A long standing, manufacturing client sought our assistance prior to Christmas as they had become financially distressed and were concerned about the viability of the business.
The company had somehow survived all of the financial pressures connected with the pandemic and subsequent surge in inflation and energy costs, however, had more recently experienced significant working capital pressure following significant cost overruns on a large project and a prolonged delay in receiving a substantial Research and Development (R&D) tax rebate from HMRC. The combination of these factors had left the company with a substantial cash hole.
Due to the restructuring experience we have within the Navigate Commercial Finance team, we understood the severity of their situation immediately and noted that unless the HMRC refund could be received in short order, the company would run out of working capital within a matter of weeks. We therefore suggested that the client speak to relevant advisors and the primary lender immediately in order to explore restructuring solutions.
Unfortunately, the company’s accountant was unable to accelerate the processing and payment of the R&D rebate and the company had no alternative other than enter an administration process, however, this was done in a controlled, collegiate way which ensured the primary lender was repaid in full within a matter of weeks.
Many of you may have experienced HMRC applying far more scrutiny to R&D rebate claims recently following a Times articles last year that highlighted some abuse of the current process. As well as the above, we have heard several anecdotes of HMRC either significantly delaying R&D refunds, rejecting claims from clients that have previously had claims accepted, or in the worst case scenarios, even seeking to recover previously processed payments from prior year claims that they now consider invalid.
If you or your clients are experiencing delays in receiving a R&D rebate or have had a significant R&D claim rejected, we can assist by sourcing short-term funding. We can also support companies in many distressed situations, so please do not hesitate to contact us at the earliest opportunity if you need to explore potential options and solutions in more detail.