DEREK HEEPS LIMITED

💤Zombieactive
SC167126 · ltd · incorporated 1996-07-19
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 Sept 2024
Net worth
—
book net assets
Opportunity
82/100
Exceptional
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What this business does
Primary activity: Freight transport by road
Sector: Transportation & storage
Investor take
Pursue
Active trading company with a 63-year-old founder — textbook succession opportunity.

Opportunity 82/100 (exceptional), bankability 67/100. Strong seller-intent signal (70/100, director aged 63). 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 29.3y

15/100
under pressure

Refinance would be pressure-driven, not opportunity-driven. Expect tighter margins and covenant scrutiny.

  • · Oldest live charge is 29.3 years old — likely at or near maturity.
  • · 3 lenders named — inter-creditor friction likely.
  • · Distress signals active — lender appetite narrows.

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
3 charges (3/3 with lender, 3/3 with type)
90
Directors & officers
7 officers (2 active, 7 linked, 3 with DOB)
79
Ownership & PSC
1 active PSC(s) of 3 total, 3 with control declared
90
Director network
Network not yet resolved
30
Filing history
93 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 accounts
Cash
—
Net Worth
—
Current Assets
—
Current Liabilities
—
£0£0£0£0£0£0Sept 2023Sept 2024

Hover to see exact values · click legend to toggle series

Financials

Extracted from Companies House accounts · IFRS
Metric2024-09-302023-09-30
Average employees30002800

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 (32 events)Click to expand
  1. 2025-07-14
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  2. 2024-06-30
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  3. 2023-06-30
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  4. 2022-10-21
    📄
    accounts-amended-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AAMD
  5. 2022-09-30
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  6. 2022-08-10
    📄
    cessation-of-a-person-with-significant-control
    persons-with-significant-control · PSC07
  7. 2021-10-20
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  8. 2020-10-14
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridged
    accounts · AA
  9. 2019-06-30
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  10. 2018-06-30
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridged
    accounts · AA
  11. 2017-08-01
    📄
    notification-of-a-person-with-significant-control
    persons-with-significant-control · PSC01
  12. 2017-08-01
    📄
    cessation-of-a-person-with-significant-control
    persons-with-significant-control · PSC07
  13. 2017-07-26
    📄
    notification-of-a-person-with-significant-control
    persons-with-significant-control · PSC01
  14. 2017-06-28
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-small
    accounts · AA
  15. 2016-06-30
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-small
    accounts · AA
  16. 2006-12-18
    🔒
    Charge registered #3
    Lender: Lloyds Tsb Scotland PLC
  17. 2004-02-20
    🔒
    Charge registered #2
    Lender: Lloyds Tsb Commercial Finance Limited
  18. 2003-12-01
    🔓
    Charge satisfied #1
  19. 1997-09-19
    ➕
    HENDERSON, Marilyn appointed
    secretary
  20. 1997-09-19
    ➖
    SCOTT OSWALD CHARTERED ACCOUNTANTS resigned
    corporate-secretary
  21. 1997-01-28
    ➖
    HENDERSON, Marilyn resigned
    secretary
  22. 1997-01-28
    ➕
    SCOTT OSWALD CHARTERED ACCOUNTANTS appointed
    corporate-secretary
  23. 1997-01-14
    🔒
    Charge registered #1
    Lender: The Royal Bank of Scotland PLC
  24. 1996-12-19
    ➕
    HEEPS, Derek appointed
    director
  25. 1996-07-19
    🏢
    Company incorporated
    As DEREK HEEPS LIMITED
  26. 1996-07-19
    ➕
    FOOT, Leigh appointed
    nominee-secretary
  27. 1996-07-19
    ➖
    FOOT, Leigh resigned
    nominee-secretary
  28. 1996-07-19
    ➕
    HENDERSON, Marilyn appointed
    secretary
  29. 1996-07-19
    ➕
    MCINTOSH, Susan appointed
    nominee-director
  30. 1996-07-19
    ➖
    MCINTOSH, Susan resigned
    nominee-director
  31. 1996-07-19
    ➕
    TRAINER, Peter appointed
    nominee-director
  32. 1996-07-19
    ➖
    TRAINER, Peter resigned
    nominee-director

Owner dependency

100/100
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.
  • +Founder name in company name: Company name contains director surname "HEEPS" — strong identity link between founder and business.
  • +Long-tenure founder: Senior director has been in place 29 years — deep operational knowledge concentrated in one person.
  • +Senior director age: Director aged approximately 63 — approaching natural succession window.

Succession & seller-readiness

95/100
Likely off-market candidate

Strong acquirability signals converging. Worth approaching directly — this is how off-market deals start.

SIGNALS
  • primaryFounder aged 63+: Senior director is approximately 63. Approaching typical UK retirement age — succession thinking likely.
  • primarySole active director: Only one director in control. No visible successor — buyers solve the succession problem.
  • primary20+ year tenure: Director in role 29 years. Very long tenure is a classic succession signal.
  • secondaryStable-but-static management: Company is 30 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

clean
No 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%
NameSharesVoting rightsNature of controlNotified
Mr Derek Heeps
Individual · British · DOB 06/1963 · age 63
75–100%
—75-100% shares17/07/2016
2 historic (ceased) PSCs
  • Mr Derek Heepsceased 26/07/2016· 75-100% shares · 75-100% voting · board control
  • Mr Derek Heepsceased 01/08/2022· 75-100% shares

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

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———20y8761y
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——5041y8761y
A WILLIAMSON HAULAGE LIMITED→
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——£1.27M—19y8278y
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——£512.2k—21y8262y
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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
Incorporated1996-07-19
Jurisdictionscotland
Primary SIC49410 — Freight transport by road

Registered office

28 Links Road
Bo'Ness
West Lothian
EH51 9AW

Filing status

Accounts
Next due: 2026-06-30
Last made up to: 2024-09-30
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2026-07-30
Last: 2025-07-16

Officers (2 active · 5 resigned)

HENDERSON, Marilyn→
secretary · appointed 1997-09-19
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
HEEPS, Derek→
director · ~63y · appointed 1996-12-19
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
FOOT, Leigh→
nominee-secretary · appointed 1996-07-19 · resigned 1996-07-19
Resigned
HENDERSON, Marilyn→
secretary · appointed 1996-07-19 · resigned 1997-01-28
Resigned
SCOTT OSWALD CHARTERED ACCOUNTANTS→
corporate-secretary · appointed 1997-01-28 · resigned 1997-09-19
Resigned
MCINTOSH, Susan→
nominee-director · ~56y · appointed 1996-07-19 · resigned 1996-07-19
Resigned
TRAINER, Peter→
nominee-director · ~74y · appointed 1996-07-19 · resigned 1996-07-19
Resigned

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

Mortgages & charges

3
Total charges
2
Outstanding
1
Active lenders
Status:Lender:3 of 3 shown
TypeProperties
outstanding
Lloyds Banking Group
Lloyds Tsb Scotland PLC
Bond & floating charge1 property18/12/2006—
outstanding
Lloyds Banking Group
Lloyds Tsb Commercial Finance Limited
Floating charge1 property20/02/2004—
satisfied
Lloyds Banking Group
The Royal Bank of Scotland PLC
Bond & floating charge1 property14/01/199701/12/2003
Click column headers to sort. Use filters above to narrow by status and lender.

Recent filings (93 total)

confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-07-30
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2025-07-14
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-07-16
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2024-06-30
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-07-19
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2023-06-30
accounts-amended-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AAMD
2022-10-21
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2022-09-30
cessation-of-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC07
2022-08-10
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-07-28
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2021-10-20
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2021-07-19
accounts-with-accounts-type-unaudited-abridged
accounts · AA
2020-10-14
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2020-07-21
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2019-07-24