AUTOTEST (WEST EWELL) LTD
🌳Matureactive
07166123 · ltd · incorporated 2010-02-23
Investment thesis
Established operating company — standard diligence applies, no dominant angle.
Why interesting: Live, filing, normal profile.
Why risky: No standout signals in either direction.
🔒Estimated value
—
Upgrade to see
Turnover
—
year to Mar 2025
Net worth
—
book net assets
Opportunity
82/100
Exceptional
What this business does
Primary activity: SIC 45200
Sector: Wholesale & retail
Investor take
PursueStrong opportunity: active trading company with exceptional profile and bankable structure.
Opportunity 82/100 (exceptional), bankability 80/100. Strong seller-intent signal (70/100, director aged 59). Share purchase looks the cleaner deal structure. Most likely exit: share sale to pe / searcher (73/100).
🏦
Refinance opportunity
1 live charge · oldest 3.0y
50/100
clean up first
Refinance viable after a tidy-up — address the highlighted items first.
- · Newest facility, 3.0 years old — likely still in initial term.
- · Single lender — cleanest path to refinance.
- · Legal-friction score 15/100 — clean.
Data confidence
Overall: high (80/100)Strong data coverage across all sections. AI outputs should be trusted with minimal caveats.
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
2 officers (2 active, 2 linked, 2 with DOB)
90
Ownership & PSC
1 active PSC(s) of 2 total, 2 with control declared
90
Director network
1 connected companies via shared directors
48
Filing history
41 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 · accounting standard unknown| Metric | 2025-03-31 | 2024-03-31 |
|---|
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
0
filings
Last 90 days
0
filings
Last 180 days
0
filings
Counts from Companies House filing history.
Corporate timeline (17 events)Click to expand
- 2025-12-16📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2024-12-17📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2023-10-30📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2023-08-02📄mortgage-create-with-deed-with-charge-number-charge-creation-datemortgage · MR01
- 2023-08-01🔒Charge registered #1Lender: Barclays Security Trustee Limited
- 2022-11-28📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2021-12-23📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2021-01-19📄cessation-of-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC07
- 2020-10-01📄notification-of-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC02
- 2020-07-24📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2019-07-25📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2018-10-15📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2017-11-27📄resolutionresolution · RESOLUTIONS
- 2017-11-01📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2016-07-13➕HOFMAN, Shelley May appointeddirector
- 2010-02-23🏢Company incorporatedAs AUTOTEST (WEST EWELL) LTD
- 2010-02-23➕HARDIE-EAST, Stephen Paul appointeddirector
Owner dependency
81/100
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
- +Two-director setup: Only two active directors — typical of owner-managed SMEs but limits succession.
- +Long-tenure founder: Senior director has been in place 16 years — deep operational knowledge concentrated in one person.
- +Senior director age: Director aged approximately 59 — approaching natural succession window.
- +No director turnover: Company is 16 years old with no director changes — suggests a very tight-knit founder team never broadened.
Succession & seller-readiness
69/100
Strong succession signalMultiple signals suggest succession is on the horizon. Candidate for proactive outreach.
SIGNALS
- secondaryFounder aged 58+: Senior director is approximately 59. Early succession window.
- secondaryTwo-director governance: Small-team governance. Succession depth is thin but not absent.
- secondary12+ year tenure: Director in role 16 years.
- secondaryStable-but-static management: Company is 16 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 Stephen Paul Hardie-East Individual · British · DOB 04/1967 · age 59 | 75–100% | 75–100% | board control75-100% shares · 75-100% voting · board control | 06/04/2016 |
1 historic (ceased) PSC
- Sshe Holdings Ltd (12353945)ceased 31/12/2020· 75-100% shares · 75-100% voting
From Companies House Persons with Significant Control filings. Share ranges are banded per the public PSC regime.
🔒Co-director network graph
Radial SVG graph showing every company connected via shared directors, colour-coded by status.
Available from the Pro tier upwards.
See pricing →Similar companies
Active · Automotive · KT postcode area| Company | Est. value | Turnover | Net worth | Staff | Age | Opp | Director |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ALTERNATIVE FUEL DIAGNOSTICS LTD→ 12321694 · est 2019 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 6y | — | — |
| AYAAN CAR WASH LTD→ 15347171 · est 2023 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 2y | — | — |
| BAVARIAN ENGINEERING LTD→ 16950225 · est 2026 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| BE UK TRADER LTD→ 11765985 · est 2019 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 7y | — | — |
| BECKLEY'S OF BOOKHAM LIMITED→ 03079641 · est 1995 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 30y | — | — |
| BERRYLANDS AUTOCARE LTD→ 08018253 · est 2012 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 14y | — | — |
| BEYOND CARS LIMITED→ 14310259 · est 2022 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 3y | — | — |
| BILL SHEPHERD AUTOMOTIVE LTD→ 09387159 · est 2015 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 11y | — | — |
| BLUE FAIRWAY LIMITED→ 08593629 · est 2013 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 12y | — | — |
| BM CAR SALES LTD→ 16729536 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| BMS SURREY LIMITED→ 11740022 · est 2018 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 7y | — | — |
| BODOVI LTD→ 15687244 · est 2024 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 1y | — | — |
Peers ranked by estimated value, then turnover, then opportunity score.See all →
🔒Tailored diligence questions
6 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
Incorporated2010-02-23
Jurisdictionengland-wales
Primary SIC45200 — SIC 45200
Registered office
242a Ruxley Lane
West Ewell
Epsom
Surrey
KT19 9EY
Filing status
Accounts
Next due: 2026-12-31
Last made up to: 2025-03-31
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2027-01-18
Last: 2026-01-04
Officers (2 active · 0 resigned)
HARDIE-EAST, Stephen Paul→
Activedirector · ~59y · appointed 2010-02-23
View their other companies + combined net worth →
HOFMAN, Shelley May→
Activedirector · ~48y · appointed 2016-07-13
View their other companies + combined net worth →
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 | Barclays Barclays Security Trustee Limited | A registered charge | — | 01/08/2023 | — |
Click column headers to sort. Use filters above to narrow by status and lender.
Recent filings (41 total)
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2026-01-10
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2025-12-16
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-01-06
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2024-12-17
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-01-05
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2023-10-30
mortgage-create-with-deed-with-charge-number-charge-creation-date
mortgage · MR01
2023-08-02
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-01-04
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2022-11-28
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-01-05
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2021-12-23
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2021-01-19
cessation-of-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC07
2021-01-19
notification-of-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC02
2020-10-01
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2020-07-24