Sheriff's Letter to Individual for Company Debt

M

mickeyg

Registered User
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My brother in law is scared witless and has asked me for advice. He has just received a letter from the Sheriff's Office/Courts Service addressed to a company with which he once had an involvement but is sent c/o his home address.
He had ceased having any involvement with the company about 3 years ago and it was wound up last year. The letter states that they "will proceed to levy the said amount.... unless payment is received within 4 days".
Firstly, if it is the debt of a Limited Liability company how/why are they coming after him or is it because his is the only address they have?? I thought Limited Liability company meant limited liability and surely an individual cannot be pursued for a company debt.
Secondly, whilst there may well be some company assets they are certainly not located at his premises and he certainly has no access to them
What would you suggest I advise him to do??
 
He should simply call the person on the letter and tell them that no assets of the company are at his address.

But he should also seek to remove his address from any records of the company. Was he a director? Was he a shareholder? If it was wound up last year, he should refer the Sheriff to the Liquidator.

Brendan
 
Brendan Burgess said:
I don't think that would affect the Sheriff if the letter is addressed to the company.

Brendan
Click to expand...

So the letter would then have to be addressed to him, if he had given personal guarantees, as he would then be personally liable.
 
mickeyg said:
Secondly, whilst there may well be some company assets they are certainly not located at his premises and he certainly has no access to them
What would you suggest I advise him to do??
Click to expand...

Where are the company assets, who has access to them, do the debt collectors know where they are?

If he knows, perhaps he could inform the debt collectors and get them off his back.
 
Bronte said:
So the letter would then have to be addressed to him, if he had given personal guarantees, as he would then be personally liable.
Click to expand...

If he had given personal guarantees, the creditor would have had to go to court to get a judgement against him personally.
If that had happened, as you say, the letter would be addressed to him and not the company.

Brendan
 
Thanks for all replies. A couple of clarifications. Yes he was a Director of the company. The Registered address of the company was the premises from which the company operated approx. 25 miles from the house address
to which the letter was sent. The company is currently listed as "Dissolved 30 September 2014". Does this indicate that there was a formal wind-up and liquidator involved??
The company had fixed assets but he is unsure where they are currently but they are definitely not at his house!! He would have left the company approx 1.5 years before the dissolution. I imagine the paperwork is
being sent to his home address because there was no response to letters sent to the business address.
 
Did the Sheriff's letter state at which address they would be taking action?
 
No - there was no indication at what address they would be taking action. It states that "unless within 4 days from the receipt of this notice this amount be paid to me
I shall proceed to levy the said amount together with other charges and in the event of seizure and sale of your goods and all other extra expenses without further notice
to you"
 
If he really knows as little about what is going on as the OP suggests he should ring the sherif and ask why this letter was sent to him. Was his resignation as a director ever notified to the CRO.
 
Why did he leave the company. As a director he has surely some obligations. Did he make sure he was officially resigned from the company etc? I find it odd he doesn't know where the assets are, would they be somewhere that the other Director (s) have removed them to.

I agree with the suggestion of ringing the sheriff to find out what is going on. He is only doing his job. And it's probably only a fishing exercise.
 
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