Paramount D&B Ltd Administration FAQ

Susan Clay and Huw Powell were appointed joint administrators of the Company on 15 July 2024 and the Company has ceased trading. Please see below Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs), which are designed to answer stakeholder queries.

The Joint Administrators act as agents of the Companies and without personal liability.

FAQs

Q – What is an administration and the role of the Joint Administrators?

A – An administration is an insolvency process used by companies that are unable to pay their debts as they fall due. A moratorium has been placed over the Companies as a result of our appointment. This means that no creditor can take legal action against the Companies except with leave of the court.

A licensed insolvency practitioner will be appointed to handle the process.  It will be their role to identify and realise all of the Company’s assets with a view to making distributions to creditors, where available.  The administrators will also investigate the reasons for failure and the conduct of the director in the lead up to insolvency and will submit a report to the Insolvency Service in this regard.

Once the administration process is complete, it may lead to another insolvency process, but ultimately the Company will be wound up with Companies House, its name removed from the register of limited companies and it will cease to exist as a legal entity.

Further details can be found here: https://www.thegazette.co.uk/all-notices/content/104038 and here:  https://www.begbies-traynorgroup.com/company-administration/what-duties-does-an-administrator-have-to-creditors-in-a-formal-insolvency-procedure

Q – I am a customer – will my project be finished and can I instruct another party to complete works?  

A – An independent review of the viability of completing works on existing sites will be undertaken ASAP and customers should contact [email protected] to discuss the Company’s plans. 

In many cases it is anticipated that it will not be viable to complete works, in which case sites will be handed back to customers, who will need to make their own arrangements with regard to completing works.

If customers consider that there has been a breach of the terms of their contract and determine it is appropriate to terminate the contract, they should document the status of works to date and seek to mitigate their loss.  In the event that it is determined that the value of works completed by the Company up to termination exceeds the value of payments made by customers, the Administrators and their agents will seek to recover any debt due.  Alternatively, if the value of works completed is less than payments made, the customer will have an unsecured claim against the Company.

Q – How do I go about obtaining drawings, designs and O&M manuals that have been prepared by the Company?

A – Subject to availability, the Company may be able to provide mid project designs, drawings and manuals to customers who have no outstanding balance due to the Company.

Please make any request to [email protected]. 

Q – I am a former employee who has been made redundant – how do I go about making a claim?

A – We understand that letters have been issued to employees made redundant by the Company.  The Administrators will send letters to employees explaining how they can make a claim against the Redundancy Payments Service as soon as possible after their appointment.  It is not possible to obtain a CN number prior to the appointment of Administrators.

A – Letters to employees explaining how they can make a claim against the Redundancy Payments Service will be sent to all employees that were made redundant on 15 July 2024 as soon as possible – it is currently expected they will be issued no later than 19 July 2024.  Any employees who have not received their letter by 22 July 2024 should review these FAQs to establish if an update has been provided, or should email [email protected] to ensure we have your contact details.

Q – I am interested in contacting former employees to offer potential employment – can you provide their contact details?

A – The proposed Joint Administrators are unable to share private information but will seek to contact former employees and provide them with details of potential new employers as required. Please email details of any roles to [email protected] so that these can be passed on as appropriate.

Q – What is my position if I am owed money by the Company?

A – You will have a claim in the Administration. The order in which creditors are ranked in an insolvent liquidation, is set out in the Insolvency Act 1986. An unsecured creditor is the lowest ranking creditor in the order of priority and payment will only be achieved if all other creditors, who fall before unsecured creditors in the order of priority, are discharged in full, along with costs of the liquidation.

Please refer to the following article for further information regarding the order of payments in a liquidation, which is the same order as in administration: https://www.begbies-traynorgroup.com/articles/insolvency/who-gets-paid-first-when-a-company-goes-into-liquidation.

Unfortunately, any outstanding debts which remain after the liquidation process will be written off, unless they have been secured by a director’s personal guarantee.

Notice of the administration will be sent under separate cover within seven days of our appointment together with a proof of debt form. If you have not received a copy of this notice after seven days of our appointment, please contact the Joint Administrators via email at [email protected] to ensure we are aware of your contact details

Q – How much money will I get back, and when?

A – This will be dependent on asset realisations, in particular the collection of debtor and retention monies. 

The proposed Joint administrators and their agents will be working hard with various stakeholders to achieve the best outcome available and will provide an update to creditors within eight weeks of their appointment when their proposals are sent to creditors. In addition, updates to creditors will be provided in line with statutory reporting requirements with the first progress report being made available within one month of the six-month anniversary of the appointment.   

However, at this early stage, we do not anticipate any material return to non-preferential creditors in this matter.  We appreciate that the failure of the Company will create an extremely difficult time for a number of parties involved and we will endeavour to assist creditors where we can.

Q – I have supplied stock to the Company, subject to retention of title – can I recover my stock?

A - Your first port of call should be to contact the proposed Joint Administrators via email to [email protected] to make us aware of your potential claim and the location that you supplied stock.  These claims need to be dealt with quickly so you will be issued with a questionnaire to complete so you can provide evidence of supply and any retention of title clause.

The claim will then be assessed by the proposed Joint Administrators for validity and we will then seek to liaise with customers to provide access to sites as appropriate.  However, suppliers should note that title may have passed to the customer and in particular, any supplies that have been fitted are unlikely to be able to be claimed.

Q – The Company has ordered goods from me but these have not been delivered. Should I still deliver the goods?

A – Please do not fulfil any orders placed by the Company before our appointment unless you receive our written confirmation that the goods or services are still required.

With effect from the date of our appointment, the Company will not be responsible for any payment for goods and services delivered to it except against orders which bear the Joint Administrators’ signatures, or one of their authorised representatives or that of Craigdam as agent. All such authorised orders will be paid for in accordance with your normal trade terms, unless otherwise agreed with you.

Q – I have supplied equipment or assets to the Company under a lease, hire or hire purchase agreement. Can I recover my assets?

A – Your first port of call should be to contact the proposed Joint Administrators via email to [email protected] to make us aware of your assets and the location they were supplied.

Please provide a copy of any agreement with the Company so that the proposed Joint Administrators and their agents can review the documentation. We will then seek to liaise with customers or other appropriate parties to seek to arrange access the equipment or assets.

Q – Will any attempts be made to sell the Company’s business?

A – Attempts were made to sell the business as a going concern, but unfortunately, these were not successful. 

If any party is interested in the Companies’ brand, intellectual property and order book, they should email [email protected] and [email protected] with details of their interest.

Q – How do I go about trying to purchase any of the Company’s assets?

A - If any party is interested in purchasing the Company’s tangible assets, order book, brand and/or intellectual property, they should register their expressions of interest via email to [email protected]

Q – Are there any plans for a new company to be established to complete projects and fulfil existing orders?

A – The proposed Joint Administrators are not aware of any plans from the directors to establish a new company to complete the Company’s projects and/or fulfil existing orders and are not in any negotiations to transfer any of the Company’s business.  

Q – How long does the Administration process take?

A – As mentioned above, once appointed, the administrators have to identify and sell any assets, conduct investigations and file statutory paperwork, which can take up to two years, if not longer. The more complex the issues, the longer the process takes.

Other Information and GDPR

The Company is registered in England and Wales and therefore the insolvency proceedings will be carried out in accordance with the relevant UK insolvency legislation.

As part of the liquidation process, the director is required to prepare and deliver up a Statement of Affairs to all of the Company’s known creditors. Within the Statement of Affairs is a schedule of all known creditors, which will include personal data, such as names and addresses (dependent upon the method of delivery). This is required by insolvency legislation, meaning it is lawful processing of personal data and does not constitute a breach of General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR).