It has been widely predicted that the effect of Covid-19 on businesses, and the individuals involved with those businesses as owners and employees, is going to be widespread. Despite the Government support rolled out to date, many are worried about possible redundancies and the predicted failure of many businesses.
In this article we look at what can be done to survive the lockdown, what effect the lockdown could have on new insolvency appointments during the lockdown period, and what the flow on effects could be, once the lockdown ends. We will also consider the opportunities available to businesses so that they survive the lockdown.
Surviving the Lockdown:
The Government and banks have provided avenues of financial support for individuals and companies to help get through this initial lockdown period.
The government packages are primarily designed to assist businesses to be able to maintain contact with staff by payment of a level of wages to staff, who would otherwise be made redundant, and keep those employees available so that the business can continue once the lockdown ends. If you are considering staff redundancies to reduce your outgoings over the lockdown period, we strongly urge you to speak to your lawyers before taking any restructuring steps, especially if the business has received the Government Wage Subsidy. The government has been very clear that it expects all of the wage subsidy to be passed to employees. The only exception is when an employee’s normal weekly wage exceeds the wage subsidy in which case the normal wage should be paid.
Other Government measures put in place include tax relief in relation to provisional tax and depreciation allowances.
The retail banks have also agreed to a six-month principal and interest payment holiday for mortgage holders and small business customers whose incomes have been affected.
The Government and banks have also put a business finance guarantee scheme in place for small and medium sized business (annual revenue between $250k and $18 million) to further protect jobs, cashflow and support the economy. The Government will take 80% of the risk on this lending and banks the other 20%. These loans are available to business that, but for the effects of Covid-19, were solvent and viable businesses. The banks retain the ability to decide who will be able to get the loans under the system.
Business owners also need to talk to their bankers and financial advisors to see what options are available to them, both in relation to taking out new loans and taking advantage of refinancing options and repayment holidays on existing business and personal lending.
Now is the important time for business owners to look closely at cashflow and the on-going costs their business faces during the lockdown period to see what, if any, reductions can be made. For example, some leases include “no access” provisions, which provide for the tenant to pay a fair proportion of the rent and outgoings during the no access period. We have also seen instances where landlords have agreed to reduced rental payments in leases without a “no access” clause. If your business cannot use its premises and have not already spoken to your landlord, we suggest that you speak to your landlord. The Government signalled on 1 April 2020 it was considering intervening, and that an announcement could be a couple of days away.
We have noted that many debtors and creditors and contracting parties have between themselves been reaching pragmatic arrangements around payments. Negotiating these sorts of arrangements is encouraged. Please be sure that when they are being negotiated that you allow yourselves enough time and money after the lockdown to be able to meet critical obligations and to start up, as it could easily be months after lockdown before business returns to normal. The arrangements agreed need to be documented.
Please also be certain that you haven’t overcommitted, or, committed the same money to many parties.
Now more than ever working with your advisers around cashflow and any other issues is important.
Try also to use this time to try to resolve the disputes and niggly issues that sit around (sometimes in the background) in all businesses. Having those out of the way will assist you with focussing on the restart when it occurs.
And look after yourselves. Talk things through. Get some advice. You could find you remove some stress from this very difficult period. Get some rest. Smile once in a while.
If You Can’t Survive:
If, despite the support available, you doubt your business will survive, or restart, give your adviser, or us a call to discuss your options.
If what you need is time to pay your creditors, a formal compromise or putting the company into Voluntary Administration (VA) might help your business make it through the lockdown.
Compromises with company creditors allows creditors to agree to accept payment of their outstanding debt in part or in full, usually over a period of time, on the basis that they will receive more under the compromise than they would if the company was liquidated.
For some businesses, Voluntary Administration (VA) might be a better option. The aim of the VA is to maximise the chances of the company, or its business, continuing in existence with the help of the administrators and so provide a better return to creditors and shareholders than from an immediate liquidation.
If a compromise or VA are not realistic options for your company, we can talk to you about putting your company into liquidation by shareholder resolution. If your business does not carry out an essential service, appointing liquidators could help alleviate your immediate stress. While some steps can be taken by the liquidators immediately, we anticipate that any asset recoveries will not occur until after the lockdown restrictions are eased.
Personal Obligations
These need to be managed along with business obligations. For many small businesses the two go hand in hand.
Just as company compromises are possible, personal compromises are also an option for those that have the ability to pay their creditors over time but need some immediate breathing room. If your company is struggling, you are personally exposed if your company fails because you have given personal guarantees, and you have funds or access to funds that would not be available if you were made bankrupt, you can put forward a compromise to creditors under Part 5 Subpart 2 of the Insolvency Act 2006. This is an alternative to bankruptcy that aims to provide your creditors with a better result than bankruptcy and, if the proposal succeeds, you and your creditors will be bound by the proposal.
At McDonald Vague, we hope that the message of “we are all in it together” will send that message of providing support and kindness in this difficult time.
Court Appointments and Process
We do not expect that there will be Court appointed liquidations during the lockdown period, except in exceptional circumstances, as the Courts are now restricted in the types of cases they can hear to those that affect the liberty of the individual, the personal safety and wellbeing of citizens, and/or where resolution of issues raised by proceedings is time critical.
We anticipate that some unpaid suppliers may feel obliged to put pressure on customers during the lockdown because they are under pressure (the domino effect). If you are under pressure and are considering issuing a statutory demand to a customer, we urge you to speak to your lawyers, as validly serving the statutory demand may be an issue. As the Court Registry is still open, we expect that creditors will still be able to file liquidation proceedings relying on statutory demands served prior to the lockdown (provided those proceedings are filed within 30 working days of the statutory demand expiring).
Meetings During Lockdown
The Companies Act 1993 provides that creditors’ meetings can be held by audio, or audio visual communication, as long as all creditors participating can simultaneously hear each other throughout the meeting. While the Act requires written notice of the meeting to be given to creditors, we anticipate that, in most instances, all creditors will be able to be notified of any creditors’ meeting by email. In most cases, we anticipate that, with some additional effort, creditors’ meetings could still be notified to creditors and held during the lockdown period.
Risks to Directors
In the event of a company failure, regardless of when it occurs, the actions of the directors are reviewed by the company’s liquidators. Directors who breach their directors’ duties, including in relation to insolvent or reckless trading, could face claims against them if the company’s directors ignored the company’s dire financial position or they did not act quickly enough to stop the company’s indebtedness to creditors increasing after the company became insolvent.
We consider that any review of a director’s recent actions, taken since Covid-19 impacted the business, would need to be taken into account but directors could still be held accountable for breaching their duties if they have not exercised the care, diligence and skill that a reasonable director would exercise in the same circumstances.
When Lockdown is Over:
The initial Level 4 lockdown period of 4 weeks could be extended further. When the lockdown level decreases, it is unlikely that business will return to our previous “normal” quickly. Some economic consultants are suggesting that it could take 18 to 24 months to recover but it could be quicker or slower than that depending on the success or otherwise of the lockdown action.
As we emerge to our “new normal”, there will be new challenges. We are here to assist, as and where we can.
Starting Again
The start-up period could be as difficult as the close down. Cash flow is almost certainly going to be tight for the first weeks and months after restart. The ability to meet rent and employee obligations is going to be tested in many businesses unless you have used the time and options to get cashflow in order.
If you don’t think your pre-Covid-19 business can survive the effects of Covid-19, give us a call to discuss your options. There may steps you can take now that will allow you to reinvent your business after the lockdown ends.
As always, there will also be new business opportunities that come out of the lockdown. If you are looking at starting a new business, talk to us. We can suggest a few simple steps that you can take when setting up your new business to protect your investment into the future.
Conclusion:
Covid-19 means that business owners and employees are facing unprecedented challenges at the moment.
The Government and retail banks are providing a range of financial assistance packages to try to ease the current burden and allow businesses to survive and, hopefully, prosper when things get back to normal. Unfortunately, even with those packages and, hopefully, the goodwill of New Zealanders, significant business failures and job losses are still predicted.
Business owners need to be reviewing their business models, talking to their banks, industry organisations, key debtors and creditors, and trusted advisors about how they can best survive the turmoil or, if they do not believe that they have the ability to carry on, to an Accredited Insolvency Practitioner about the options available to them. If you need help, call us on 0800 30 30 34 or 027 359 0823 or reach out to one of our team.