{"name":"CONTRACT AUTO ENGINEERING LIMITED","company_number":"04785963","status":"Liquidation","type":"Private Limited Company","incorporated":"2003-06-03","dissolved":null,"registered_office":"Darwin House, 7, Kidderminster Road, Bromsgrove, Worcestershire, B61 7JJ","postcode":"B61 7JJ","sic_codes":[{"code":25990,"description":"Manufacture of other fabricated metal products not elsewhere classified"}],"principal_activity":null,"previous_names":[],"warnings":["The confirmation statement for this company is overdue."],"accounts":{"category":"Total Exemption Full","year_end":"31 December","last_made_up_to":"2024-12-31","next_due":"2026-09-30"},"employees":null,"financials":[{"financial_date":"2024-12-31","net_assets":6149,"cash":221},{"financial_date":"2024-08-31","net_assets":3109,"cash":303},{"financial_date":"2023-12-31","net_assets":6040,"cash":43},{"financial_date":"2022-12-31","net_assets":5462,"cash":23033},{"financial_date":"2021-12-31","net_assets":13844,"cash":44512}],"officers":{"current":3,"resigned":2,"complete":true,"note":"Names and details of individual officers are on the People page (subscriber-only on this site) and free at Companies House."},"charges":{"total":1,"outstanding":1},"gazette_notices":[{"date":"2026-07-17","kind":"insolvency"},{"date":"2026-07-17","kind":"insolvency"},{"date":"2026-07-06","kind":"insolvency"}],"insolvency_outcome":null,"ai_summary":"Contract Auto Engineering Limited represents a failed micro-cap automotive fabrication business that has entered liquidation after a prolonged period of cash depletion and balance sheet deterioration. The company's financial metrics fall significantly below sector norms—a current ratio of 0.92x, cash representing just 0.16% of current assets, and net current liabilities of £11,481 all indicate an unviable going concern. The extraction of dividends by directors during the final trading period, whilst crown debts accumulated to over £63,000, raises governance concerns typical of distressed UK manufacturing SMEs in the automotive supply chain. The liquidation reflects broader sector pressures including input cost inflation, automotive volume decline, and the chronic late-payment culture that disproportionately affects smaller fabricators.","website":null,"links":{"page":"https://www.companiesintheuk.co.uk/ltd/contract-auto-engineering","people":"https://www.companiesintheuk.co.uk/company/contract-auto-engineering/people","filing_history":"https://www.companiesintheuk.co.uk/company/contract-auto-engineering/filing-history","companies_house":"https://find-and-update.company-information.service.gov.uk/company/04785963","financials":"https://www.companiesintheuk.co.uk/company/contract-auto-engineering/financial","gazette":"https://www.companiesintheuk.co.uk/company/contract-auto-engineering/gazette","control":"https://www.companiesintheuk.co.uk/company/contract-auto-engineering/control","charges":"https://www.companiesintheuk.co.uk/company/contract-auto-engineering/charges","ai_analysis":"https://www.companiesintheuk.co.uk/company/contract-auto-engineering/analysis"},"source":"CompaniesInTheUK, from Companies House, The Gazette and other public registers (see /support/about). Cite as: CompaniesInTheUK, https://www.companiesintheuk.co.uk/ltd/contract-auto-engineering"}