Truswell Haulage, the transport company that had been operating since 1940 and ran more than 100 HGVs, collapsed last year due to “macroeconomic factors and industry-wide challenges”, according to its administrator.
BDO LLP said that the company, which traded out of two sites in Barnsley and Douglas in South Lanarkshire, had become loss making and in the absence of financial support or funding it was unable to pay its liabilities as they became due.
It added that the haulier had no realistic prospect of returning to profitability in the short term.
John Truswell & Sons (Garage) entered administration last November, at which point BDO said 82 employees were made redundant.
It had been providing haulage services across the UK with loads between 50kg and 150 tonnes. It also specialised in carrying agricultural machinery and steel and relied on a specialised fleet and specially trained drivers.
Truswells also operated more than 50,000sq ft of warehousing space.
“Trading conditions for the company had been challenging,” explained joint administrators Mark Thornton and Simon Girling.
“The directors attribute the downturn in sales and financial performance to macroeconomic factors and industry-wide challenges, including eroding profit margins due to inflationary cost rises, leading to cash and trading pressures.”
BDO said it conducted an accelerated merger and acquisition process with 100 parties contacted, asking if they were interested in buying the haulier’s business and assets: “Of these 100 parties, 16 signed non-disclosure agreements, 49 parties declined the opportunity, with 35 not responding,” it said.
“Despite the level of interest shown in the business and assets, the deadline for indicative offers passed with no offers being received.”
The administrators said unsecured creditor claims are estimated to total £5.9m and include £2.4m in employee and landlord claims, although the latter could be mitigated if a surrender of the lease was agreed.
BDO has also registered Truswell Haulage to be included in the RHA’s ongoing compensation claim against truck manufacturers found to have been involved in a cartel between 1997 and 2014: “The company is potentially entitled to receive compensation as a claimant, however the likelihood and quantum of this is uncertain at present,” it added.
