Michael Lord-Castle
Michael Lord-Castle
Medium-sized construction company, South West England (t/o circa £260m)
Michael Lord-Castle of The Insolvency Advisory Service asked me to write a few words, at the risk of annoying him I have gone a stage further as it is important for you to see how ias helped me and the qualities of their leader - Michael. To say we were hopelessly insolvent is possibly an understatement.
Everything happened so fast and we were not prepared although I cannot name names, and by Christ I would like too! (read in-between the lines) we were lead contractors to 8 sites and sub-contractors to possibly 30. In simplicity we were let down (in my opinion double-crossed) by 2 of our largest clients one being Railway related and the other local government. They had fallen short of their target and people like us had to suffer. When your client decides not to pay - that’s it they don’t!!! I met with Lawyers, spent £50,000 and all that got me was a bill for another £50,000 from the other side. We met with insolvency practitioners and recovery people but my gut feeling was telling me that we were about to be raped further - I was at the point where I wanted to just roll over, give up and just let the whole lot collapse. This would have meant me being made bankrupt but what the heck, I would be damned if these vultures were going to get anything.
My background was military as were my partners, therefore discipline prevailed. However when a ship starts to sink it gets lonely very quickly, discipline starts to dissolve along with the fair weather friends. At, what I considered to be my last dinner function prior to what would have been my inevitable bankruptcy I met with a few old service chaps. A few whiskies later I had told them everything and was by then a blithering and blubbering wreck. They talked to me about Michael Lord-Castle and how they had met him on a troubleshooting assignment in Africa. Using their words, what he did in 3 weeks the British Government could not achieve in 4 years. My friends arranged a meeting with Michael - bizarrely, now I realise it’s the norm for Michael and his team, our first meeting was at 22.15 one evening and I was slotted in-between other meetings he was holding. I now realise he was assessing me, my team and my company as well as the desire we had to prevail.
Michaels understanding, leadership and ability to make a difference is unparalleled. Within days Michael had a team working on our case. He had organised a small group of my personnel to facilitate all his requests for information, and there were many. Within 10 days he had a plan based upon the information supplied - some of that information later proved to be inaccurate, Michael made immediate changes to reflect this. Most would have been annoyed Michael laughed, even in the worst circumstances, when you are feeling at an all time low along comes Michael and he has you laughing within minutes and makes you feel full of hope again. The only time I have seen Michael come close to losing his patience is when confronted by fools or the ignorant. However someone that does not understand or is scared Michael shows great tolerance and compassion. It is important that you understand this if you are fortunate to have him and his team protecting you.
What Michael did was remove me and my co-directors from 16 personal guaranties, some we do not remember ever entering into. He assisted in new banking facilities, removed £4 million of debt, got us through court to use the same name, released us of over 60 HP and Leasing agreements, reduced employees by 141, reduced overall overheads yearly by £120 million. There was a reduction in turnover (vanity) by some £80 million.
Yes we still have to pay back the bank, but now it’s the company doing this not us and whereas before the bank was hostile it’s now friendly. Best of all Michael has placed a good team of advisers at our disposal. Oh - we now make a profit thanks to ias.
G SL, Wales
We are a printing company we were heavily financed, the more we borrowed the higher the interest. The more we defaulted the harder it became for us, the Inland Revenue and VAT were charging horrendous interest, the bank were bouncing cheques and writing to tell me at £40 a time, it was a vicious circle. At my wits end I saw my solicitor she recommended that we meet ias. All I can say is that I will never be able to repay my solicitor for that advice she saved my life - quite literally!
The speed at which ias worked was phenomenal. They gave me a hard time, they pushed me and my employees for information, and they even brought my family into the equation. Which in hindsight was not only fair but tactical brilliance - the message was clear unless we all mucked in we would lose everything including our home, a real home, a home where my children were borne. ias took no prisoners, we had no time, a petition for our winding up was on the table, and I thought that I had left it too late. Michael came in with his team, arranged re-finance of all equipment, gave us a new accountant, new banking facilities. Valued all equipment, had an agreement drawn up for the new company to purchase everything at a price higher than the valuation.
This man is an insolvency expert, a brilliant tactician and negotiator, and according to my solicitor a true visionary. In one swoop a CVA was placed before our creditors - either accept this sale and see some money personally guaranteed (we had nothing to lose!) over 12 months or see a tenth of what was being offered - the majority accepted. We had stopped the petition, written off £400,000 of debt. Completely re-structured the company and protected all the assets so that they are never at risk again.
Electronics sector (t/o £24m)
We were introduced to the ias team via a friend who had experienced problems in the past - ias was, using his words their Knight in Shining Armour.
When you start getting County Court Judgments you hear from many turnaround organisations - financial whizz-kids - Insolvency Practitioners etc - it is a minefield as to whom you should trust. Do you follow your accountants or lawyers advice bearing in mind that they probably got you into this position in the first place or at the very least could have offered advice to prevent it! Is it that they get a back-hander or is it a route to cover their own inadequacies, or am I just paranoid?
Before meeting Michael and his team I had already met an Insolvency Practitioner who was more concerned with his fees rather than helping me, the only thing I got from him for free was a cheesy grin. Michael was a breath of fresh air - he was the only one that listened and asked what did I want - he was also the only one that would meet with me and discuss and plan a basic route forward (4 meetings later) and not charge - a genuine professional. That is why he is known as the Professionals - Professional.
What Michael and his team did in 5 very long months was the following:
- Create a veil of protection around all personal assets of mine and my co-directors families
- Placed company into Administration
- Re-move £4 million of debt
- Re-finance 4 times bringing in £1.6 million
- Remove every item, person, object that was no longer needed or viable
- Re- package the company
After the above…
- Go for a new round of finance
- Raised a further £2 million in equity
- Completely re-launched all brands and the company
Only a few months ago I was bankrupt now I and my colleagues have a new future, cash in the bank, supported by equity partners, have more funds available when desired. We only have one thing to add… Thank you, Michael.
If you have any doubt about what this team of professionals can achieve then come and see for yourself its bloody mind blowing.
TT Metal Fabrication (t/o £14-16m)
Michael asked that I write something for his website, it’s a pleasure to do so especially as I will get a pint for it!
When I first met with the ias team I was sceptical, I had already met with others offering a service which appeared to be the same but for less cash outlay. I went with ias because they did not need money up front, they quoted a fixed fee and agreed part of it could be paid over 12-months. I thought well they better be good otherwise they wont see their fees. Perhaps I did not listen, perhaps I did not understand or perhaps I had just lost faith in people. I failed to see just how open they were and how they backed up every statement they made. It was only after working with them for a week that I contacted one of their clients for a reference, I know it was perhaps a bit late but it’s never too late. This conversation was an eye opener in fact at first I did not believe that it was a client. We agreed to meet, I insisted I met at their factory; this would eliminate any doubt that I had. The meeting went well, I came back - met with Michael and his PA Kathy and Jon, the first thing I did was apologise and the second thing was put everything that Michaels team needed at their disposal.
Fortunately we did not need to liquidate. As ias has been around for so long it has great respect from many creditors because it does not go out there to screw them, just educate them as Michael would and did so often say. The creditors needed to know just how bad it was and needed to hear it from a third party not from me.
Michael put a restructuring plan into effect and during a 3-month period was able to turn the company around. Every time we were threatened with a court action ias would turn around and say we can do far worse to you if the company were to shut down. I can now say that we have cleared all the old debt. We still have some debt but it’s manageable.
If you are thinking of using ias here are a few tips why you should and what you should do:
- List all your questions, otherwise you will forget on the day
- Working for and protecting you and your families is their duty
- Secrecy - they are exponents at the art
- Long established
- Formidable team of accountants, lawyers, surveyors
- Straight-talking, no bull - whether you like it or not
- Provide good, fast, detailed, understandable solutions
- No hidden fees
- Confidentiality
- Fees can be spread over time - ias don’t ask, as many do for
- Cash up front
- Speed - decide fast, they need time on their side to help you
- Speak to some of their old clients
- They will attempt to save everything you have worked for
- They have got balls and will take on the largest of organisations to protect you
Come and see me, see the changes they made and see why they are now not just my consultants but trusted friends to me and my family.
GPR, London - Substantial franchisor
Running a franchise chain is not one of the most rewarding things to do we have over 320 Franchisees. Franchisees always complain that you are earning too much and are always trying to find ways of not paying no matter how good it is for them. On a bad day the franchisees want out because they cannot pay the fees, when times are good they want out because they want to keep all the money and start their own Franchise.
However, when things start to get tough for us we have far more to lose. If we were to seek any form of open Insolvency we are in trouble because this would cause the collapse of our business. If the franchisees were to hear that we were having problems then they would use this as the excuse to rescind their agreements. We would collapse overnight.
We first saw ias on a series of television documentaries - Michael was described as a Saint due to his continued patience with one of his clients. Knowing Michael as well as I do I can imagine when not filming he could have nearly killed that particular client. What impressed me was the way he is able to instantly assess the situation and see the route out, this not only comes with years of experience but also a natural ability.
The ias team initially caught us unaware by the amount of information wanted together with its quality and speed. I would advise you not to make any shortcuts here because you will lose out in the long run, and the advice given is based upon that information.
Our biggest problem was that we had over 200 leases, a mixture of Offices and Shops. We needed to get out of as many of these as soon as possible, current liabilities to landlords alone were in excess of £1 million. Contingent liabilities directly related to wishing to move out of some premises and having to make good those properties (dilapidations) was in the region of £15 million pounds. To add insult to injury we had recently lost a couple of Court cases and we had a liability case adding those together were another £2 million - this was the problem I gave Michael to rectify.
After 3 weeks of planning Michael’s team under the banner of ias Corporate Services put a proposal to all franchisees. It appeared and in general did offer the franchisees a better package; this was achieved because Michael investigated all their complaints and addressed the majority of them with 3 basic proposals. In return it provided a better working environment for my team and the franchisees agreed a position that they would allow another entity of our choosing to administer and take control as the Franchisor. We were now in a position whereby the company could be placed into Administration - the end result, almost overnight saved us over £20 million - long-term considerably more. The added advantage was that it provided a far better return for creditors than what they would have seen if the Liquidation route had of been taken.
C G, Devon
I run a small group of shops - we had many problems. Possibly the main problem was that we did not get good advice from the outset. Our accountant was a nice man but really anything more than calculating tax was beyond him. Cheryl from ias was the first person we met. She made us feel at ease and also made us aware just how important it was to have someone working for us as opposed to the creditors she also highlighted our areas of weakness, there were many that we were not aware of so did not put measures in place to protect them.
After taking advice; the first thing we did was undo the many things that we had done over the last couple of months. This was us trying to protect assets - we could have got into a lot of trouble. With their support we went to all of our creditors with a good open and honest plan. Eventually we got 94% support, 6% was against the proposal this being my ex-wife. She had to toe the line even though she did not want too, the law made her; for once the law with the help of ias was on my side this in itself gave me some pleasure!
We are now paying our debts off - we were given 3 years and pay an affordable monthly amount. We only pay 48% i.e. 48 pence in the pound. This means that the £200,000 we owed we only have to pay £96,000 back without any interest. This is far more than the creditors would have seen if both my wife and I were to have been made bankrupt so it’s good for us all. Cheryl and Andrew with Mike’s guidance have also shown me how to protect our assets in the future and build towards our retirement through trusts impenetrable by bankruptcy etc. We now can sleep at night.
Electronics firm, Northern England
After our initial meeting with ias a partner returned for a more in-depth discussion. This led to our appointing ias.
We were taken aback by the speed and efficiency in which they operated. Within days ias were supplied all the information needed. If we can give any warning to any new clients of ias be prepared for a few late nights these guys don’t sleep until they have every bit of information they request (and usually a bit more!). By day 4 they had provided us new accountants - commenced new banking facilities - arranged short term factoring (without personal guaranties!) we had a new set of lawyers and kept all of our creditors at bay.
By day 10 all of our creditors had been contacted by ias this is important because it reflected our genuine concern for the creditors. We did not want them to lose - nonetheless we had to protect ourselves, our company and very importantly our employees some of whom had been with us for over 20 years.
After a few more consultations we were able to put in place a plan - although ias leads the way the final decision is always ours - in a matter of 5 weeks they had completely turned the business around. We did a CVA this is where we offer the creditors some of their money back, in our case 70% of it, over a 5 year period. We owed (a lot more than we thought!) £2.4 million - we saved the company - we saved nearly £700,000, we were provided 5 years to repay the debt - without any interest - we saved our homes, families and sanity!
We had to use the services of an insolvency practitioner it was only once they were appointed that we started to realise the power that they could have had over us had ias not have been there. Although ias is licensed and practices Insolvency they do not act for the creditors they act for and protect us - a licensed Insolvency Practitioner if acting as the liquidator, receiver or supervisor cannot do this, his duty by law is to the creditors - he may then be acting directly against you and certainly cannot be relied upon or trusted as a person that will help you above your creditors.
For the 1st time in 8 years - we have money in the bank, no borrowings and are looking, cautiously, to expand. However, we will not move one inch without first talking to Michael at ias as he is the light at the end of the tunnel so many talk about.
At the end of the day - if you are in the same situation we were and you do not know ias chances are you are finished because there is nobody out there that provides such a professional service and has been doing so for so long, in excess of 20 years. As for anyone thinking of going to an Insolvency Practitioner - think again - it would be madness, if in doubt please call me. We can never thank Michael and his team enough for what they have done and continue to do for us.
E T Y, Cambridgeshire - Small manufacturer of conservatories
My family had a dream and that was to expand our uPVC Business and focus more on conservatories, we would then sell and realise our full dream by moving to Spain and semi-retire that dream had turned to a living nightmare until our accountant recommended that we use the service of ias.
Fortunately we were a Limited Company, the ias team evaluated our entire business, discussed various routes forward and we ended up going into liquidation. We really had no choice anything else would have been futile.
We owed a lot to the Inland Revenue and VAT. ias made us produce accurate records in certain areas. This would prove to be very helpful later as when questioned at the creditors meeting by The Inland Revenue we were able to demonstrate that they were not the only creditors and that their debt was not only disputed and made up of interest incorrectly accounted but that we had lost too.
Prior to the liquidation we had with the help of ias two valuations, an extra one just in case anyone argues with the first. We then sold all the assets to the new company, gave ourselves 3 months to pay, this was later accepted by the liquidator. Without the expert guidance of the ias staff in particular Cheryl and Fiona we could not have done this. As for Spain well we gave up on that, better still we now have a place in Portugal and will in time move there.
J H, Weybridge Surrey - Small building company
Michael was recommended to us by friends who had used his services in the past. It was refreshing to see someone that did not ridicule us for our mistakes, it was embarrassing enough to go and see someone.
Michael helped us and prevented us from losing our home. Things are still not easy, but are a lot better, we now have hope. We have at last settled all outstanding bills and have a little money in the bank.
We certainly won’t retire as soon as we would have liked but at least when we do, we will have our own home thanks to Mike and his great bunch of staff, they were a great support on those days when you feel a little low.