4X4 AUTOMOTIVE LIMITED

💤Zombieactive
09627345 · ltd · incorporated 2015-06-08
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 Jun 2024
Net worth
£9.6k
book net assets
Opportunity
69/100
Strong
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What this business does
Primary activity: SIC 45112
Sector: Wholesale & retail
Investor take
Special-situation opportunity
Distressed automotive with salvageable qualities — special-situations priority.

Opportunity 69/100 (strong), bankability 65/100. High owner-dependency — earn-out structure likely required for clean transition. Share purchase looks the cleaner deal structure. Biggest value-creation lever: Resolve: Confirmation statement overdue. Annual confirmation statement not filed on time. Required statutory filing — overdue is a strong discipline signal. Most likely exit: share sale to pe / searcher (73/100).

Data confidence

Overall: medium (70/100)

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
1 year of iXBRL accounts extracted (no YoY comparison) + narrative notes parsed
50
Lenders & charges
Confirmed no charges registered
85
Directors & officers
2 officers (1 active, 2 linked, 2 with DOB)
90
Ownership & PSC
1 active PSC(s) of 2 total, 2 with control declared
90
Director network
Network not yet resolved
30
Filing history
34 filings on record
85
Gazette notices
No matching gazette notices (standard for active companies)
60
Opportunity Score
69/100Strong
PassWatchWorth a lookStrongExceptional 

Solid opportunity signal. Worth a dedicated memo and management meeting.

Business quality
60
Adequate — check latest filings for context.
Acquirability
70
Strong succession / seller-readiness signals.
Risk profile
67
Some moderate concerns — review flags.
Signal strength
90
Good data coverage for analysis.

Signals from accounts

Derived from iXBRL accounts · FRS 102
Positive net assets
Net assets £9,606

Key financials

1 year extracted from filed iXBRL accounts
Cash
£11k
Net Worth
£10k
Current Assets
£18k
Current Liabilities

Financials

Extracted from Companies House accounts · FRS 102
Metric2024-06-30
Total assets£14.9k
Current assets£18.3k
Cash£10.6k
Debtors£7.7k
Net assets£9.6k

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
1
filing
  • 1 accounts
Last 90 days
1
filing
  • 1 accounts
Last 180 days
1
filing
  • 1 accounts
Counts from Companies House filing history.
Corporate timeline (21 events)Click to expand
  1. 2026-03-27
    📄
    change-account-reference-date-company-previous-shortened
    accounts · AA01
  2. 2025-03-27
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  3. 2025-03-27
    📄
    accounts-amended-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AAMD
  4. 2024-03-27
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  5. 2023-06-27
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  6. 2022-06-27
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  7. 2022-06-13
    📄
    termination-director-company-with-name-termination-date
    officers · TM01
  8. 2022-06-13
    📄
    cessation-of-a-person-with-significant-control
    persons-with-significant-control · PSC07
  9. 2022-06-13
    📄
    notification-of-a-person-with-significant-control
    persons-with-significant-control · PSC01
  10. 2021-10-12
    BAILEY, Nicholas Edward resigned
    director
  11. 2021-09-16
    📄
    appoint-person-director-company-with-name-date
    officers · AP01
  12. 2021-06-27
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  13. 2021-06-01
    DRUMMOND, Andrew appointed
    director
  14. 2020-06-26
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  15. 2020-03-26
    📄
    change-account-reference-date-company-previous-shortened
    accounts · AA01
  16. 2019-07-03
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  17. 2019-03-25
    📄
    change-account-reference-date-company-previous-shortened
    accounts · AA01
  18. 2018-06-28
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  19. 2018-03-28
    📄
    change-account-reference-date-company-previous-shortened
    accounts · AA01
  20. 2015-06-08
    🏢
    Company incorporated
    As 4X4 AUTOMOTIVE LIMITED
  21. 2015-06-08
    BAILEY, Nicholas Edward appointed
    director

Owner dependency

83/100
Critical — business is the founder

The 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.
  • +Senior director age: Director aged approximately 64 — approaching natural succession window.

Succession & seller-readiness

65/100
Strong succession signal

Multiple signals suggest succession is on the horizon. Candidate for proactive outreach.

SIGNALS
  • primaryFounder aged 63+: Senior director is approximately 64. Approaching typical UK retirement age — succession thinking likely.
  • primarySole active director: Only one director in control. No visible successor — buyers solve the succession problem.

Red flags

1 high ·
Confirmation statement overdue
high

Annual confirmation statement not filed on time. Required statutory filing — overdue is a strong discipline signal.

Evidence: Next due: 2026-04-10

Shareholders & ownership

1 active beneficial owner · dominant holder ≥75%
NameSharesVoting rightsNature of controlNotified
Mr Andrew Drummond
Individual · British · DOB 03/1962 · age 64
75100%
75–100%75-100% shares · 75-100% voting12/10/2021
1 historic (ceased) PSC
  • Mr Nicholas Edward Baileyceased 12/10/2021· 75-100% shares

From Companies House Persons with Significant Control filings. Share ranges are banded per the public PSC regime.

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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
Incorporated2015-06-08
Jurisdictionengland-wales
Primary SIC45112 — SIC 45112

Registered office

Gowran House 56 Broad Street
Chipping Sodbury
Bristol
BS37 6AG
United Kingdom

Filing status

Accounts
Next due: 2026-06-27
Last made up to: 2024-06-30
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2026-04-10OVERDUE
Last: 2025-03-27

Officers (1 active · 1 resigned)

DRUMMOND, Andrew
director · ~64y · appointed 2021-06-01
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
BAILEY, Nicholas Edward
director · ~71y · appointed 2015-06-08 · resigned 2021-10-12
Resigned

Click a director name to see their full track record across all companies.

Recent filings (34 total)

change-account-reference-date-company-previous-shortened
accounts · AA01
2026-03-27
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-04-25
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2025-03-27
accounts-amended-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AAMD
2025-03-27
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2024-03-27
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-03-27
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2023-06-27
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-06-08
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2022-06-27
termination-director-company-with-name-termination-date
officers · TM01
2022-06-13
cessation-of-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC07
2022-06-13
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-06-13
notification-of-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC01
2022-06-13
appoint-person-director-company-with-name-date
officers · AP01
2021-09-16
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2021-06-27