtline The Business Debtline provides a free telephone debt counselling service for the self-employed and small businesses facing financial hardship. Advice is free, independent and confidential. Call Business Debtline free on 0800 197 6026. Lines are open Monday to Friday from 10am to 4pm and there is a 24-hour answering machine service. https://www.bdl.org.uk
Citizens Advice

Citizens Advice is a registered charity that offers free, independent and
confidential advice from more than 700 locations throughout the UK.

Call 0207 833 2181 to find your local CAB. Lines are open Monday to Friday from 9am to 5pm. The Citizens Advice
website contains a directory of local CAB offices. https://www.citizensadvice.org.uk
For advice, visit the CAB Advice Guide website at https://www.adviceguide.org.uk

Community Legal Service Direct The Community Legal Service (CLS) is run by the Legal Services Commission (LSC) and it replaces what was previously known as legal aid. The CLS Directory lists solicitors and advice agencies in your area. Call the Directory Line on 0845 345 4 345. Lines are open Monday to Sunday from 9am to 5.30pm. You can find a CLS-approved legal advisor using the CLS Directory. This directory is available at your local library or at https://www.clsdirect.org.uk. This website is available in English, Welsh, Urdu, Bengali, Chinese, Punjabi and Gujarati.
Consumer Credit CounsellingService (CCCS)



The CCCS is a registered charity dedicated to providing free, confidential counselling and money management assistance to families and individuals in financial distress. They provide counselling on budgeting; advice on the wise use of credit; and, where appropriate, achievable plans to repay outstanding debts. Call free on 0800 138 1111. Lines are open Monday to Friday from 8am to 8pm. The website is https://www.cccs.co.uk


Consumer Gateway

This is a one-stop service run by the Department of Trade and Industry. The website provides online access to information and advice for customers. The website is
https://www.consumer.gov.uk


Lawyers For Your Business (LFYB) LFYB is a Law Society initiative that represents some 1,400 firms of solicitors in England and Wales who have come together to ensure that businesses, especially the smaller owner-managed ones, get access to sound legal advice when they need it. Call the hotline on 0207 405 9075. Lines are open Monday to Friday, from 9am to 5.30pm. You will be sent a list of the member solicitors in your area (including information on specialist areas of work and languages spoken) and a voucher for a free consultation.
National Debtline National Debtline provides free, confidential and independent expert advice over the telephone for
anyone experiencing financial difficulty. Callers will receive a free self-help
information pack. Call free on 0808 808 4000. Lines are open Monday to Friday 9am to 9pm and Saturdays from 9:30 am to 1pm. There is a 24-hour answerphone. The National Debtline website address is https://www.nationaldebtline.co.uk.
Small Business Service (SBS):
Business Link
The Small Business Service (SBS) is a government agency that has been
established to help small businesses and provide them with a single source of high quality information and advice. Call 0845 600 9006. Lines are open Monday to Friday, 8:30am to 5:30pm. The SBS website address is https://www.sbs.gov.uk
https://www.businesslink.org

Entrepreneur_en_faillite

Addicted2Chocolate wrote:

why would he be likely to be BRO? he is disqualified but a partnership is not a ltd co, he has not therefore broken terms of the disqual order by being involved in partnership. If he does go bankrupt the partnership would be dissolvd and the father would have to acocunt to OR for your husbands share in partnership ....
see http://www.insolvency.gov.uk/freedomofinformation/technical/techmanvol1/Ch49-60/Chapter53/part3/part3.htm

I was told by one of the insolvency advising companies who I called for advice on behalf of one of my clients in a very similar poaition to Bumbeina's.

Having said this, that particualr firm did give me some bum advice about another issue, so i cede to your greater knowledge.

Every day in every way I'm getting better and better.

Addicted2Chocolate

I am postitive a disqualification does not prohibit you from being in partnership, this from insolvency service website:

A disqualification order is made by the court under the Company Directors Disqualification Act 1986. The Act applies not only to a person who has been formally appointed as a director but also to those people who have carried out the functions of a director and to shadow directors.

Without specific permission of the court, it disqualifies a person from:

acting as a director of a company
taking part, directly or indirectly, in the promotion, formation or management of a company
being a liquidator or an administrator of a company
being a receiver or manager of a company's property.

Bumbelina

Thanks very much to Addicted2chocolate - you seem to have helped so many people on this site and I really appreciate you taking the time to list all those organisations and numbers.

Since I posted my parents have offered to lend him enough money to get beyond the immediate difficulties, but in the long term he wants out of the business and all the stress so he will try to carry on trading long enough to pay off the overdraft and in the meantime get another job as well so he doesn't have to take any money out of the business. He's prepared to work all hours for as long as it takes.

If the only debt is the overdraft - secured on his father's house, but that's another issue - then I wouldn't have thought the bank would make him bankrupt, they'd enforce the security first. Which doesn't help his dad, of course. He also has a couple of credit cards which he uses just for work and on which he owes about £4.5k in total, but I suppose he can keep those ticking over for now by making the minimum payment until he's in a position to pay more.