Insolvency court rules on rogue bidder

The judgment on July 27 made the 42-year-old former local government officer from Mansfield the subject of a Bankruptcy Restrictions Order for three and a half years. This follows an investigation sparked by a number of complaints made by auctioneers to the Official Receiver via ATG.

A Bankruptcy Restrictions Order, which introduces criminal liability if breached, is made where the Official Receiver considers that the conduct of the bankrupt has been dishonest or blameworthy in some other way.

In this case the court ruled that Mr Wilson was guilty of unfit conduct for incurring liabilities, including thousands of pounds owed to auctioneers as a result of failing to honour bids, during a period that he “had no reasonable expectation of being able to repay” the debts incurred.

The Official Receiver had earlier informed one auctioneer that, in their view, Mr Wilson had breached the terms of his original bankruptcy, not because he had failed to pay for items he had successfully bid on, but because he later sought to defer payment – effectively obtaining credit for more than £500 – without disclosing his status as a bankrupt.

The problem came to light after one auctioneer after another contacted ATG earlier this year to complain about Mr Wilson.

The trail of unfulfilled pledges spread across the Midlands, the North and the South.

At one point, court lists showed debts of over £7600 owed to Mellors & Kirk of Nottingham, more than £1800 to Golding Young & Co of Grantham and nearly £1700 to Tennants of Leyburn.

Many others were also affected.

Several auctioneers told ATG that Mr Wilson had promised to pay and then came up with a range of excuses for not doing so.

Colin Young of Golding Young, who first brought the case to light, eventually registered a formal objection to any discharge from bankruptcy for Mr Wilson.