Company Administration Redundancy Legal Advice

At Irwin Mitchell, we can discuss the funding options available and explain any costs clearly at the outset.

Many employees affected by insolvency-related redundancies are concerned about legal costs, and we will help you understand your options before deciding whether to proceed.

Our employment solicitors can offer a no win no fee payment agreement.

If your Protective Award claim is unsuccessful, you have nothing to pay.

If your claim is successful, our legal fees will be capped at a percentage that is determined before we start working on your claim.

Not usually, Protective Award claims are often brought as group claims involving many employees who were affected by the same redundancy exercise. This can make the process simpler and more cost-effective for employees.

We have experience in dealing with these claims and we can support you and your colleagues if you have been dismissed in this way.

No, you don’t need to have worked for your employer for a certain amount of time to claim a Protective Award.

To make a Protective Award claim, you must do so within three months of the date you were dismissed.

Employment Tribunals typically take six to 12 months to settle.

Once a judgment is passed, you should receive payment within six weeks.

A Tribunal can order your employer to pay you up to 180 days’ pay. If you were made redundant before the 6th April 2026, the number of days is 90 days.

If your employer can’t pay, the Redundancy Payment Office will pay you up to eight weeks’ pay. This is often the case when a company is in administration.

No, a Protective Award is separate from:

• Statutory redundancy pay
• Notice pay
• Accrued but untaken holiday pay
• Arrears of wages

You may be entitled to claim these payments in addition to any Protective Award compensation.

Yes. If a successful Protective Award is obtained against an insolvent employer, the Insolvency Service may make payments from the National Insurance Fund, subject to statutory limits.

If you’re facing collective redundancy, you have some key rights:

• Right to consultation: Employers are legally required to carry out a collective consultation if they propose making 20 or more employees redundant within 90 days. They should discuss ways to avoid redundancies, reduce redundancies, and mitigate the impact on employees
• Right to representation: During collective consultation, you have the right to representation. This can be a trade union or an elected employee representative
• Right to compensation: If your employer fails to comply with the consultation requirements, you have the right to make a claim for a Protective Award.

We can usually assess an initial claim using information such as:

• Your employer's name
• The date your employment ended
• Details of any redundancy announcement
• Information about the number of employees affected
• Any communications received from administrators or liquidators.

If you don't have all this information, we may still be able to help.

There are several situations where an employee can claim a Protective Award from an employer:

• Failure to consult: Your employer didn’t follow their legal obligation to engage in collective consultation when proposing to make 20 or more employees redundant within 90 days
• Inadequate consultation: Your employer didn’t provide an adequate consultation, including failing to allow enough time, not providing necessary information, or not involving appropriate representatives
• Failure to comply with Collective Redundancy Procedures: Your employer didn’t comply with their statutory obligations under UK Employment Law regarding collective redundancies.