BANKRUPT CONTRACTOR’S DEFICIENCY OF £3318

Press, Volume CI, Issue 29802, 19 April 1962, Page 15

BANKRUPT CONTRACTOR’S DEFICIENCY OF £3318

A deficiency of £3318 9s 7d was shown in the statement of affairs of Ronald David Shaw, a contractor, which was read to a meeting of his creditors yesterday. Shaw, married, with three children, was adjudged bankrupt on April 5.

Mr D. Malcolm, agent for the Official Assignee (Mr O. T. Grattan)-, said that Shaw’s statement of affairs showed the amount owing to unsecured creditors as £3038 9s 7d. The amount owing to secured, creditors was shown as £3580 and the estimated value of the securities as £3150. His total debts were £3468 9s 7d and his assets £l5O, leaving a deficiency of £3318 9s 7d. Mr Malcolm said there would be adjustments to these figures. “I attribute my bankruptcy to being under-capitalised, to breakdowns in machinery and

being forced thereby into not being able to prevent hirers from seizing plant I had purchased on hire purchase, whereby I lost substantial equities in the plant,” said Shaw, stating reasons for his bankruptcy. “The present total of trade debts is considerably less than equities lost in plant seized, which totals £2275 approximately, plus the total which I have spent on repairs, which is approximately £l5OO.

Plant Repossessed

“Plant purchased by me and repossessed is: one truck purchased for £450 on which I had paid £320. this equity being lost; a gravel-screening plant purchased for £1250. an equity, of more than £5OO being lost; a loader purchased for £615 off which I paid £265. this equity being lost; a new truck which 1 purchased for £2900 and off which I have paid £l2OO was repossessed and all my equity lost.

"I also lost £2OO to debtors in similar difficulties to myself. When my credit first began to suffer it was partly due to major debtors of mine being themselves in difficulties, and as I was not well established my creditors began proceedings against me,” said the statement.

Shaw’s statement said he and his family had lived modestly, he had worked hard and for long hours,, and his drawings for personal expenses had not been more than £lO a week and often less, particularly over the last few months. Shaw said he began business in August. 1959. as a cartage contractor with one truck. After a few months he put another truck on the road. Some months later he bought a shingle-screening plant. To Mr Malcolm, Shaw said he was born in February. 1934. He bought a seven-ton truck new about eight months ago for £2900. It had done 16,000 miles when it was repossesed. The repossession value was £2050. He had paid £l2OO off the truck and had been told he still owed £l5O on it.

He had capitalised the family benefit for two of the children as part payment of a property. His present earnings were £l4 a week net. He was in arrears with payments on his house and wanted to catch up with those, but he hoped to pay £lOO to his creditors within 12 months.

The meeting was adjourned sine die.