With the pandemic receding and government restrictions loosening up, businesses are moving closer to ‘returning back to normal’. However, whilst everyone may be eager to get back to business as usual, the unpredictable and long-lasting impact following this pandemic means that businesses must be prepared for the new opportunities and risks when reopening.

Here are some key areas to consider when adapting your business during the coronavirus recovery period:

Financial Planning

This includes addressing short-term liquidity challenges as well as the costs (and profits to be generated) when considering building new resources to seize new opportunities. It is important to understand costs incurred or saved by bringing people back to work or to be able to plan for fluctuations in business demand through the COVID-19 recovery period.

Safe workplaces

Due to the changes in health and safety put in place by local, state and federal laws and guidelines, transitioning back to work will require careful preparation. It is important to establish and revisit current medical, health and emergency protocols before resuming workers previously on standby or transitioning from back to the workplace from previously working digitally.

Agile Marketing

The pandemic has not only changed the economy but also changed consumer and behaviours. It is important to understand and tailor your marketing strategy to these changes by understanding these trends early.

You may be looking for a fresh start for your business but are still recovering from the impact the pandemic has had on your business. If you would like more information on how to overcome these challenges concerning insolvency and financial instability then please contact Australian Company Liquidations. We are registered company liquidators who offer a FREE 24/7 insolvency hotline for Australian directors seeking free, confidential advice. Please call us on 1800 981 070 now.

With the Covid-19 outbreak impacting the global economy and the ability of businesses to carry out their usual operations, maintaining control on your cash flow becomes crucial to the survival of your business. Below are some tips to help stay on top of your company’s cash flow and improve your positive cash flow:

1. Prepare a cash flow forecast

We recommend you prepare a 3 month cash flow. Trying to forecast longer than 3 months may be too difficult. This will help you make informed financial decisions so you can hopefully avoid cash flow shortages.

2. Improving your cash inflow

Improving positive cash flow by increasing your income or decreasing your expenses will help the chances of avoiding cash flow shortages. Increasing income during the COVID19 pandemic will be challenging but if you have old stock which can be discounted, that might be a good way to help boost cash flow in the short-term. Some other measures might be to offer a discount on some of your debtors, to encourage them to pay quickly.

3. Reducing unnecessary expenditure (cash outflow)

The next best way to improve cash flow, would be carefully review your business cost base to see if you reduce any expenses, especially non-essential expenses. If you critically analyze your cost base, you might be able to save more money than you first thought.

Maybe you can reduce your workforce or cut back the working hours of your employees. You should also apply for the jobkeeper assistance from the Australian government.

4. Put your business into hibernation

Some businesses have been forced into hibernation during the COVID19 pandemic. If you are unable to operate during the COVID19 pandemic then putting your business into hibernation might be best to preserve your business.

We understand that everyone is going through a tough time and are committed to helping businesses overcome challenges concerning cash flow and insolvency. We are registered company liquidators who offer a FREE 24/7 insolvency hotline for Australian directors seeking free, confidential advice. Please call us on 1800 981 070 now.

With COVID-19 causing major disruptions to businesses and impacting the economy as a whole, businesses are faced with many unforeseen challenges. At times of financial distress you may be finding it tough navigating through difficult financial situations.

You may be worried about your duties as a director or business owner. According to the Corporations Act 2001 directors have the duty to prevent the company from incurring further debts once the company is insolvent, and if you fail to do so you will be become personally liable for the debts incurred.

Some good news is that Australia’s ‘Safe Harbour’ laws are designed to protect directors that attempt to do the right thing and lawfully turn around their company, even if the plan fails and the company later go into liquidation. If you would like more information on ‘Safe Harbor’ laws please click here.

On 25th March 2020 the Coronavirus Economic Response Package Omnibus Bill 2020 came into effect, granting temporary relief for financially distressed businesses. This included providing an additional ‘Safe Harbour’ for businesses for the next six months. This means that you will not be liable for any insolvent trading from the period 25 March 2020 to 25 September 2020.

If you would like to learn more about the ‘Safe Harbour’ provisions and changes to legislation that may impact your business please contact us. We understand that everyone is going through tough times and we are committed to helping businesses overcome challenges concerning insolvency and financial instability. We are registered company liquidators who offer a FREE 24/7 insolvency hotline for Australian directors seeking free, confidential advice. Please call us on 1800 981 070 now.

Are you thinking about liquidating your company, but you aren’t sure if it is the right decision or not given all of the government stimulus packages which are available at the moment?

If your company was insolvent before all of the government stimulus was put in place then it is likely that your business will continue to be insolvent when the government stimulus comes to an end.

At Australian Company Liquidations, we have listed below the top 5 reasons why liquidating your business now may be more advantageous.

1. Choose your own liquidator

You can chose your own liquidator.  If you wait until the government stimulus ends and the other insolvency laws return to normal, creditors may approach the court and appoint a liquidator of their own choosing. By choosing your own liquidator, you can appoint someone who you believe will act in a professional and commercial manner. It will also take away any surprises from a creditor approaching the courts to have a liquidator appointed.

2. Avoid or minimise an insolvent trading claim

Whilst the Federal Government recently suspended the insolvent trading laws due to the COVID 19 pandemic for six months, effective 25 March 2020, company directors will still be liable for any insolvent trading before 25 March 2020.  As such if your company was insolvent before 25 March 2020, we would recommend that you still liquidate your company to limit any further personal liability.  Trading on past 25 September 2020 will expose you to further insolvent trading claims.

3. Avoid personal liability from personal guarantees

Company directors should note that no other insolvency laws were suspended during the COVID 19 pandemic so this means that directors will continue to be liable for any debts where they provided a personal guarantee or directors guarantee.

4. Limit personal liability from unpaid GST

From the 1st of April 2020, company directors will be personally liable for any GST where the company has not lodged it BAS within 3 months of its due date. The ATO can then issue a Director Penalty Notice to collect the taxes from you personally.  Prior to the 1st of April 2020, company directors were liable for PAYG and Superannuation where the company has not lodged it BAS or SGC statement on time.

5. Need the stress

Liquidation may help end the stress you may have been experiencing so can you can then focus on rebuilding a future.

If you would like more information on company liquidations, or are considering one yourself, then please contact Australian Company Liquidations. We are registered company liquidators who offer a FREE 24/7 insolvency hotline for Australian directors seeking expert advice. Please call us on 1800 981 070 now.

On 5^th of February 2020 both houses of parliament passed the Treasury Laws Amendment (Combating Illegal Phoenixing) Bill 2019. This legislation was to target and address illegal phoenixing activities. Please click here if you would like to learn about what is a phoenix company. Below is a summary of the changes introduced with the new legislation:

Phoenixing offences:

• In targeting those who conduct or facilitate illegal phoenixing, enforcement options were strengthened through the introduction of new phoenix offences and civil penalties to carry the highest penalties available under the law. There are also new powers for ASIC with recovery provisions also available to liquidators to improve their ability to recover assets that were lost though illegal phoenixing.

Accountability of directors:

• To prevent directors from avoiding responsibility by improperly backdating resignations or leaving the company without a director, resignation is to be lodged with ASIC within 28 days of it occurring.

New tax and GST liabilities:

• Directors will be personally liable to meet the company’s GST liabilities under certain circumstances, extending the previous obligations of meeting the company’s superannuation guarantee and PAYG obligations. This new provision relating to GST liabilities and director penalties  will come into effect on April 1st 2020. As a result of this change it is critical that all company directors make sure that the business activity statements BAS are lodged on time.

If you would like to know how the new laws may affect your company or if your company is insolvent or likely to become insolvent, then act immediately by seeking the help from professionals. Australian Company Liquidations can assist you in shutting down your failed business the right way. Call us on 1800 981 070 for a FREE initial consultation now.

Did you know you might be able to avoid a Company Liquidation with a Voluntary Administration?

So you might ask what is a Voluntary Administration?

A Voluntary Administration is commenced by the company director appointing a Voluntary Administrator (rather than a liquidator). The Voluntary Administrator will initially assess the financial affairs of the company and will assess whether it can continue to trade.

The Voluntary Administration usually runs for a 30 day period and at the end of the period, creditors will vote on the following 3 options:

• To return the control of the company back to the director,
• To enter into a Deed of Company Arrangement (DOCA); or
• Appoint a liquidator.

While it can be a challenging 30 day period for the Voluntary Administrator to assess the financial position of the company and to prepare a report to creditors (so they will have sufficient information to make an informed decision) the process does have significant advantages which we will discuss in turn below.

1. Can your company continue to trade

When your company enters Voluntary Administration, the voluntary administrator will decide if the company is viable and whether it should continue to trade. This differs from other solutions such as company liquidation, in which the company will most likely cease trading soon after a liquidator is appointed.

2. Prevents creditors from taking legal action

When a company enters into administration, it is offered statutory protection from legal action for the period of the voluntary administration. This will give the director much-needed space to try and determine what the best next course of action such as a Deed of Company Arrangement.

3. Director may avoid some personal liability

If you feel your company may have traded whilst it was insolvent, it is best to propose a Deed of Company Arrangement to reduce the risk of the liquidator making a claim for insolvent trading. If your creditors accept your Deed of Company Arrangement then the company and creditors will be bound by the terms of the DOCA and a claim for insolvent trading will not be possible.

If you failed to pay superannuation or lodge your Business Activity Statements on time then you may still be personally liable for unpaid superannuation and PAYG.

4. May reduce the amount of debt

With a DOCA unsecured creditors (will in most circumstances) accept less than the full face value of their debt, so if the company is viable and can continue to trade into the future, then you may be able to reduce the total debts of the company.

If your company is struggling financially, then take action now, don’t wait until it is too late!

At Australian Company Liquidation, we can also help you with a Voluntary Administration if your company is still trading. We have friendly and professional consultants ready to assist you. Our phone lines are open 24/7 so there will always be someone available to speak to you at any given time, so please call us on 1800 003 883 now.

Australian Company Liquidations are the low-cost Australian liquidators that you can trust to handle your corporate insolvency case.

Here are some of the reasons why.

1. The only thing that we handle is company liquidations.

This means that over our many years in the industry, we have grown highly skilled and experienced in the field. It also means that we have refined our practice so that we can achieve the best case scenario for you.

2. We are fully insured and licensed

Some of our competitors in the industry are unlicensed brokers who, once appointed, pass your case onto someone else. Not at ACL. Our Australian liquidators are all fully insured and registered with the Australian Securities and Investments Commission. Whoever you speak to on your first day will be the person who manages your case to the very end. You can be confident that the person who handles your case will have all the knowledge and facts needed to effectively liquidate your company; something that you won’t get if your case is passed to other companies.

3. Your first initial consultation with us is FREE

We want to make sure that we are 100% confident that we can help your company before you appoint us. This is why your first initial consultation with our Australian liquidators is entirely for free. In this consultation, we can answer any questions that you may have and analyse your situation so we can determine whether liquidation is the appropriate solution for your company.

4. We offer the lowest prices for our services

ACL offers the lowest-prices in Australian from any registered liquidator. If you happen to find a cheaper price, then provide us with a written quote and we will happily beat it.

Our services begin from just $3,500 (GST).

If you would like to know more about how ACL are the Australian liquidators for you, or if you are wondering whether company liquidation is the best solution for you, then please call us on 1800 981 070. Our toll-free hotline is open 24 hours so there will always be someone available there to help you.

On the 1st of March 2019, the Treasury Laws Amendment (2018 Measures No. 4) Bill 2018 received Royal Assent. On the 1st of April 2019, this Bill came into effect, which changed directors’ superannuation reporting obligations. If you are a company director, you need to know about these changes.

Here is a summary of the Director Penalty Notice (DPN) regime before the 1st of April 2019.

Company directors were held personally liable if they failed to report on PAYG withholding and superannuation amounts payable by the company.

Directors would be issued with a non-lockdown DPN if they had lodged a return within three months of the due date, but had not paid the PAYG and superannuation amounts.

Otherwise, directors would be issued with a lockdown DPN if they had not lodged a return within three months of the due date, and also did not pay the PAYG and superannuation amounts.

After the 1st of April 2019, the amendment extends the liabilities associated with the Superannuation aspect of the DPN regime. This new law eliminated the three (3) month from due date rule for superannuation reporting.

This means that superannuation amounts must now be reported by their due date, i.e. within 28 days of the end of each quarter.

It is important to note that this law does not affect PAYG reporting. The three-month from due date rule remains unchanged.

If you are a company director and want to stay up to date about the latest insolvency news, sign up to our newsletter. If you would like to speak to a professional consultant, we operate a 24 hour insolvency hotline. Call Australian Company Liquidations now on 1800 981 070.

At some point in many company director’s career, they will come to face the warning signs of company insolvency. When the pressure is on, it can be very hard to balance everything – from stakeholder expectations to your family responsibilities to trying to make your cashflow work for you. However, you need to be sure that you do not carry on trading when your company is insolvent.

The first thing to do is call us! Our company insolvency experts here at Australian Company Liquidations can assist you by conducting a thorough company insolvency assessment to determine whether your company is solvent or not and whether an insolvency appointment is required. A professional and independent company insolvency assessment is a critical process to undertake, as many company directors can become blinded by their financial pressures and unable to see the reality of their financial situation.

Another risk is that a director might place themselves and their company in further jeopardy by continuing to trade whilst insolvent. After the company insolvency assessment establishes that your company is in fact insolvent, the next step is to decide upon a solution.

The recommended course of action for an insolvent company is to voluntarily enter into voluntary administration, or voluntary liquidation.

Many directors find that the effect of placing their insolvent company into voluntary administration or voluntary liquidation is like the release of a pressure valve. Once the insolvent company is placed into the hands of an insolvency expert, the director is free to move on with his/her life after a long, stressful battle with insolvency.

A Registered Liquidator is appointed to the case and will manage all financial affairs and creditor enquiries.

If you would like to learn more about the impacts of a company liquidation and which path is best for you it is best to consult a registered liquidator. Our friendly and registered liquidators can help you do that and assist you through each step of the way. We offer a FREE initial consultation and expert advice. Please contact us on 1800 981 070 now to learn more about your options.

Many chain stores have succumbed to Australia’s tough retail climate which has been evident through the many companies who shut down for good in 2018. The changing landscape of bricks and mortar retailers in Australia has caused a string of significant closures, some of which we have listed below.

ESPRIT:

Fashion retailer Esprit revealed in early May last year that it would close all 67 of its stores in Australian and New Zealand. This decision followed the reports of losses reported in the Oceania region, and announce that they would shift their focus back to Asia, where they were reportedly more profitable.

DOUGHNUT TIME:

Doughnut Time received a lot of backlash when it was disclosed that their employees had been left unpaid for months, and then fired without explanation. A photo of a handwritten sign on the wall of the Doughnut Time store in at Sydney’s QVB went viral on social media, displaying the workers’ frustrations. The company’s financial struggles were further exemplified through the hashtag #itsnotalwaysagoodtime.

ZUMBO PATISSERIE:

Adriano Zumbo’s patisserie company went into voluntary administration in early August last year. It was reported that their debts were as high as $10 million.

TOYS R US:

After going into voluntary administration in May, the toy company finally closed down for good in August. All Toys R Us and Babies R Us stores closed across the country, and around 700 jobs were lost.

ROGER DAVID:

Roger David was placed in voluntary administration in October 2018. The famous menswear label confirmed that it would close all 57 stores throughout Australia.

This list of companies who closed in Australia’s tough retail climate exemplifies the landscape of bricks and mortar retailers. If you would like more information on company liquidations, or are considering one yourself, then please contact Australian Company Liquidations. We are registered company liquidators who offer a FREE 24/7 insolvency hotline for Australian directors seeking expert advice. Please call us on 1800 731155 now.