The boss of a Manchester-based haulage company abandoned his post and allegedly fled the country in the weeks leading up to its insolvency, its administrator has revealed.
K West Transport entered administration on 29 September and RCM Advisory is now trying to find out what happened to the firm, which was authorised to run 30 HGVs and 30 trailers.
By the time of its appointment, the company had ceased to trade, it owned just one lorry and 21 trailers in poor condition and there were no longer any staff left after employing 20 just a couple of years ago.
In addition, MD Krum Isporski had disappeared and is now thought to have left the country.
In a report to creditors, RCM said it had made contact with Martin Haralambov, who was appointed as a director of K West Transport for just nine months before he resigned in January 2025.
“The circumstances surrounding the appointment of Mr Haralambov stem from investigations and public inquiries by the traffic commissioner into the conduct of the company and its transport managers,” the report said.
“Mr Haralambov was introduced to the company to stabilise operations and attempt to save its operating licence.”
However, RCM added that the business relationship between the two directors soon broke down and Haralambov left the haulage firm at the beginning of the year.
“Mr Isporski continued to manage the business until he abandoned his post and allegedly fled the country on or about 4 August 2025, after taking all available funds from the company’s bank account,” the administrator added.
“It appears the company heavily relied on the timely receipt of monthly VAT refunds to manage its cash flows and liquidity.
“It further appears that HMRC would delay in issuing the VAT refunds because of its requirement to audit monthly returns, which led to major cashflow disruptions.”
RCM has since discovered that K West Transport was also involved in several disputes with its insurance broker and insurers regarding several rejected claims on damaged vehicles and trailers.
The company had engaged solicitors and the claims were at various stages of legal recovery action.
Haralambov attempted to apply for a licence to run HGVs out of K West Transport’s premises under the name K Transport Logistics, but at a public inquiry on 1 October this was rejected by the traffic commissioner and K West Transport’s licence was also revoked.
The administrator added: “It is possible Mr Isporski suspected the company would likely lose its operating licence at this hearing, which may explain the motivation for his actions in fleeing the country.”
