Failed life insurance company Dead Happy has released its statement of financial affairs, with debts to creditors totalling hundreds of thousands of pounds.
According to the administrator's statement, which was filed to Companies House Tuesday (July 30), the life insurance business owes several thousand pounds to various creditors, including a £750 charge to the Financial Conduct Authority.
Among its creditors, the company, which went into administration in June this year, owes £81,000 to TV advertising agency All Response Media, £14,388 to marketing platform Awin LTD and £35,173 to Channel 4 Television Corporation.
Dead Happy also owes £4,168 to those who were employees at the point of insolvency; and £199,773.45 to HM Revenue & Customs.
According to the statement, the book value of total assets available for preferential creditors is £1.5mn. The realisable value of total assets available for preferential creditors is much lower, estimated at £441,922.
Preferential creditors are those who must be paid first, such as employee salaries and HMRC.
The statement also highlights the list of shareholders as at the point of administration.
The document showed that Octopus Group - which as FT Adviser previously reported once had approximately £6mn in Dead Happy in venture capital trusts such as the Titan VCT - still has over 1mn shares in the company. These are effectively valueless.
For a summary of what an administrator's financial affairs statement means, see the info box, below.
Background
Problems with the life insurance company, which was known for its eye-catching and controversial adverts, began in January 2023 when Dead Happy used an image of serial killer Harold Shipman to advertise life insurance.
After receiving a communication over social media from a relative of one of 'Dr Death's' victims, FT Adviser investigated the company, speaking to its former insurance carrier Shepherds Friendly, and its investors, including Octopus Group.
The subsequent furore post-publication of the FT Adviser story saw the FCA and the Advertising Standards Authority censure the insurance company.
The cost-of-living crisis during 2023 also saw many Britons prioritise other expenses over taking out life insurance.
Deloitte surveyed 2,500 consumers earlier this year. According to the responses, 31 per cent of customers had cancelled or paused insurance products between 2022 and 2023.
