Notice

Cask Whisky Ltd - an update for customers

An update from the Official Receiver on the liquidation of Cask Whisky Ltd

From:
The Insolvency Service
Published
3 March 2025

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Cask Whisky Ltd - an update for customers

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Details

On 8 October 2024 the High Court made an order to wind-up Cask Whisky Ltd (company registered number 13238108). The Court appointed the Official Receiver as liquidator. 

Liquidation 

The Official Receiver as liquidator has identified Cask Whisky Ltd held contracts with bonded warehouses for the storage of cask whisky. From the information available to the Liquidator, Cask Whisky Ltd is not the proprietor of the whisky held in the warehouses and does not hold any interest in it.  

It is therefore the Official Receiver’s intention to disclaim the contracts Cask Whisky Ltd holds with the various bonded warehouses for storage of the cask whisky owned by customers of the company. 

What is a disclaimer? 

In the general legal sense, a disclaimer is an act of renouncing a claim over property. In the more specific sense of insolvency legislation, a disclaimer is an act provided for in the legislation allowing a liquidator to renounce their claim over property vested in the insolvent’s estate, but only where the property brings with it some onerous obligation. 

Why is the OR issuing a disclaimer? 

A disclaimer should be considered where the official receiver, as liquidator becomes aware of property in the estate that has no value, and to which there is an obligation to perform some onerous task. This is described in the legislation as “onerous property”; being an unprofitable contract, or any other property comprised in the insolvency estate which is unsaleable or not readily saleable, or is such that it may give rise to a liability to pay money or perform any other onerous act. 

What is the OR disclaiming? 

The OR is disclaiming the contracts between the company and the bonded warehouses which house the casks. The contracts are deemed to be “onerous property” because they attract a monetary liability which the OR is unable to maintain. This will have the effect of bringing the contracts between the company and the bonded warehouses to an end. This will also notify the bonded warehouses that the liquidator has no interest in the casks. 

What does this mean for Cask Holders? 

Customers of the company who purchased casks are the owners of the goods in the bonded warehouses – they are not company property, so the liquidation estate holds no interest over them. Please contact the bonded warehouse(s) where your whisky is held to discuss with them the next steps forward 

Their contact details are :

Some casks are held under third party company accounts. The details of these are: 

Updates to this page

Published 3 March 2025

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