Stephan (UK) Limited Enters Administration
Specialist machinery distributor STEPHAN (UK) LIMITED has entered administration. A statutory appointment notice was published in The Gazette on 16 October 2026 under court reference CR-2026-BRS-000147. The matter is recorded in the High Court of Justice, Business and Property Courts in Bristol, Insolvency and Companies List (ChD). The published Gazette filing confirms the appointment of administrators under Schedule B1 to the Insolvency Act 1986.
Gazette notice details
The statutory notice provides formal legal confirmation of the administration proceedings.
| Record Field | Published Detail |
| :--- | :--- |
| Company Name | STEPHAN (UK) LIMITED |
| Company Number | 04698761 |
| Notice Date | 16 October 2026 |
| Notice Code | 2410 (Appointment of administrators) |
| Court | High Court of Justice, Business and Property Courts in Bristol |
| Court List | Insolvency and Companies List (ChD) |
| Court Case Number | CR-2026-BRS-000147 |
| Appointing Party | [Shown in the creditor report →](#offers-creditor) |
| Administrators | [Shown in the creditor report →](#offers-creditor) |
| Administrator Firm | [Shown in the creditor report →](#offers-creditor) |
Company snapshot
Records from the Companies House register show the company was incorporated on 14 March 2003. Its registered office is Delta House Tenth Avenue, Zone 3, Deeside Industrial Park, Deeside, England, CH5 2UA.
The business is classified under SIC code 46690, covering the wholesale of other machinery and equipment. The public register recorded the company status as active ahead of statutory administration processing. Detailed accounting figures were not included in the initial Gazette filing.
Directors and ownership
Public filings list the individual officers and controlling parties for Stephan (UK) Limited:
- Sandra PEARSON JONES: Appointed company secretary on 1 May 2003. Nationality is recorded as British.
- Wyn PEARSON JONES: Appointed director on 1 May 2003. Born in October 1953, with British nationality and country of residence listed as Wales.
- AARCO NOMINEES LIMITED: Corporate director appointed at incorporation on 14 March 2003, resigned on 1 May 2003.
- AARCO SERVICES LIMITED: Corporate secretary appointed at incorporation on 14 March 2003, resigned on 1 May 2003.
Under the Persons with Significant Control (PSC) register, Mr Wyn Pearson-Jones was notified on 14 March 2017. He holds ownership of shares representing between 50% and 75% of the voting rights in the company.
These register details state public statutory records only and do not imply personal responsibility or wrongdoing in connection with the insolvency filing.
What administration means for creditors and customers
This summary provides general legal background and does not constitute formal legal advice. Administration places a statutory moratorium over the company pursuant to paragraph 43 of Schedule B1 to the Insolvency Act 1986.
Key practical consequences include:
- Legal Moratorium: Creditors cannot initiate or continue legal proceedings, execute judgments, or present a winding-up petition against the company without the consent of the administrators or permission from the court.
- Director Powers Suspended: Executive powers transfer to the appointed administrators, whose statutory role is to rescue the company as a going concern, achieve a better result for creditors than immediate liquidation, or realise assets for secured or preferential creditors.
- Proof of Debt: Unsecured trade creditors with outstanding balances must submit formal proof of debt forms to the administrators once contact details and formal claim forms are released.
- Retention of Title (ROT): Suppliers who delivered machinery or parts under contracts containing valid retention of title clauses cannot enter company premises to recover goods without administrator consent or court approval.
Step-by-step checklist for affected suppliers
Trade counterparties and supply chain partners exposed to a machinery distributor entering administration should act quickly to protect their legal position:
1. Cease credit deliveries: Immediately halt all pending shipments and revoke open account credit terms.
2. Identify supplied inventory: Assemble invoices, purchase orders, delivery receipts, and serial numbers identifying specific machinery supplied that remains unpaid.
3. Assert retention of title: Serve written notice of your ROT claim on the administrators, appending terms of business showing customer acceptance prior to delivery.
4. Quantify the balance: Reconcile statements of account to identify both pre-appointment arrears and any potential post-appointment trading liability.
5. Monitor statutory filings: Watch for form AM01 (notice of administrator appointment) and the administrators' initial proposals on Companies House.
Worked scenario: unpaid equipment distributor
A commercial engineering firm delivers £42,000 worth of industrial valves to a distributor on 30-day payment terms. Two weeks later, the distributor enters administration under a High Court order.
Because the statutory moratorium prevents the supplier from pursuing statutory demand proceedings or dispatching collection agents to the site, the supplier immediately emails formal notice to the administrators asserting an all-monies retention of title clause. By attaching signed delivery notes matching specific batch codes in the Deeside warehouse, the supplier reserves ownership rights before the administrators attempt to sell inventory as part of a going-concern business sale.
Recent filings and Gazette activity
The Gazette published notice 5232796 on 16 October 2026 under notice type 2410, recording the administration application in the Bristol High Court. When insolvency proceedings commence, subsequent statutory notices must be published, including creditors' meeting notifications, progress reports, or subsequent transitions into Creditors' Voluntary Liquidation or dissolution.
Conducting a winding up petition search on counterparties
Credit controllers routinely face situations where commercial customers miss payments or request extensions. Confirming whether a company faces imminent insolvency action requires checking multiple records.
Traditionally, legal and risk teams undertake this verification through disparate manual checks: requesting cause lists from the Royal Courts of Justice, inspecting WebCHeck, telephoning court registries, and manual Gazette scans. This process is time-consuming and risks missing court petitions lodged days before publication.
Running a comprehensive winding up search eliminates these delays by aggregating live court registries and gazetted insolvency events into a single query. When checking high-value trading counterparties or equipment suppliers, performing a fast winding up petition search verifies whether a winding-up petition has been presented or an administration order granted. Teams can also cross-reference today's cause list to evaluate litigation activity before delivering stock on credit.
Using automated free company monitoring ensures credit teams receive immediate email alerts whenever a counterparty files court notices or statutory administration appointments.
For credit teams and commercial lenders
Credit underwriters and equipment leasing firms face immediate financial risk when a trading debtor enters administration. Undertaking a verified insolvency check prior to issuing credit extensions or signing supply agreements identifies court interventions before public trading shuts down. Failing to detect petition filings can leave unsecured balances stranded beneath preferential and secured floating charge claims.
FAQ
What does administration mean for Stephan (UK) Limited?
Administration places the operational control of Stephan (UK) Limited under licensed insolvency practitioners. The company benefits from a statutory moratorium that prevents creditors from seizing assets or bringing winding-up petitions while administrators pursue statutory rescue or realisation objectives.
Can a trade supplier reclaim unpaid equipment from the company?
Suppliers holding valid retention of title terms can claim unconsumed goods, but they cannot enter premises to recover equipment without administrator consent or leave of the court due to the moratorium under Insolvency Act 1986 Schedule B1.
How does a creditor submit an outstanding claim?
Unsecured creditors must await the administrators' initial correspondence, which provides claim forms (proof of debt). Completed claims, supported by contracts, invoices, and statements of account, should be submitted directly to the administrators.
Why was this administration filed in Bristol?
Insolvency petitions and administration applications for companies across England and Wales can be filed in regional specialist centres of the High Court Business and Property Courts, including the Bristol district registry, depending on court allocation and legal representation.
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