BURNFIELD MOTORS LTD.

💤Zombieactive
SC254936 · ltd · incorporated 2003-08-28
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
£557.6k
book net assets
Opportunity
82/100
Exceptional
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What this business does
Primary activity: SIC 45200
Sector: Wholesale & retail
Investor take
Pursue
Active trading company with a 70-year-old founder — textbook succession opportunity.

Opportunity 82/100 (exceptional), bankability 80/100. Strong seller-intent signal (83/100, director aged 70). Share purchase looks the cleaner deal structure. Biggest value-creation lever: Broaden director team. Sole director creates succession risk and reduces buyer comfort. Appoint a second director or strong #2. Most likely exit: share sale to pe / searcher (73/100).

🏦

Refinance opportunity

2 live charges · oldest 5.5y

45/100
under pressure

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

  • · Oldest live charge is 5.5 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
2 charges (2/2 with lender, 2/2 with type)
90
Directors & officers
4 officers (2 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
62 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 declared
Positive net assets
Net assets £557,618

Key financials

2 years extracted from filed iXBRL accounts
Cash
—
Net Worth
£558k
↑ 2.0% YoY
Current Assets
£172k
↓ 2.2% YoY
Current Liabilities
—
£0£112k£223k£335k£446k£558kMar 2024Mar 2025

Hover to see exact values · click legend to toggle series

Financials

Extracted from Companies House accounts · accounting standard unknown
Metric2025-03-312024-03-31
Total assets£557.6k£561.6k
Current assets£171.6k£175.5k
Net assets£557.6k£546.6k

Amounts extracted automatically from iXBRL. Fields left blank were not reported or not mapped. Values in GBP unless stated.

Recent activity

Last 30 days
0
filings
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
  1. 2025-12-16
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  2. 2024-12-02
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  3. 2023-11-27
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  4. 2022-12-26
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  5. 2021-11-23
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  6. 2021-01-20
    📄
    mortgage-create-with-deed-with-charge-number-charge-creation-date
    mortgage · MR01
  7. 2021-01-19
    📄
    mortgage-alter-floating-charge-with-number
    mortgage · 466(Scot)
  8. 2021-01-12
    🔒
    Charge registered #2
    Lender: Bank of Scotland PLC
  9. 2020-12-10
    📄
    mortgage-create-with-deed-with-charge-number-charge-creation-date
    mortgage · MR01
  10. 2020-12-09
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  11. 2020-11-30
    🔒
    Charge registered #1
    Lender: Bank of Scotland PLC
  12. 2020-04-28
    📍
    change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-address
    address · AD01
  13. 2020-03-12
    📄
    accounts-amended-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AAMD
  14. 2019-12-18
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  15. 2018-12-17
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  16. 2017-12-15
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  17. 2016-11-07
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-small
    accounts · AA
  18. 2003-08-28
    🏢
    Company incorporated
    As BURNFIELD MOTORS LTD.
  19. 2003-08-28
    ➕
    FENTON, Alison Margaret appointed
    secretary
  20. 2003-08-28
    ➕
    FENTON, John Brechin appointed
    director
  21. 2003-08-28
    ➕
    BRIAN REID LTD. appointed
    corporate-nominee-secretary
  22. 2003-08-28
    ➖
    BRIAN REID LTD. resigned
    corporate-nominee-secretary
  23. 2003-08-28
    ➕
    STEPHEN MABBOTT LTD. appointed
    corporate-nominee-director
  24. 2003-08-28
    ➖
    STEPHEN MABBOTT LTD. resigned
    corporate-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.
  • +Long-tenure founder: Senior director has been in place 23 years — deep operational knowledge concentrated in one person.
  • +Founder age: Director aged approximately 70 — succession pressure is live.

Succession & seller-readiness

100/100
Likely off-market candidate

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

SIGNALS
  • primaryFounder aged 70+: Senior director is approximately 70 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 23 years. Very long tenure is a classic succession signal.
  • secondaryStable-but-static management: Company is 23 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 John Brechin Fenton
Individual · British · DOB 07/1956 · age 70
75–100%
—75-100% shares14/08/2016

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

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AA MOTORS LIMITED→
SC249517 · est 2003
———40022y8363y
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SC039707 · est 1963
——£206.8k—62y8394y
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SC239846 · est 2002
———140023y8363y
BOWCOM EXPORTS LTD.→
SC329932 · est 2007
——£36.4k—18y8360y
A M K SELF DRIVE LIMITED→
SC144323 · est 1993
————32y8268y
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SC378869 · est 2010
——£1.01M—15y8264y
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SC237362 · est 2002
——£546.1k—23y8286y
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———40029y8259y
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SC265569 · est 2004
——£29.6k—22y8259y
BAILLIESTON MOTOR ENGINEERS LTD→
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——£367.5k—21y8263y
BURNS MOTOR ENGINEERING COMPANY LIMITED→
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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
Incorporated2003-08-28
Jurisdictionscotland
Primary SIC45200 — SIC 45200

Registered office

18 Fenwick Road
Giffnock
Glasgow
G46 6AN
Scotland

Filing status

Accounts
Next due: 2026-12-31
Last made up to: 2025-03-31
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2027-03-11
Last: 2026-02-25

Officers (2 active · 2 resigned)

FENTON, Alison Margaret→
secretary · appointed 2003-08-28
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
FENTON, John Brechin→
director · ~70y · appointed 2003-08-28
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
BRIAN REID LTD.→
corporate-nominee-secretary · appointed 2003-08-28 · resigned 2003-08-28
Resigned
STEPHEN MABBOTT LTD.→
corporate-nominee-director · appointed 2003-08-28 · resigned 2003-08-28
Resigned

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

Mortgages & charges

2
Total charges
2
Outstanding
1
Active lenders
Status:Lender:2 of 2 shown
TypeProperties
outstanding
Lloyds Banking Group
Bank of Scotland PLC
A registered charge1 property12/01/2021—
outstanding
Lloyds Banking Group
Bank of Scotland PLC
A registered charge—30/11/2020—
Click column headers to sort. Use filters above to narrow by status and lender.

Recent filings (62 total)

confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2026-04-08
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2025-12-16
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-04-27
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2024-12-02
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-04-26
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2023-11-27
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-02-25
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2022-12-26
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-01-17
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2021-12-23
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2021-11-23
mortgage-create-with-deed-with-charge-number-charge-creation-date
mortgage · MR01
2021-01-20
mortgage-alter-floating-charge-with-number
mortgage · 466(Scot)
2021-01-19
mortgage-create-with-deed-with-charge-number-charge-creation-date
mortgage · MR01
2020-12-10
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2020-12-09