MR ROBERT HEADSPEATH

Disqualified from

2022-02-07

Date of birth on record

October 1961

1. In the period between 1 April 2018, the day following the last accounts filed at Companies House and 7 February 2020, the date of Robert Headspeath’s (“Mr Headspeath”) resignation, he failed to ensure that Advanced Signs Limited (“ASL” or “the company”) maintained and/or preserved adequate accounting records, or, in the alternative, failed to deliver up such records to the Liquidator. In the absence of any accounting records it has not been possible to verify the following: • Whether, of the receipts into ASL bank account totalling £840,479, ATM deposits totalling £72,351 and Pay In amounts totalling £63,905 are a true representation of company’s sales. In the absence of company records it is not possible to explain these deposits. • Whether, of the expenditure from ASL bank account totalling £843,156, amounts totalling; £43,403 paid to connected persons, £13,975 paid to an unknown account described as S/S, £7,150 paid to the Directors as “R&M Rents,” cheque payments totalling £23,080 and unexplained payments totalling £59,439, were paid for the benefit of the company. In the absence of company records it is not possible to explain these payments. • Whether the debtors disclosed in the accounts to 30 March 2018, totalling £49,041 have been collected for the benefit of the company. • What happened to the Fixed assets, totalling £55,581 at 30 March 2018, which includes 5 vehicles and various Plant & Machinery. • The true position regarding the Directors Loan Account (“DLA”) after 31 March 2018. The Management information discloses the balance owed to Directors on the DLA to be £59,333 as at 31 March 2018. No claim has been received from the Directors in the liquidation. In the absence of any records it is not possible to verify the movement in the DLA between 31 March 2018 and 7 February 2020.4 • The accuracy of the HMRC Assessment for the period to 30 September 2019 or the final VAT liability due to HMRC. 2. From at least 7 November 2017 Robert Headspeath (“Mr Headspeath”) failed to ensure that Advanced Signs Limited (“ASL”) dealt with its tax affairs correctly and caused ASL to trade to the detriment of HMRC in respect of Value Added Tax (“VAT”) in that: • He was a joint director from the date of incorporation until he resigned on 7 February 2020, 1 week prior to liquidation. ASL registered for VAT from April 2015, following which VAT returns were filed up to the VAT period ended 30 June 2019. • ASL filed VAT returns from the period ended 30 September 2017 to period ended 30 June 2019, disclosing liabilities totalling £75,158 ASL made 2 payments totalling £15,863. The outstanding amount of £59,295 remained unpaid at the date of his resignation on 7 February 2020 and at liquidation on 14 February 2020. • Following this, ASL failed to file any further VAT returns after period ended 30 June 2019 and HMRC raised an Assessment for the VAT period to 30 September 2019, in the sum of £9,339, plus a Surcharge of £1,400. No payments were made by ASL and £10,739 remained unpaid at 7 February 2020 and at liquidation. • VAT totalling £70,044 was outstanding at 7 February 2020 and remained outstanding at liquidation on 14 February 2020. Comparative Treatment • The filed accounts to 31 March 2018 disclose creditors totalling £201,137, which includes Trade & Expense £16,307, the Bank £26,366 and HMRC VAT £24,481, while the failure to file 2019 Accounts means that it’s not possible to make a comparison from 31 March 2019. • The claims received at liquidation, include HMRC VAT £85,586, 1 Trade and Expense claim of £350 and the Bank £5,763. • Bank statement analysis for the period from 1 April 2018, discloses expenditure totalling £843,156. Of this, £329,255 was paid to Trade & Expense, £239,549 paid to employees, £46,220 to the Directors, £43,403 to connected persons, £59,439 is unexplained and while £81,753 was paid to HMRC only £15,863 was paid in respect of VAT liabilities.