Skip company boss fails to explain £1m expenses
Kent waste director banned for 7 years after failing to explain legitimacy of £1.14million worth of payments.
Michael Martin (44), from Erith in Kent, has been banned from acting as a director or directly or indirectly becoming involved, without the permission of the court, in the promotion, formation or management of a company after he failed to provide records to account for £1.14m in payments.
ADM Skips was incorporated in June 2017 and Michael Martin became director in February 2018.
The company was involved in disposing of non-hazardous waste. ADM Skips, however, experienced difficulties and ceased trading in July 2019 before a liquidator was appointed to wind up the company.
The liquidator reported to the Insolvency Service that Michael Martin had refused to co-operate with them during the process and didn’t produce any accounting records.
The Insolvency Service found that before entering liquidation, ADM Skips received more than £1.1 million into its account and made payments out of a similar amount. Transactions included visa payments of close to £500,000 and foreign currency payments of £448,000.
Investigators were able to recover some records from the ADM Skip’s accountant but they could not explain the company’s transactions and the legitimacy of the payments.
Michael Martin has now been made subject to a disqualification order after the High Court of Justice found he had failed to ensure that ADM Skips Limited maintained and preserved adequate accounting records, or had failed to deliver up to the liquidator these records.
The order was pronounced on 15 December 2020 and the 7-year ban is effective from 5 January 2021.
Dave Elliott, Chief Investigator at the Insolvency Service, said:
Michael Martin failed to work with the liquidator following the winding up of his company, refusing to account for more than £1 million that left the company accounts during his directorship.
Directors who cause companies to fail to maintain and deliver sufficient accounting records can expect lengthy bans, and Michael Martin is now unable to act as a company director for a significant period.
Notes to editors
Michael Martin is of Erith, Kent and his date of birth is April 1976.
ADM Skips Limited (Company Reg no. 10822062).
Mr Maxim Cardew appeared for the Insolvency Service and no one appeared for or on behalf of the defendant.
Persons subject to a disqualification order are bound by a range of restrictions.
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