The government had said that it will do “whatever it takes” to support the economy with the significant economic disruption and uncertainty which the COVID-19 outbreak has already caused across the world.
The economic support includes the following key measures:
- Businesses of all sizes will have access to a £330 billion package of Government-backed loans and guarantees;
- A new lending facility to provide “low cost, easily accessible” loans for the largest businesses;
- Extending the new Business Interruption Loan Scheme for SMEs to £5 million with no interest for the first six months;
- 12 month business rates holiday for every single business in the retail, hospitality or leisure sector (if they have a rateable value of less than £51,000, they can now get a cash grant of £25,000 as well);
- £10,000 grants to 700,000 of the smallest businesses.
Consultation with the Government on further measures
It remains to be seen whether these measures, which are almost unprecedented in peacetime, go far enough. We understand that you are still likely to be concerned about the impact on the economy and the effects on your business particularly in circumstances where there is no insurance cover for business interruption.
We are members of R3, the association of business recovery professionals, who are engaging with the Government regarding further measures to mitigate some of the economic fallout from the virus.
Action to take now:
- Seek advice for dealing with:-
– Employees, pay and flexible working
– Landlords
– Creditors
– Key suppliers - Protect yourself from becoming personally liable for the Company’s debts
- Prepare cashflow forecasts
- Manage costs
- Speak to HMRC to discuss paying by instalments or suspending debt collection.
Life support for your business
We are uniquely positioned to understand the challenges businesses and individuals are facing at the moment. We can help you to put your business in a bubble/life support machine to protect it until we are in more certain times.
We can do this by advising you on the various insolvency options available. This will aim to save your business by protecting it from creditors over the coming months, so that it is not irreparably damaged by the effects of the Coronavirus and the associated downturn in trade.
This can involve obtaining a “statutory moratorium” which, in an administration, will restrict creditors taking action and allow the business to trade with protection, or potentially to temporarily cease trading until we are in more certain times and the business can be rescued.
We, together with an expert licensed Insolvency Practitioner, can help you decide how best to deal with your employees, landlord and other creditors during this difficult time.
Our business is able to fully operate with our staff working from home. We understand that we are fortunate in that regard but we fully appreciate that this is simply not an option for businesses like yours. We would like to support you by offering the packages set out below, which are at a much reduced rate, and also on a fixed fee basis for your certainty. We have teamed up with Insolvency Practitioners that we work with regularly to be able to offer you this package:
- FREE 30-minute telephone advice regarding general options for your business;
- If more advice is needed after that initial call, then we can provide a formal letter of advice tailored specifically to your business needs with an action plan to protect it over the coming months for a fixed fee of £295 plus VAT.
- Complete package to place your company into administration, securing a statutory moratorium, with a view to rescuing the business in the future. This is clearly dependent on the nature of the business, number of employees, and many other factors but we will provide you with a fixed fee quote, starting from £2,995 plus VAT.
In uncertain times we can offer the certainty of:
- Knowing what options are available to you;
- How much these options cost;
- How long the various options last for; and
- Our continued support
If you would like more information about how Ellisons can provide you with the consultation that is right for your business and circumstances, please contact Scott Porter or Lyndsey Squirrell.