Manufacturing director banned for £500,000 loan scheme scam
At the time of his firm’s collapse it owed creditors £1.3m
The director of HE Kowles, a metal manufacturer, has been banned from directing a company for eight years after fraudulently diverting over £510,000 from a finance firm.
Daniel Knowles led the Worcestershire-based business from its incorporation in November 2016 until its administration in January 2020.
During the period, Knowles would submit customer invoices to a finance company so as to secure funds in advance, while the company would then be paid directly by HE Knowles’ customers.
However, from April 2019 until the firm entered administration Knowles had been collecting invoices straight from his clients, claiming £510,000 away from the finance group.
At the time of its collapse, which triggered an investigation by the Insolvency Service, HE Knowles also owed creditors a further £1.3m.
Martin Gitner, deputy head of insolvent investigations at the Insolvency Service, said: “Daniel Knowles knew the terms of the agreement with the finance providers and that any customer invoices should contain the payment details of the finance company.
“Instead, he deliberately inserted his own company’s bank details, knowing it would result in HE Knowles (Manufacturing) Ltd receiving payments that should have been paid to the factoring company.”
Gitner added that the length of the ban proves that the service takes matters of this kind “very seriously”, as it will “seek to disqualify those who choose to act unscrupulously”.
