Insolvency reform
Receivers of insolvent companies are to be made personally liable for any non-domestic rates due after their appointment.
The move comes in a joint consultation paper issued by the Department of the Environment and the Welsh Office last week.
Announcing the plan, local government minister David Curry said: ‘These proposals will close a loophole through which receivers can refuse to pay non-domestic rates even though the companies themselves continue to trade’
Keith Goodman, insolvency partner with Leonard Curtis, said: ‘If this loophole is closed, receivers will have to take it into account when deciding if a company should continue trading.’
The change could have a proportionally greater impact on smaller receiverships, he said, potentially increasing numbers of liquidations.