FORWARD AUTOS LIMITED
🌳Matureactive
05057125 · ltd · incorporated 2004-02-26
Investment thesis
Well-run mature business — low negotiation leverage; premium likely.
Why interesting: Textbook target; clean filings, stable trading.
Why risky: No pressure on seller; any deal likely at full price.
Opportunity decay
approaching window · 12-months
Approaching a transaction window — refinance or sale event plausible in the next 12 months.
- · Oldest live charge 21.4y old — refinance window within 12 months
🔒Estimated value
—
Upgrade to see
Turnover
—
year to Jun 2025
Net worth
—
book net assets
Opportunity
82/100
Exceptional
What this business does
Primary activity: SIC 45112
Sector: Wholesale & retail
Investor take
PursueActive trading company with a 79-year-old founder — textbook succession opportunity.
Opportunity 82/100 (exceptional), bankability 75/100. Strong seller-intent signal (63/100, director aged 79). Share purchase looks the cleaner deal structure. Biggest value-creation lever: Discharge stale live charges. 2 live charge(s) created 15+ years ago — likely paid but undischarged. Clean register. Most likely exit: share sale to pe / searcher (65/100).
🏦
Refinance opportunity
2 live charges · 2 lenders · oldest 21.4y
50/100
clean up first
Refinance viable after a tidy-up — address the highlighted items first.
- · Oldest live charge is 21.4 years old — likely at or near maturity.
- · Two lenders — manageable, but coordination required.
- · Legal-friction score 25/100 — workable, but lender will want more DD.
Data confidence
Overall: medium (77/100)Adequate coverage. AI outputs are reliable for the sections scored high; verify the rest in diligence.
Company profile
address, 1 SIC codes, incorporation date
100
Financials
2 years of iXBRL accounts extracted (YoY deltas available) + narrative notes parsed
75
Lenders & charges
2 charges (2/2 with lender, 2/2 with type)
90
Directors & officers
6 officers (3 active, 6 linked, 4 with DOB)
83
Ownership & PSC
2 active PSC(s) of 2 total, 2 with control declared
90
Director network
Network not yet resolved
30
Filing history
58 filings on record
85
Gazette notices
No matching gazette notices (standard for active companies)
60
Opportunity Score
82/100Exceptional
PassWatchWorth a lookStrongExceptional
Strong composite across quality, acquirability, and risk. High-priority target — progress to serious diligence.
Business quality
70
Active, clean filings, stable charge profile.
Acquirability
80
Strong succession / seller-readiness signals.
Risk profile
85
Few red flags.
Signal strength
100
Good data coverage for analysis.
Key financials
2 years extracted from filed iXBRL accountsCash
—
Net Worth
—
Current Assets
—
Current Liabilities
—
Hover to see exact values · click legend to toggle series
Financials
Extracted from Companies House accounts · FRS 102| Metric | 2025-06-30 | 2024-06-30 |
|---|---|---|
| Average employees | 800 | 800 |
Amounts extracted automatically from iXBRL. Fields left blank were not reported or not mapped. Values in GBP unless stated.
🔒Filing-note intelligence
1 signal detected in this company's narrative notes — going-concern language, audit opinion, contingent liabilities, related-party transactions.
Available from the Pro tier upwards.
See pricing →Recent activity
Last 30 days
0
filings
Last 90 days
0
filings
Last 180 days
4
filings
- • 2 officers
- • 1 accounts
- • 1 confirmation-statement
Counts from Companies House filing history.
Corporate timeline (27 events)Click to expand
- 2026-03-24📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2026-02-27📄change-person-director-company-with-change-dateofficers · CH01
- 2026-02-27📄change-person-director-company-with-change-dateofficers · CH01
- 2025-03-10📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2024-03-15📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2023-03-14📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2022-08-26➕FORWARD, Mark Philip appointeddirector
- 2022-08-26📄appoint-person-director-company-with-name-dateofficers · AP01
- 2022-03-16📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2022-03-09📄termination-secretary-company-with-name-termination-dateofficers · TM02
- 2022-03-01➖FORWARD, Geoffrey Charles resignedsecretary
- 2021-05-04📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2019-12-03📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2018-12-17📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2017-10-11📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2016-10-14📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-smallaccounts · AA
- 2016-03-03📄annual-return-company-with-made-up-date-full-list-shareholdersannual-return · AR01
- 2006-04-05🔒Charge registered #2Lender: Fiat Auto Financial Services (Wholesale) Limited
- 2005-03-17🔒Charge registered #1Lender: Fiat Auto Financial Services Limited
- 2004-02-26🏢Company incorporatedAs FORWARD AUTOS LIMITED
- 2004-02-26➕FORWARD, Geoffrey Charles appointeddirector
- 2004-02-26➕FORWARD, Philip John appointeddirector
- 2004-02-26➕FORWARD, Geoffrey Charles appointedsecretary
- 2004-02-26➕THOMAS, Howard appointednominee-secretary
- 2004-02-26➖THOMAS, Howard resignednominee-secretary
- 2004-02-26➕TESTER, William Andrew Joseph appointednominee-director
- 2004-02-26➖TESTER, William Andrew Joseph resignednominee-director
Owner dependency
98/100
Critical — business is the founderThe business appears inseparable from the founder. Acquisition without a serious earn-out or meaningful transition period would likely destroy value.
FACTORS
- +Founder name in company name: Company name contains director surname "FORWARD" — strong identity link between founder and business.
- +Long-tenure founder: Senior director has been in place 22 years — deep operational knowledge concentrated in one person.
- +Founder age: Director aged approximately 79 — succession pressure is live.
- +Family involvement: Multiple officers share a surname — likely family business, which concentrates governance.
Succession & seller-readiness
90/100
Likely off-market candidateStrong acquirability signals converging. Worth approaching directly — this is how off-market deals start.
SIGNALS
- primaryFounder aged 70+: Senior director is approximately 79 years old. Natural succession window is now.
- primary20+ year tenure: Director in role 22 years. Very long tenure is a classic succession signal.
- secondaryStable-but-static management: Company is 22 years old and no new directors in the last 3 years — succession not yet being planned internally.
- supportingClean filings + long tenure: Disciplined long-tenure operator — classic lifestyle-business pattern that often sells quietly.
Red flags
cleanNo red flags detected from available public data. (This is not a clean bill of health — detailed accounts review still recommended.)
Shareholders & ownership
2 active beneficial owners| Name | Shares | Voting rights | Nature of control | Notified |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Mr Philip John Forward Individual · British · DOB 10/1947 · age 79 | 25–50% | — | 25-50% shares | 06/04/2016 |
Mr Geoffrey Charles Forward Individual · British · DOB 03/1954 · age 72 | 25–50% | — | 25-50% shares | 06/04/2016 |
From Companies House Persons with Significant Control filings. Share ranges are banded per the public PSC regime.
Similar companies
Active · Automotive · WA postcode area| Company | Est. value | Turnover | Net worth | Staff | Age | Opp | Director |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FUSE POWDER CLINIC LIMITED→ 12525669 · est 2020 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 6y | — | — |
| G BAILEYS LTD→ 13425276 · est 2021 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 4y | — | — |
| G T DETERGENTS LTD→ 04668621 · est 2003 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 23y | — | — |
| G. P. AUTO'S LTD→ 06857553 · est 2009 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 17y | — | — |
| G&S MOT CENTRE WARRINGTON LTD→ 16816249 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| GARAGE 57 LTD→ 09327295 · est 2014 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 11y | — | — |
| GARAGE B UK LTD→ 15612966 · est 2024 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 2y | — | — |
| GARTONS GARAGE LTD→ 16355352 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 1y | — | — |
| GASTECH IMPORT CARS LTD→ 13772983 · est 2021 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 4y | — | — |
| GASTECH WARRINGTON LTD→ 07757471 · est 2011 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 14y | — | — |
| GC TRUCKSPARK LTD→ 17110354 · est 2026 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| GEORGE BARTON LIMITED→ 08639599 · est 2013 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 12y | — | — |
Peers ranked by estimated value, then turnover, then opportunity score.See all →
🔒Tailored diligence questions
7 specific questions generated from this company's actual signals — liquidity, leverage, director age, charge count, red flags, age-of-company.
Available from the Pro tier upwards.
See pricing →🔒Advanced scoring suite
Exit-route ranking, improvement thesis, quiet-distress detector, covenant-pressure proxy, extraction monitor, approaching triggers, ownership drift, local cluster, value trap, debt capacity, archetype classification — 48+ scoring modules.
Available from the Pro tier upwards.
See pricing →Company details
Statusactive
Typeltd
Incorporated2004-02-26
Jurisdictionengland-wales
Primary SIC45112 — SIC 45112
Registered office
Gaskell Street
St Helens
Merseyside
WA9 1PX
Filing status
Accounts
Next due: 2027-03-31
Last made up to: 2025-06-30
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2027-03-12
Last: 2026-02-26
Officers (3 active · 3 resigned)
FORWARD, Geoffrey Charles→
Activedirector · ~72y · appointed 2004-02-26
View their other companies + combined net worth →
FORWARD, Mark Philip→
Activedirector · ~55y · appointed 2022-08-26
View their other companies + combined net worth →
FORWARD, Philip John→
Activedirector · ~79y · appointed 2004-02-26
View their other companies + combined net worth →
FORWARD, Geoffrey Charles→
Resignedsecretary · appointed 2004-02-26 · resigned 2022-03-01
THOMAS, Howard→
Resignednominee-secretary · appointed 2004-02-26 · resigned 2004-02-26
TESTER, William Andrew Joseph→
Resignednominee-director · ~64y · appointed 2004-02-26 · resigned 2004-02-26
Click a director name to see their full track record across all companies.
Mortgages & charges
2
Total charges
2
Outstanding
2
Active lenders
Status:Lender:2 of 2 shown
| Type | Properties | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| outstanding | Fiat Auto Financial Services (Wholesale) Fiat Auto Financial Services (Wholesale) Limited | Legal charge | 1 property | 05/04/2006 | — | |
| outstanding | Fiat Auto Financial Services Fiat Auto Financial Services Limited | Legal charge | 1 property | 17/03/2005 | — |
Click column headers to sort. Use filters above to narrow by status and lender.
Recent filings (58 total)
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2026-03-24
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2026-02-27
change-person-director-company-with-change-date
officers · CH01
2026-02-27
change-person-director-company-with-change-date
officers · CH01
2026-02-27
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-04-01
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2025-03-10
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-03-19
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2024-03-15
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-03-14
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2023-03-14
appoint-person-director-company-with-name-date
officers · AP01
2022-08-26
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2022-03-16
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-03-09
termination-secretary-company-with-name-termination-date
officers · TM02
2022-03-09
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2021-05-04