Joey Essex's management company forced into liquidation with £1.28m of liabilities

Joey Essex’s personal management company has been placed into compulsory liquidation with total liabilities of about £1.28 million, according to filings and reporting by national press outlets.

Liquidators list unpaid tax and other creditor claims against Joey Essex Management Ltd that amount to roughly £497,246, and say the company’s director’s loan account is overdrawn by about £780,000, bringing the total shortfall to £1,277,246. The company was unable to meet its liabilities and has been wound up, the records show.

The breakdown of the creditor claims includes £402,302 in corporation tax, £30,449 in VAT, £9,552 in PAYE, £15,000 owed to trade and expense creditors, and a £39,942 outstanding Covid bounce back loan. Insolvency practitioners acting as liquidators said they could not be certain that any of the overdrawn director’s loan would be recovered.

Records reviewed by reporters show that in August of the previous year Essex attempted a voluntary dissolution of the company and signed a statement of affairs declaring the business solvent and promising to repay debts, with interest, within 12 months. Insolvency specialists and company law set out that it is an offence to make a false declaration of solvency, potentially exposing directors to fines or criminal charges in serious cases.

The company had not filed accounts for four years and was at risk of being struck off before a batch of four years’ accounts were filed on Oct. 10 of last year, filings indicate. UK company law requires private companies to file accounts with Companies House on a regular timetable, generally within nine months after the end of a financial year; failure to file on time can itself be an offence.

Joey Essex, who rose to prominence on reality television and has appeared on shows including I'm A Celebrity, Dancing on Ice, Celebrity MasterChef and SAS: Who Dares Wins, has continued to earn from media and exhibition appearances. Those earnings, however, were routed through the corporate vehicle that has now been placed in liquidation.

The liquidators’ formal appointment follows the inability of the company to pay creditor claims. They will assess the company’s books and records, seek recoveries where possible and report to creditors. The presence of a large overdrawn director’s loan account typically raises questions for insolvency practitioners about recoverability and whether any personal liabilities exist for the director, depending on available security and the director’s conduct.

The insolvency filing and related press reporting raise potential regulatory and criminal questions because of the earlier statement of solvency. If a director knowingly makes false statements in a formal insolvency declaration, Companies House and law enforcement bodies can take action, including prosecution where warranted by evidence. The specific outcomes depend on the findings of insolvency practitioners and any subsequent investigations by Companies House or prosecuting authorities.

Industry lawyers say that where unpaid taxes are a significant proportion of liabilities—particularly corporation tax and PAYE—HM Revenue & Customs is likely to be a principal creditor and will take an active interest in recoveries. Bounce back loans issued during the Covid-19 pandemic are also subject to standard recovery procedures; default can result in the loan being listed as a creditor claim in insolvency.

Neither Companies House nor the liquidators have released detailed public statements about the case beyond the statutory filings. Representatives for Joey Essex had not provided a public comment at the time of reporting. Press coverage of the matter has noted the contrast between the public profile and earnings of television personalities and the financial position of companies associated with them.

The liquidators will now progress the formal steps required in a compulsory winding-up: realising assets, investigating transactions and director conduct, reporting to creditors and, where appropriate, referring matters to other authorities. Creditors will be informed of their entitlement as recoveries are realised. Any potential criminal investigation would proceed separately and would depend on findings about the accuracy of earlier declarations and conduct under the Companies Act and related insolvency legislation.

The case highlights recurring issues in celebrity and small-business finance, including the separation between individual earnings and corporate obligations, the consequences of missed filings, and the way unpaid tax liabilities can precipitate insolvency proceedings when a company has insufficient assets to meet its obligations.