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My clients year end is 31/10/14 so the accounts were due 31/07/15.  One of the directors suffered a heart attack in May and was subsequently rushed back into hospital about 2 weeks ago so the client didn't get around to answering my queries so the accounts haven't been filed. They will be filed this week.

Is it worth an appeal when the penalty is received?

Replies (8)

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By Jakarmi
05th Aug 2015 10:50

In my experience you have to email in before the deadline to request an extension and Co House don't tend to give any time for appeals put in after.

Always worth a go though as the worst case scenario is that you still have to pay the penalty.

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By JLPrice
05th Aug 2015 11:06

Agree


For future reference it is always worth putting in a request for an extension, and they usually reply the same day, if not the next day. In my experience they are usually happy to give extensions, especially on medical grounds.

I would still appeal the penalty, especially if you were not aware of the medical issue until after the deadline had passed, hence the reason for possibly not applying for the extension in the first place. You have nothing to lose.

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By Mr_awol
05th Aug 2015 11:12

You say "one of the directors


You say "one of the directors" which implies there are more than one.  On that basis you may find that an appeal fails.

Have a look at the Companies House appeals manual - there are various examples there of what is and isn't allowable, and why.  There's not many reasons they allow and the later the accounts are, the less likely they are to accept an appeal.

I'd echo others comments about extensions - although of course it is possible that you weren't aware at the time that there might be a valid reason.

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Replying to lionofludesch:
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By User deleted
05th Aug 2015 11:16

Compassion

Mr_awol wrote:

You say "one of the directors" which implies there are more than one.  On that basis you may find that an appeal fails.

 

Unless, of course, it was Director A's brother etc.

I mean, I know if mine fell ill like that I'd be devastated - I hope the appeal works out for you!

A minor amount of compassion goes a long way in this age of computer dictatorship

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Replying to ireallyshouldknowthisbut:
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By Mr_awol
05th Aug 2015 11:41

No fluffy bunny approach from Co Hse

BananaMan wrote:

Mr_awol wrote:

You say "one of the directors" which implies there are more than one.  On that basis you may find that an appeal fails.

Unless, of course, it was Director A's brother etc.

I mean, I know if mine fell ill like that I'd be devastated - I hope the appeal works out for you!

A minor amount of compassion goes a long way in this age of computer dictatorship

No, not unless anything.  If there were two directors and one was ill, the other should have done it. These aren't my views - there are the views of the decision makers and form part of he guidance that the person reviewing the appeal will follow.

Rather than speculate, it's quite easy to review the appeals manual as I advised the OP to do.  It only takes a minute......

 

https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/fil...

Page 15 "Scenario 2 — A director falls seriously ill shortly before the filing deadline but the company has one or more other directors. Subject to individual merit, the penalty should be collected. Suggested Approach: Sympathise with the director’s ill health but explain that it did not release the other directors from their own responsibilities. Point out that a reminder was sent to the company shortly before the filing deadline, which clearly states the last date for filing and outlines the consequences of late delivery. Explain that if the company had contacted us to explain that they were having difficulty in meeting the deadline they would have been advised that they could apply for an extension to the filing time under Section 442(5) of the Companies Act 2006. Explain the circumstances where the Registrar is able to apply discretion and that they do not apply in this case."

 

I would suggest it's worth the cost of a stamp but that the appeal is almost certain to fail, so the OP shouldn't expect much

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By thomas
05th Aug 2015 12:03

They are H & W so pretty

They are H & W so pretty understandable that the accounts took a back seat.

Many thanks for your replies

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By Mr_awol
05th Aug 2015 12:38

Understandable - but extremely unlikely to result in successful appeal as stated above.

If they do appeal though, perhaps you can update us with the result.............

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By thomas
05th Aug 2015 13:46

Seems as thought its worth a try.  I still think they could have had them filed on time. Final docs were with them on 22/07/15 so they had a week to sign them and I would have got them filed, but hey ho....

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