APPROVED CARS LIMITED
🌳Matureactive
08240470 · ltd · incorporated 2012-10-04
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
hardening · 12-months
Already tight — no obvious softening catalysts on the horizon.
- · Thesis: well-run, low negotiation leverage
🔒Estimated value
—
Upgrade to see
Turnover
—
year to Oct 2024
Net worth
£1.21M
book net assets
Opportunity
80/100
Exceptional
What this business does
Primary activity: SIC 45112
Sector: Wholesale & retail
Investor take
PursueActive trading company. Family succession underway — not a classic acquisition target.
Opportunity 80/100 (exceptional), bankability 67/100. Same-surname younger director in place — likely family handover, not open to sale. Share purchase looks the cleaner deal structure. Biggest value-creation lever: Consolidate lender relationships. 3 distinct lenders creates friction — refinance into single-lender structure for cleaner diligence. Most likely exit: share sale to pe / searcher (73/100).
🏦
Refinance opportunity
3 live charges · 3 lenders · oldest 8.3y
35/100
too messy
Refinance path is blocked by complexity. Rethink structure or expect bespoke, expensive terms.
- · Oldest live charge is 8.3 years old — likely at or near maturity.
- · 3 lenders named — inter-creditor friction likely.
- · Legal-friction score 25/100 — workable, but lender will want more DD.
Data confidence
Overall: high (81/100)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
3 charges (3/3 with lender, 3/3 with type)
90
Directors & officers
4 officers (2 active, 4 linked, 4 with DOB)
90
Ownership & PSC
1 active PSC(s) of 1 total, 1 with control declared
90
Director network
5 connected companies via shared directors
60
Filing history
45 filings on record
85
Gazette notices
No matching gazette notices (standard for active companies)
60
Opportunity Score
80/100Exceptional
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
75
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 · FRS 102Positive net assets
Net assets £1,205,700
Key financials
2 years extracted from filed iXBRL accountsCash
£108k
Net Worth
£1.2m
↑ 1.8% YoY
Current Assets
£3.4m
↑ 7.5% YoY
Current Liabilities
—
Hover to see exact values · click legend to toggle series
Financials
Extracted from Companies House accounts · FRS 102| Metric | 2024-10-31 | 2023-10-31 |
|---|---|---|
| Total assets | £1.42M | £1.45M |
| Current assets | £3.37M | £3.13M |
| Cash | £107.8k | — |
| Net assets | £1.21M | £1.18M |
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
0
filings
Counts from Companies House filing history.
Corporate timeline (29 events)Click to expand
- 2025-12-17📄mortgage-satisfy-charge-fullmortgage · MR04
- 2025-12-17🔓Charge satisfied #3
- 2025-10-27📄accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridgedaccounts · AA
- 2025-10-02📄change-to-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC04
- 2025-10-01📄change-to-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC04
- 2025-09-24📄mortgage-create-with-deed-with-charge-number-charge-creation-datemortgage · MR01
- 2025-09-24🔒Charge registered #3Lender: Le Capital UK (Asset 1) Limited
- 2025-09-05📍change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-addressaddress · AD01
- 2025-03-21➕CLEMENT, James Grant appointeddirector
- 2025-03-21📄appoint-person-director-company-with-name-dateofficers · AP01
- 2024-10-18📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2023-09-18📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2022-07-29📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2022-06-10📍change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-addressaddress · AD01
- 2021-12-03📄accounts-amended-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AAMD
- 2021-07-29📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2020-10-21📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2020-10-21📄mortgage-satisfy-charge-fullmortgage · MR04
- 2020-10-21🔓Charge satisfied #2
- 2020-06-24📍change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-addressaddress · AD01
- 2019-08-28📄mortgage-create-with-deed-with-charge-number-charge-creation-datemortgage · MR01
- 2019-08-15🔒Charge registered #2Lender: Metro Bank PLC
- 2018-02-16🔒Charge registered #1Lender: Lloyds Bank PLC
- 2014-11-17➖LUCRAFT, Maria Jane resigneddirector
- 2013-09-16➕CLEMENT, Jason Grant appointeddirector
- 2012-11-21➖CLEMENT, Jason Grant resigneddirector
- 2012-11-21➕LUCRAFT, Maria Jane appointeddirector
- 2012-10-04🏢Company incorporatedAs APPROVED CARS LIMITED
- 2012-10-04➕CLEMENT, Jason Grant appointeddirector
Owner dependency
74/100
High — earn-out structure requiredMaterial founder dependency. Consider a 2-3 year earn-out and build in a handover plan before completion.
FACTORS
- +Two-director setup: Only two active directors — typical of owner-managed SMEs but limits succession.
- +Senior director age: Director aged approximately 60 — approaching natural succession window.
- +Family involvement: Multiple officers share a surname — likely family business, which concentrates governance.
Succession & seller-readiness
19/100
No succession signalNo meaningful acquirability indicators from public data.
SIGNALS
- primaryFamily succession underway: Not a takeover target — CLEMENT, James Grant (same surname) appointed 2025-03-21. Pattern consistent with intra-family handover.
- secondaryFounder aged 58+: Senior director is approximately 60. Early succession window.
- secondaryTwo-director governance: Small-team governance. Succession depth is thin but not absent.
- secondary12+ year tenure: Director in role 13 years.
- 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 Jason Grant Clement Individual · British · DOB 12/1966 · age 60 | 75–100% | — | 75-100% shares | 22/01/2017 |
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 · TN postcode area| Company | Est. value | Turnover | Net worth | Staff | Age | Opp | Director |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| AUTO PAINT FIX LTD→ 06668938 · est 2008 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 17y | — | — |
| AUTO REMATCH LIMITED→ 16805121 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| AUTOHISTORIC LTD→ 05804456 · est 2006 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 19y | — | — |
| AUTORIGHT (TONBRIDGE) LTD→ 14282529 · est 2022 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 3y | — | — |
| AUTOTAILOR CARS LTD→ 16157981 · est 2024 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 1y | — | — |
| AWAY RENTALS LTD→ 11888513 · est 2019 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 7y | — | — |
| AWR AUTOS LIMITED→ 15721574 · est 2024 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 1y | — | — |
| B G MOTOR SERVICES LIMITED→ 03977849 · est 2000 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 25y | — | — |
| BAILEY BODYSHOP LTD→ 10593233 · est 2017 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 9y | — | — |
| BEACH-SIDE CARS & CAR WASH SERVICES LTD→ 14000500 · est 2022 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 4y | — | — |
| BEACHWOOD LEISURE LTD→ 12889766 · est 2020 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 5y | — | — |
| BEACON TYRES & MOT LTD→ 16977505 · est 2026 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
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
Incorporated2012-10-04
Jurisdictionengland-wales
Primary SIC45112 — SIC 45112
Registered office
Lodges Wood Oast
Goodley Stock Road
Westerham
TN16 1TW
United Kingdom
Filing status
Accounts
Next due: 2026-07-31
Last made up to: 2024-10-31
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2026-10-07
Last: 2025-09-23
Officers (2 active · 2 resigned)
CLEMENT, James Grant→
Activedirector · ~31y · appointed 2025-03-21
View their other companies + combined net worth →
CLEMENT, Jason Grant→
Activedirector · ~60y · appointed 2013-09-16
View their other companies + combined net worth →
CLEMENT, Jason Grant→
Resigneddirector · ~60y · appointed 2012-10-04 · resigned 2012-11-21
LUCRAFT, Maria Jane→
Resigneddirector · ~61y · appointed 2012-11-21 · resigned 2014-11-17
Click a director name to see their full track record across all companies.
Mortgages & charges
3
Total charges
1
Outstanding
1
Active lenders
Status:Lender:3 of 3 shown
| Type | Properties | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| satisfied | Le Capital UK (Asset 1) Le Capital UK (Asset 1) Limited | A registered charge | — | 24/09/2025 | 17/12/2025 | |
| satisfied | Metro Bank Metro Bank PLC | A registered charge | 1 property | 15/08/2019 | 21/10/2020 | |
| outstanding | Lloyds Banking Group Lloyds Bank PLC | A registered charge | 1 property | 16/02/2018 | — |
Click column headers to sort. Use filters above to narrow by status and lender.
Recent filings (45 total)
mortgage-satisfy-charge-full
mortgage · MR04
2025-12-17
accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridged
accounts · AA
2025-10-27
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-10-02
change-to-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC04
2025-10-02
change-to-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC04
2025-10-01
mortgage-create-with-deed-with-charge-number-charge-creation-date
mortgage · MR01
2025-09-24
change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-address
address · AD01
2025-09-05
appoint-person-director-company-with-name-date
officers · AP01
2025-03-21
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2024-10-18
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-10-07
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-10-05
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2023-09-18
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-09-23
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2022-07-29
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-06-10