Hartley Pensions - Case Update

Joint administrators Peter Kubik and Brian Johnson of UHY Hacker Young have provided an update on their efforts to sell the self-invested personal pension (SIPP) and small self administered scheme (SSAS) books of Hartley Pensions, as well as their determination that a series of pre-appointment intercompany transactions were transactions at undervalue and preferences.

Prior to the administration, discussions had commenced with interested parties for the potential purchase of the SIPP and SSAS books. Unfortunately, no viable offer was received for the SIPP book due to incomplete records and the lack of reconciliation work undertaken when new books were acquired by the company. An orderly wind down of the SIPP book, including a full reconciliation, is currently being undertaken.

Once the reconciliation process has been completed, which is expected to occur sometime next month and coincide with the application to the court on cost modelling, the process of transferring SIPPs can be commenced. In respect of the SSAS book, the interested party has undertaken due diligence and it is hoped that a sale will be completed within the next 2-3 months.

In addition, the joint administrators have identified a series of pre-appointment transactions worth over £1 million involving Wilton & Partners (W&P), an Irish registered entity within the Wilton group, as a transaction at undervalue and a preference. The joint administrators were told the payments were a loan and, upon requesting payment of the loan, were provided with a copy of a loan agreement dated two weeks before the administration. The purported repayment terms provided that the loan would be repaid on the creation of a new pensions holding company, with the loans to be capitalised by new shares in the company.

Despite requesting documentation to support that this was the parties’ intention at the time of the loan, the joint administrators did not receive any supporting evidence and were unable to identify anything in the company’s records to support this position. As a result, the joint administrators contacted W&P to advise that the transaction was a transaction at undervalue and preference and was required to be paid.

Following a meeting with the company’s director, who is also a director of W&P, it was agreed that a sale of Bespoke Trustees would be undertaken to allow the loan to be repaid. However, no actions appear to have been taken to advance the sale, and the joint administrators are considering pursuing legal action to recover the amounts owing.

The joint administrators have been assisted by DWF Law (legal), Hilco (agents) and SP Insolvency (pensions). Their most recent report can be found HERE.