AUTOPLATE UK LIMITED
💤Zombieactive
05842384 · ltd · incorporated 2006-06-09
Investment thesis
Zombie company — trading but stalled; unlikely mover.
Why interesting: Quiet, steady; could be a succession or carve-out candidate with the right conversation.
Why risky: No growth signal; thin margin for error on price.
🔒Estimated value
—
Upgrade to see
Turnover
—
year to Mar 2025
Net worth
£612
book net assets
Opportunity
82/100
Exceptional
What this business does
Primary activity: Freight transport by road
Sector: Transportation & storage
Investor take
PursueActive trading company with a 72-year-old founder — textbook succession opportunity.
Opportunity 82/100 (exceptional), bankability 80/100. Strong seller-intent signal (83/100, director aged 72). Share purchase looks the cleaner deal structure. Biggest value-creation lever: Discharge stale live charges. 1 live charge(s) created 15+ years ago — likely paid but undischarged. Clean register. Most likely exit: share sale to pe / searcher (73/100).
🏦
Refinance opportunity
1 live charge · oldest 20.0y
45/100
under pressure
Refinance would be pressure-driven, not opportunity-driven. Expect tighter margins and covenant scrutiny.
- · Oldest live charge is 20.0 years old — likely at or near maturity.
- · Single lender — cleanest path to refinance.
- · Distress signals active — lender appetite narrows.
Data confidence
Overall: medium (76/100)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
1 charges (1/1 with lender, 1/1 with type)
90
Directors & officers
4 officers (1 active, 4 linked, 1 with DOB)
75
Ownership & PSC
1 active PSC(s) of 1 total, 1 with control declared
90
Director network
Network not yet resolved
30
Filing history
60 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.
Signals from accounts
Derived from iXBRL accounts · accounting standard not declaredPositive net assets
Net assets £612
Net assets shrinking
Down £42,433 YoY
Cash YoY
-7%
Year on year
Key financials
2 years extracted from filed iXBRL accountsCash
£20k
↓ 7.1% YoY
Net Worth
£612
↓ 99% YoY
Current Assets
£649k
↓ 4.1% YoY
Current Liabilities
—
Hover to see exact values · click legend to toggle series
Financials
Extracted from Companies House accounts · accounting standard unknown| Metric | 2025-03-31 | 2024-03-31 |
|---|---|---|
| Total assets | £2.3k | £54.7k |
| Current assets | £649.4k | £677.3k |
| Cash | £19.8k | £21.3k |
| Debtors | £629.6k | £655.9k |
| Net assets | £612 | £43.0k |
Amounts extracted automatically from iXBRL. Fields left blank were not reported or not mapped. Values in GBP unless stated.
🔒Filing-note intelligence
2 signals 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
1
filing
- • 1 confirmation-statement
Last 90 days
1
filing
- • 1 confirmation-statement
Last 180 days
2
filings
- • 1 confirmation-statement
- • 1 accounts
Counts from Companies House filing history.
Corporate timeline (24 events)Click to expand
- 2026-01-30📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2024-12-19📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2024-05-15📄change-person-director-company-with-change-dateofficers · CH01
- 2024-05-15📄change-to-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC04
- 2023-10-30📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2022-12-12📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2021-09-06📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2020-10-15📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2020-06-22📄change-person-director-company-with-change-dateofficers · CH01
- 2020-06-22📄change-person-director-company-with-change-dateofficers · CH01
- 2020-06-22📄change-to-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC04
- 2019-12-23📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2018-11-28📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2017-10-09📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2017-07-17📄notification-of-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC01
- 2015-02-09➖WHYTE, William Plumpton resignedsecretary
- 2006-08-02🔒Charge registered #1Lender: Bibby Financial Services Limited as Security Trustee
- 2006-06-09🏢Company incorporatedAs AUTOPLATE UK LIMITED
- 2006-06-09➕MARTIN, Alan Michael appointeddirector
- 2006-06-09➕WHYTE, William Plumpton appointedsecretary
- 2006-06-09➕SECRETARIAL APPOINTMENTS LIMITED appointedcorporate-nominee-secretary
- 2006-06-09➖SECRETARIAL APPOINTMENTS LIMITED resignedcorporate-nominee-secretary
- 2006-06-09➕CORPORATE APPOINTMENTS LIMITED appointedcorporate-nominee-director
- 2006-06-09➖CORPORATE APPOINTMENTS LIMITED resignedcorporate-nominee-director
Owner dependency
100/100
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
- +Sole director: Only one active director — all governance concentrated on one person.
- +Long-tenure founder: Senior director has been in place 20 years — deep operational knowledge concentrated in one person.
- +Founder age: Director aged approximately 72 — succession pressure is live.
Succession & seller-readiness
100/100
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 72 years old. Natural succession window is now.
- primarySole active director: Only one director in control. No visible successor — buyers solve the succession problem.
- primary20+ year tenure: Director in role 20 years. Very long tenure is a classic succession signal.
- secondaryStable-but-static management: Company is 20 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
1 active beneficial owner · dominant holder ≥75%| Name | Shares | Voting rights | Nature of control | Notified |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Mr Alan Michael Martin Individual · British · DOB 02/1954 · age 72 | 75–100% | 75–100% | board control75-100% shares · 75-100% voting · board control | 06/04/2016 |
From Companies House Persons with Significant Control filings. Share ranges are banded per the public PSC regime.
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| ALMARIN TRANS LTD→ 11771299 · est 2019 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 7y | — | — |
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| BAX BUSES LTD→ 16965549 · est 2026 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| BCD INDUSTRIAL LTD.→ 10943129 · est 2017 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 8y | — | — |
| BEAST TRANSPORT LTD→ 12937289 · est 2020 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 5y | — | — |
| BEAT THE STREET (UK) LIMITED→ 05634945 · est 2005 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 20y | — | — |
Peers ranked by estimated value, then turnover, then opportunity score.See all →
🔒Tailored diligence questions
8 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
Incorporated2006-06-09
Jurisdictionengland-wales
Primary SIC49410 — Freight transport by road
Registered office
Fryern House 125 Winchester Road
Chandlers Ford
Southampton
Hampshire
SO53 2DR
Filing status
Accounts
Next due: 2026-12-31
Last made up to: 2025-03-31
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2027-06-23
Last: 2026-06-09
Officers (1 active · 3 resigned)
MARTIN, Alan Michael→
Activedirector · ~72y · appointed 2006-06-09
View their other companies + combined net worth →
WHYTE, William Plumpton→
Resignedsecretary · appointed 2006-06-09 · resigned 2015-02-09
SECRETARIAL APPOINTMENTS LIMITED→
Resignedcorporate-nominee-secretary · appointed 2006-06-09 · resigned 2006-06-09
CORPORATE APPOINTMENTS LIMITED→
Resignedcorporate-nominee-director · appointed 2006-06-09 · resigned 2006-06-09
Click a director name to see their full track record across all companies.
Mortgages & charges
1
Total charges
1
Outstanding
1
Active lenders
Status:Lender:1 of 1 shown
| Type | Properties | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| outstanding | Bibby Financial Services Bibby Financial Services Limited as Security Trustee | Debenture | 1 property | 02/08/2006 | — |
Click column headers to sort. Use filters above to narrow by status and lender.
Recent filings (60 total)
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2026-06-21
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2026-01-30
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-06-13
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2024-12-19
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-06-19
change-person-director-company-with-change-date
officers · CH01
2024-05-15
change-to-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC04
2024-05-15
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2023-10-30
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-06-13
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2022-12-12
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-06-22
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2021-09-06
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2021-06-17
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2020-10-15
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2020-07-03