A court claim against controversial Welsh businessman Richard Hayward accuses him of cheating the taxman and other creditors to enrich himself. Compensation of around £550,000 is demanded from Hayward and his wife Karen Athay in legal papers filed on behalf of a liquidator.
Background of the businessman
Hayward, 75, was a prominent figure in Welsh corporate life in the 2000s. The Penarth-based entrepreneur was involved in major developments including two leisure complexes – Cardiff's Millennium Plaza and Swansea's Salubrious Place. He has also been at the centre of several scandals. In the 1990s he was banned from directing companies for three and a half years for wrongful trading, in 2012 he was convicted of putting tenants at risk of asbestos exposure, and in 2014 one of his companies was convicted of health and safety crimes over a labourer's fall while working on luxury flats.
Details of the liquidator's claim
WalesOnline has obtained court papers filed on behalf of Mark Hopkins, who is liquidating one of the married couple's companies, Mintblue Properties, which traded in real estate before collapsing in 2024. According to the liquidator's claim, Mintblue had net assets of £2.49m in 2021 but the following year that figure dropped to just £15,537. It is alleged Hayward and Athay were behind the company making several improper loans which did not get paid back. Hayward had a director's loan account of £85,240 and there were also £199,777 worth of loans to seven businesses connected to him.
Allegations of improper enrichment
According to the claim, the substantial purpose of these loans was the enrichment of the married couple. The liquidator accuses them of giving credit at a time when Mintblue was in a financially precarious state. They did so on preferential terms without commercial interest or any adequate security on the debt, it is alleged. "Such lending was of a scale that imperilled the finances of the company," the papers allege. "There was no basis for belief that the borrower could repay the monies owed within a reasonable period or at all."
Financial details and HMRC involvement
The papers also allege that in the 12 months up to September 2024, the company paid £324,087 to Hayward for no consideration. In July 2024, when the company entered liquidation, it was around £387,443 short of being able to repay its creditors, with some £258,798 owed to HMRC alone. The sole asset of Mintblue was £121,290 in book debts which Hayward considered to be irrecoverable. The claim accuses the couple of failing to act in the best interests of the company and its creditors. They did not act with the reasonable care, skill and diligence expected of a director, it is alleged.
Hayward's response and other cases
Hayward denies he and his wife are insolvent and has vowed they will robustly defend themselves in both cases. He told WalesOnline: "Your report is of no consequence to us and if you report any facts that are misleading then you will face the consequences." The Mintblue case is one of two against Hayward and Athay progressing in the courts. The other is a legal bid by HMRC to wind up the couple's partnership because they allegedly cannot pay their debts. Responding to HMRC's accusations, Hayward said: "The partnership is not insolvent and is defending the proceedings. It appears that a process server may have lied on oath."
Hayward's corporate history
Hayward has been a prolific company director since 2001 when his disqualification from running businesses ended. He has been involved in 49 companies and 36 of those have been dissolved. The firms behind his Salubrious Place scheme went into administration owing a combined £32.2m. Last year, a case at Cardiff's civil court heard accusations over his tax affairs and use of government funding. One of his former accountants alleged Hayward took VAT money for personal use, including long-haul holidays, skiing holidays, funding his Coutts account, and purchasing a property in Chelsea, London. Hayward denied misleading funders and told WalesOnline he had always been careful to ensure his tax affairs were in good order.
