A husband-and-wife team from Wigan have been banned from serving as company directors for eight years after they used their insolvent wedding singer business to rip off betrothed couples.
Frederick Reeves, 49, and Claire Reeves, 41, ran Solfan1 Ltd, which went by the trading name of The Best Singing Waiters. The business provided entertainers who would pose as waiters at events such as weddings, only to burst into song unannounced to serenade a special guest.
By early 2024, long-standing financial difficulties culminated with HMRC serving a winding- up petition over £200,000 in unpaid taxes. The pair agreed to liquidate the company on 28th March that year, with an effective date of 1st May.
However, during the intervening period, the pair continued taking deposits and full payments from unsuspecting customers – even offering discounts for full payment upfront – in full knowledge that the business was being shut down and had no means of providing the service.
A subsequent investigation by the Insolvency Service found that the pair had taken payments totalling more than £43,000 from 43 customers in that period.
Singing the blues
When it was wound up, Solfan1 Ltd had debts totalling more than £700,000 with just £168,000 in assets. After almost a decade in business, you’d think that would be a humbling enough experience for any entrepreneurs to cut their losses and shut up shop quietly. But sensing the chance to make a quick buck – and, presumably, dodge paying taxes again – the Reeves flouted the entire purpose of a liquidation agreement by continuing to trade. In the process, they callously exploited dozens of couples, casting a sour note over plans for their big day.
When a company faces insolvency, there are decisions to be made about whether continuing to trade is viable or not. If a qualified insolvency practitioner agrees that there is a good chance of keeping the business trading as a going concern and recouping a satisfactory return for creditors, options include entering a Creditors Voluntary Agreement (CVA) to restructure debts, or going into Administration to give time to either restructure the business or find a buyer.
Liquidation is the nuclear option when it is considered that the business is a lost cause. In such cases, shutting the company down and distributing whatever assets are left is viewed as the best option for creditors to recoup anything. The expectation is that a company ceases all trading activity the moment liquidation is agreed.
In flouting this convention, the Reeves were found guilty of serious misconduct. Not only have they lost their business, but they will now be left singing the blues for a further eight years, with a ban from having any involvement in running a business or serving as a director extending until 2033.
