Creditors of collapsed industrial specialist Readie Construction Limited are set to lose £43.1m, after claims rose by 65 per cent in value.
In its initial report, administrator Begbies Traynor estimated unsecured creditors would bring £26.1m in claims. An update published on Friday (13 September) revealed that claims formally submitted totalled £17m more than expected. None of the claims are likely to be paid out.
Begbies Traynor said the hike in claims might be explained by invoices Readie had not received or processed at the time it went under and claims including performance bonds made as a result of the administration earlier this year.
Employees are likely to win back anticipated claims for wage arrears, salary and holiday pay totalling £494,400. The administrator also estimates that HMRC will receive its full claim, which currently stands at £6.2m but is estimated at £8m.
It remains uncertain whether the administrator will retrieve the £4.8m owed to Readie by its parent company, Readie Management Limited, which was liquidated in court in April.
Industrial specialist Readie hit the brakes in February, citing inflation, subcontractor failures and tight performance bond and trade credit insurance markets. It emerged shortly afterwards that clients withheld more than £2m after Readie was no longer able to obtain bonds and subcontractors had stopped turning up to site.
Directors explored a sale, but the potential buyer fell through.
The firm had recently transitioned to an employee-ownership trust (EOT). Analysts have raised concerns about the business model in light of several EOTs going under in a short space of time, including Buckingham Group and Michael J Lonsdale.
