Owed heaps from a liquidated company

temba

Hi there,

Does anyone know anything about liquidation? I did some freelance work for a company in the summer. I was owed about £500. I received a remittance slip but on the day the money was supposed to go into my account I received a letter saying the company was having trouble financially and I would hear from them again soon. Last week I received a letter saying that the company had ceased trading and that the next thing I hear would be from an insolvency practitioner and I may receive a proportion of it. This is all gobbledy gook to me. All I care about is that I was about to receive my money which I was owed, and the next thing is that I can't have it. >:(

I know of over one hundred other freelancers also owed money, ranging from £100 to £2000. We are all fuming, but it seems that there really is NOTHING we can do. Are we being stupid. Should we be out there doing something or have we really seen the last of it?

We all had union approved contracts, which seem to account for nothing now that the company has ceased trading. By the way, our union say that there is very little they can do other than see what the insolvency practitioners say.

I don't know anything about these sort of things and would appreciate any helpful hints. I don't earn that much, and £500 is such a lot of money to me!!! :'(

trafalgar_2

Hi Temba,
Unfortunately there is little you can do but put in a claim for the money to the recievers ,the problem is when the assets are accumulated then the people that are owed money will be paid IF there is enough or could be offered a proportion if there isn't enough to pay everyone .........................it's sad but some just might not get the money owed I'm afraid .

Your union should follow this up and make sure everything possible is done to asure your claims are in .

Sorry I can't help more than that.

It really is a case of if they haven't got enough assets then they can't pay everyone.
Others may offer more help,good luck

theGrinch

the first thing is to make sure that you are on the creditors list when it is released.

usually in liquidation you will be lucky to get 3 or 4p in the pound 2 or 3 years down the line. usually, it is nothing.

If you were on the company's PAYE then the government would cover your wages and take your place as the creditor, but as it is freelance there isnt anything you can do and I mean that.

vansboy

Did you supply any goods??

As I'm sure your own Terms & Conditions' state that they remain your property, untill paid for in full - if so, GO & TAKE THEM BACK!!

VB

temba

Hey, thanks for the replies. 3p to every pound :'(

I didn't supplied a service, not any goods. I wish I could take it back though. I hate the idea that someone has made money from me, and I've lost out! It makes me feel like I must be stupid! What can you do other than have a contract???

Another question: my union also appear to be representing the management/owners of the now defunct company. This doesn't seem right to me, but they are also members of the management. Can anyone fill me in on whether this is legal or not. My union rep will be representing me at the creditors meeting, but I presume the same union rep will also represent the owner of the company.

Also: some of what I owed are expenses, such as meal/petrol allowances. They are clearly set, non-negotiable amounts arranged by our union. As I have not been paid the expenses either, I am actually out of pocket. Do the expenses have any priority over the fee I am owed? Will I be more likely to get this bit back in full?

Thank you for your advice!

temba

Sorry, I'm not really illiterate, I meant to say: I supplied a service, but nothing tangible that could be returned to me.