New Claire Wine Limited enters CVL after £427,000 HMRC court battle over understated sales
New Claire Wine Limited, a Woolwich wine merchant, entered creditors' voluntary liquidation on 19 May 2026, with Giles McCarthy of Netchwood Finance Ltd appointed liquidator. Full notice and Companies House record.
Information for general guidance, drawn from the public record. Not legal, financial, or insolvency advice. If you are affected by an insolvency, consult a licensed practitioner or qualified solicitor.
A Woolwich wine merchant that had traded since 2012 entered creditors' voluntary liquidation on 19 May 2026. The winding-up followed a court battle in which HMRC pursued the business over understated sales in its tax returns.
New Claire Wine Limited, registered at Unit 7 Westfield Street, SE18 5PH, operated as a wine wholesale business under SIC code 46342. A creditors' voluntary liquidation (CVL) is an insolvent winding-up resolved by the company's members at the directors' request, without a court order. It is the single largest stream of UK corporate insolvency by volume.
The directors passed a special resolution to wind the company up voluntarily, with an ordinary resolution appointing the liquidator on the same occasion. The authorisation was signed on 21 May 2026, and a notice appeared in the London Gazette on 26 May 2026.
The liquidator
Giles McCarthy of Netchwood Finance Limited has been appointed liquidator for the purposes of the winding-up. McCarthy holds IP number 9452, the licence number issued by his recognised professional body, and his appointment has been verified as current.
The HMRC dispute
The CVL follows a court battle with HMRC over the company's tax returns. The Mirror reported that a UK court upheld a higher penalty imposed by HMRC on New Claire Wine, which the publication put at £427,000, and that the court found the suppression of sales to have been deliberate. Those findings were reported by The Mirror and have not been independently verified from the official Gazette notice.
A winding-up petition, case reference CR-2026-002765, had been filed in the Companies Court list and was recorded as active as recently as 22 May 2026, running alongside the voluntary process. A winding-up petition is a court filing by a creditor asking the court to make a winding-up order; it does not itself place a company into liquidation.
The directors
New Claire Wine Limited was incorporated on 10 April 2012. Two directors have held office since that date and remain current: Bhim Bhattachan and Kul Bahadur Paudel, both resident in England. Neither has a resigned-on date recorded at Companies House.
No secured charges are registered against the company.
Background
New Claire Wine had traded for 14 years before the CVL. Its most recent accounts were made up to 31 March 2025 and filed on a total-exemption-full basis, the route available to small companies that meet the relevant size thresholds. The next accounts were not due until 31 December 2026.
The Express reported that the company passed a special resolution to wind up voluntarily at a virtual meeting, consistent with the Gazette notice. The Caseboard record shows the winding-up petition was filed on 8 April 2026, with the last recorded activity on 22 May 2026, three days after the CVL appointment date.
Creditors wishing to register a claim in the liquidation may do so through the formal proof of debt process, by which creditors submit claims evidencing the amounts owed to the liquidator. McCarthy, as liquidator, is the office-holder responsible for administering that process.
Common questions
Are you owed money by New Claire Wine Limited?
In a creditors' voluntary liquidation you are an unsecured creditor unless you hold a registered charge or retention of title. The liquidators will write to known creditors with a proof-of-debt form. A statement of affairs prepared by the directors and the chair of the creditors' decision procedure should be available on request. Read more about proof of debt and where you sit in the creditor hierarchy.
Did you work at New Claire Wine Limited?
In a CVL, employees are typically dismissed at or shortly after the liquidator's appointment. Wages owed up to a statutory cap, holiday pay, notice pay and redundancy may be claimable from the Redundancy Payments Service. The liquidators will normally provide RP1 case-reference numbers to the affected staff. See gov.uk: your rights if your employer is insolvent.
Do you hold a deposit, gift card or undelivered order from New Claire Wine Limited?
Customers with paid-but-undelivered orders, gift cards or deposits rank as unsecured creditors in the liquidation. Where you paid by credit card and the amount was over £100, Section 75 of the Consumer Credit Act 1974 may let you claim from the card issuer for breach of contract or misrepresentation by the supplier; the rules apply per item, not per transaction, and the card must be a regulated credit card. Debit-card payments may be recoverable via chargeback.
Are you a director of a company connected to New Claire Wine Limited?
Section 216 of the Insolvency Act 1986 applies the moment the company enters liquidation. If you intend to be involved in another company using the same or a similar name within five years, you must rely on one of the three statutory exceptions and file the relevant notice. Acting in breach is a criminal offence and exposes you to personal liability for the successor's debts.
Sources
- The London Gazette notice (code Appointment of Liquidators)
- Companies House record 08024310
- Editorial standards: how we source and review; five-pass pipeline.
