The Inverness Sherriff Court handed an eight year disqualification to Donald Cameron, 37, while his fellow director Steven Cameron, 36, signed an undertaking agreeing not to run or control a company for seven years.

Both were directors of Highland Groundworks Limited.

In April 2015 Highland Groundworks went into liquidation with liabilities of £41,786. Steven Cameron and Donald Cameron were joint directors at that time.

Following the Liquidator’s appointment the investigation found that from 1 September 2012 to 29 December 2014 the company books and records were inadequate to:

• verify the position with regards to assets owned by the company at the date of liquidation, especially with regards to fixed assets held at 31 August 2012 compromising plant, machinery and vehicles with a net book value of £102,194 and debtors in the sum of £64,098
• verify expenditure from the company bank account totalling £493,351
• verify whether receipts into the company bank account between 01 September 2012 and 29 December 2014 totalling £404,639 are a true representation of the total of the total sales achieved by the company.

The investigation found that from at least 7 August 2013 the company traded to the detriment of HM Revenue and Customs, in that VAT returns were submitted up to the quarter ended 30 June 2013 disclosing an outstanding liability, including surcharges, of £9,955 which remained outstanding at liquidation.

The Company failed to submit VAT returns for the quarters 30 September 2013 to 31 December 2014 resulting in an estimated liability, including surcharges, totalling £28,844 which remained outstanding at liquidation.

Robert Clarke, Head of Company Investigation at the Insolvency Service said: “Directors have a duty to ensure that their companies maintain proper accounting records, and, following insolvency, deliver them to the office-holder in the interests of fairness and transparency.

“Without a full account of transactions it is impossible to determine whether a director has discharged his duties properly, or is using a lack of documentation as a cloak for impropriety.

“Both Steven and Donald Cameron have paid the price for failing to do that, as they cannot now carry on in business other than at their own risk.

“The public can be assured that where there have been abuses of public finance provisions which result in losses of this type, the Insolvency Service will investigate the conduct of the parties involved and take action to remove the privilege of limited liability trading for a lengthy period.”