Does Bounce Back Fraud Pay? Sometimes, Yes

Another day, another Bounceback loan fraud case reaches a conclusion. This on has a net loass of £15,000 to the taxpayer. Cheers Rishi, those Covid loans were a brilliant idea. Here’s the word from the UK Govt Insolvency Service;

Vicki Holland, 47 and Darren Robert Trutt, 51, both from Harlow in Essex have been disqualified for a total 16 years after falsely claiming a £20,000 Bounce Back Loan (BBL) Vicki Holland and Darren Trutt were directors of Crepe Heaven Ltd, which was incorporated in 2013 and ran as a mobile catering company until it went into liquidation in October 2021.

With Trutt’s backing, Holland applied for a Bounce Back Loan for Crepe Heaven in 2020. BBLs were government-backed loans designed to support businesses through the Covid pandemic. Under the rules of the scheme, companies were allowed to borrow up to 25% of their 2019 turnover, up to a maximum of a £50,000.

In the application for the loan, Holland stated that Crepe Heaven’s turnover for 2019 was £100,000. The company a received a BBL payment of £20,000 in August 2020, but subsequently went into liquidation in October 2021. At the point of liquidation, its debts were almost £21,000, including the full amount of the loan.

The liquidation triggered an Insolvency Service investigation, which discovered that Crepe Heaven’s turnover in 2019 had been just over £13,000, rather than the £100,000 claimed, with income of less than £12,000. This would have entitled the company to a BBL of £2,960.

The Secretary of State accepted a disqualification undertaking from Vicki Holland for causing Crepe Heaven to overstate its turnover on its application for a BBL resulting in Crepe Heaven Ltd receiving £17,040 more than it was entitled.

The Secretary of State also accepted a disqualification undertaking from Darren Robert Trutt for his part in allowing Crepe Heaven to overstate its turnover on the BBL application. Both directors’ bans begin on 1 November 2022, with Holland’s lasting for 9 years and Trutt’s ending after 7 years. The disqualification undertakings prevent the pair from directly, or indirectly, becoming involved in the promotion, formation or management of a company, without the permission of the court.

The liquidator has recovered £5,000 from the directors as a final settlement.