tax Liabilities of disolved company

J

justincase

Guest
Hi Guys

A few years back we hired an accountant to take over from our previous accountant. As our business was expanding this guy promised it all but delivered no results.
He Failed to make any returns for us with the result that my company was struck off.
When it was struck off he assured me we could get reinstated
But he dragged this on, in the meantime my bank was willing to lend us money to expand pending accounts been supplied. This went on for a further 18 mths
With still no accounts provided by him. With the result that our bank
withdrew our o.d facility, which put pressure on cashflow. During this time
post strike off our revenue liabilty increased . This businees has now folded.This is a very brief outline of what this accountant has done to me.

The revenue have now tranferred the liability owed to them Post strike off to me personally can they do this ?

I believe I have a case against this accountants firm would it be worth following has anyone ever taken on these guys?
 
The revenue have now transferred the liability owed to them Post strike off to me personally can they do this ?
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Yes they can. You assume liability if you continue to trade post strike off.
I believe I have a case against this accountants firm would it be worth following has anyone ever taken on these guys?
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That is really for a solicitor to answer.
 
you definatley woudl have a case based on what you have said in your posting. however to me you seemed to have been a bit soft on your accountant. i mean how many second chances did you give the accountant? Ultimatley you are responsible for looking after the company and ensuring that the returns go in on time.
 
If, as you say, the non-filing went on for at least 18 months, you would find it difficult to explain why you did not take remedial action within that timeframe in order to regularise the company's position and avert a strike-off.

Have you considered an application to restore the company?
 
justincase said:
Hi Guys

A few years back we hired an accountant to take over from our previous accountant. As our business was expanding this guy promised it all but delivered no results.
He Failed to make any returns for us with the result that my company was struck off.
When it was struck off he assured me we could get reinstated
But he dragged this on, in the meantime my bank was willing to lend us money to expand pending accounts been supplied. This went on for a further 18 mths
With still no accounts provided by him. With the result that our bank
withdrew our o.d facility, which put pressure on cashflow. During this time
post strike off our revenue liabilty increased . This businees has now folded.This is a very brief outline of what this accountant has done to me.

The revenue have now tranferred the liability owed to them Post strike off to me personally can they do this ?

I believe I have a case against this accountants firm would it be worth following has anyone ever taken on these guys?
Click to expand...

Just wondering how did the revenue transfer liablity- Was their an investigation or an audit of your company affairs. What taxes were transfereed to you personally eg vat, paye/prsi, corp tax etc.

How many directors were they?
 
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They simply transfer all the liabilities of the company from the date of strike off of the company to the named directors. Standard procedure tbh. They do this as soon as they become aware of the strike off.
 
It is a mess now. It could cost a lot to get company reinstated as you would have to go through the court i think. What are the level of liablities?

Do cost analysis of paying off tax personally or getting copmany reinstated and pay off via company in due course.

Better off to go to new Accountant(pay him a fee up front) to give you advise on all outstanding returns and liablities and them a solicitor on cost of restoring. Better off dealing with your position as soon as possible.
 
The OP will need to apply to the High Court for restoration which will involve briefing a barrister. Apart from the legal fees there will be all the CRO penalties that will need to be paid. He really needs to weigh up all his options.
 
So what's the point in setting up a limited company?
I can't see any advantage.
 
The problem arose because the OP continued to trade under the company name after it had being struck off. That causes any liabilities accrued after the date of strike off to become the directors personal liability. To avoid this he should have ceased trading as soon as the company was struck off.

The benefit of limited liability is lost from the date of strike off.
 
bond-007 said:
To avoid this he should have ceased trading as soon as the company was struck off.
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...or applied for restoration immediately upon strikeoff. Had this been done within 12 months of strikeoff, he could have availed of a simple and relatively inexpensive process that avoids the need for High Court, barristers etc.
 
Not taking any sides - I know there are bad apples out there - but I feel that taking an action against the accountants would be difficult. He will claim that you delayed the process by not supplying the necessary information. Even if some blame was apportioned to him he would claim contributory negligence. As ubiq said when the company was struck off you would have been advised by the CRO. Why did you then continue to trade? At the very least you should have appointed new advisors at this stage. The fact that you continued to use the old accountant indicates that you accepted some blame for the difficulties experienced.
If the accountant messed up he should be ashamed of himself and at the very least his Institute should be contacted.
 
It costs anything from €5K upwards for a High Court resoration. €5k is low, averages out about 10K.
H1 procedure for restoration within a year will cost approx €600 if someone does it on your behalf, or €300 CRO filing fees if you do it yourself.
 
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