If your company does not have enough money to pay all of its debts and the business is no longer viable, you may decide with your fellow directors and shareholders that a voluntary company liquidation is the only option.

A Creditors Voluntary Liquidation (CVL) is initiated by the directors who, with shareholders, nominate an Insolvency Practitioner to wind up the insolvent company. The company creditors formally make the appointment, hence the reason it is termed a Creditors Voluntary Liquidation. 

The liquidator must be a licensed Insolvency Practitioner who will dispose of all company assets and share the proceeds with creditors in accordance with their adjudicated claims and priorities. The liquidator will also report on the conduct of the directors in relation to the demise of the company. This should show that the directors behaved responsibly and no wrongful trading took place.

We can act as a company liquidator in a voluntary liquidation and will assist directors to ensure they meet their obligations in such circumstances. 

Having confirmed that company liquidation this is the best course of action for you, we will help you through the process of putting your company into liquidation. We will find the most beneficial way of selling any assets and will distribute any surplus funds to the creditors. We will wind up all contracts and legal issues and ensure your company is taken off the register at Companies House.

Being a director of a limited company means that there is little personal risk (or limited liability) if the company fails, as long as you have acted properly.  A  voluntary company liquidation should allow you to get on with your life and enable you to start a new business should you decide to do so. The company's failure should have little effect on you personally unless you have signed personal guarantees or indemnities to lenders. If you have then the liquidation could lead to them being called in. We can advise accordingly if this applies in your case.

The most appropriate insolvency solution

We're committed to delivering the most appropriate solution. Before embarking on liquidation, we'll consider whether your company can be made viable if radically restructured and, if so, how to make this happen. If the business is viable there but you lack the desire or determination to take things forward, we can still help. Quite often we are approached to  liquidate a company, but on closer inspection we can often see a solution. This could be trading out or a company voluntary arrangement.