An eel protection business based at Boston in Lincolnshire has been closed down after investigations by the Insolvency Service revealed two cases of government loan misconduct.
The Eel Screen Company Ltd, based on Dolphin Road in Boston, was wound up at the High Court in Manchester. The company provided inaccurate and inconsistent information when it applied for a £50,000 Bounce Back Loan in 2020 and a £225,000 Recovery Loan Scheme payment in 2022.
David Hope, Chief Investigator at the Insolvency Service, said: “Our investigations revealed concerns that The Eel Screen Company was being used as a vehicle to fraudulently obtain significant, government-backed loans during the pandemic.
“Bounce Back Loans in particular were made available for trading businesses adversely affected by Covid and were issued based on what should have been accurate financial statements.
“The Insolvency Service will not hesitate to apply to have companies wound-up in the public interest in such cases.”
Insolvency Service investigations into The Eel Screen Company began in August 2023. One of the former directors of the company told investigators that the business was involved in the installation of screens to protect eels in rivers.
A second director of The Eel Screen Company said it had since moved into drainage and most recently the construction business.
The Eel Screen Company obtained a £50,000 Covid Bounce Back Loan in May 2020, claiming an annual turnover of £320,000 for 2019.
Analysis of the company’s bank account showed a turnover of just over £49,000 for that year, with no loan repayments made despite this being a condition of the scheme.
The Eel Screen Company followed this misconduct up with a £225,000 application in January 2022 under the Recovery Loan Scheme, which supports SMEs to access the finance they need to grow and invest.
Insolvency Service investigators found inconsistencies in the accounts and VAT returns submitted as part of the application as well as bank statements that appeared not to be genuine.
Of the £225,000 The Eel Screen Company received, £148,000 was withdrawn as cash. The company made one repayment under the loan agreement to date, with £213,750 plus £30,726 in interest outstanding.
Current and former directors of The Eel Screen Company also failed to produce accounting records on request to the Insolvency Service. The Official Receiver has been appointed as liquidator of the company.
