Donald Ernest Roberts was prosecuted by The Department for Business, Innovation and Skills following an investigation by The Insolvency Service.
In the case heard at Plymouth Crown Court last week, Mr Roberts admitted that he and not his daughter was the real director of Roads and Drives Resurfacing Ltd (RDRL), in contravention of his company director disqualification undertaking.
In September 2010, Plymouth Crown Court handed Mr Roberts a six-month prison sentence, suspended for 12 months, and ordered him to carry out 100 hours of unpaid work in respect of the breach of his undertaking. Last week the same court made a confiscation order of £30,000 and made an order of costs against Mr Roberts for £2,757. The court ordered that failure to make a payment of £30,000 within six months would incur a 15-month prison sentence in default.
Mr Roberts was disqualified as a director in 2007 for years. This followed the liquidation of RD Surfacing Ltd in November 2005 with a deficiency of approximately £123,306; it had traded at a loss throughout its existence.
RDRL was incorporated in 2005 and went into compulsory liquidation in 2009. Mr Roberts was shown as the company secretary and his daughter was listed as the company’s director throughout. At the time of its liquidation, the company owed £90,000.
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In December 2009 Mr Roberts signed a disqualification undertaking that banned him from being involved in the management or promotion of any company for a period of 11 years.
Insolvency Service head of investigation and enforcement Robert Burns said: “The Insolvency Service takes firm enforcement action against those who breach the company director disqualification undertakings they accepted to protect the public and the business community from their corporate misconduct.
“The sentence handed to Mr Roberts sends a clear message; directors must abide by the restrictions imposed on them when signing an undertaking or face the consequences, as Mr Roberts has found.”
Liam Mannall, a deputy chief investigation officer with the Department for Business, Innovations and Skills said: “The Insolvency Service and the Department for Business will take firm action when we find that undertakings given to protect the public and the business community have been breached and where directors knowingly allow their companies to trade whilst insolvent."
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