THE consumer motoring website Honest John has gone into administration after suffering ‘significant cash flow difficulties’.

Documents lodged with Companies House show that the automotive support service HonestJohn.co.uk, co-owned by Peter Lorimer, 71, pictured in the website’s banner, appointed St Albans-based specialist business advisory firm FRP Advisory as its administrator on January 7.

It is, however, up for sale as a going concern and no jobs have been lost.

Peterborough-based HonestJohn.co.uk gives motoring advice and posts reviews of cars and vans on its website, which has a Cars for Sale section as well. Honest John also has a column published weekly on the Daily Telegraph’s website.

A brief statement on HonestJohn.co.uk says the company’s affairs, assets and business are being managed by joint administrators Miles Needham and Simon Carvill-Biggs, adding that they ‘act as agents of the company and without personal liability’. Its Twitter account also points people in the direction of the statement, while its Facebook page carries the announcement too. The website, Twitter account and Facebook pages are all still in operation.

A company that is in administration is protected from legal action by creditors as well as applications to have it wound up.

In a statement to Car Dealer Magazine today, FRP Advisory said HonestJohn.co.uk attracted more than 20 million users a year, had over 400,000 registered readers and more than 70,000 newsletter subscribers.

‘The company has faced significant cash flow difficulties in recent months, which led it to enter administration, and the joint administrators are now marketing the business for sale as a going concern,’ it said.

‘All 18 employees have been retained to maintain business as usual while a buyer is sought.’

Joint administrator Miles Needham said: ‘Honest John is a trusted source of information for consumers wishing to purchase a new car, and its loyal customer base makes it an attractive investment opportunity.

‘We would encourage anyone interested in this opportunity to get in touch with us as soon as possible, and I’d like to thank the firm’s employees for their continued support throughout this sale process.’

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