Your Guide to Claiming Redundancy Pay When Your Employer Is Insolvent

Please read this carefully before starting your claim.

We understand that being made redundant is stressful and upsetting, especially if your employer has gone into liquidation.

One of the most common frustrations we hear from employees is that the process feels slow or unclear. We want to reassure you that there is a set process we must follow, and while there are some unavoidable delays, we will do everything we can to make sure you receive the money you’re entitled to as quickly as possible.

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Who Pays My Redundancy and Unpaid Wages?

When a company is insolvent and can’t pay its employees, the Government’s Redundancy Payments Service (“RPS”) steps in to pay certain amounts you are owed.

Through the RPS, you may be able to claim:

• Unpaid wages (up to 8 weeks)
• Holiday pay (up to 6 weeks)
• Redundancy pay
• Statutory notice pay (sometimes called “pay in lieu of notice”)

All these payments are capped at £719 per week and may be subject to tax and National Insurance.

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Why Can’t I Claim Straight Away?

We cannot request your RPS case reference number (called a “CN number”) until the company is formally placed into liquidation.

Before that happens, the law requires us to give statutory notice to various parties. This process can take a week or two and we cannot shorten this period, but we will request your CN number as soon as we are legally allowed to.

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What Is the CN Number and Why Do I Need It?

The CN number is unique to your claim, and you cannot start your claim without it.

Once the company is formally in liquidation, we request the CN numbers from the RPS, and as soon as we receive them, we send them to all employees along with a factsheet explaining how to make your claim online.

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How to Make Your Claim

Once you have your CN number:

1. Go to www.gov.uk/claim-redundancy.
2. The online form takes around 30 minutes.
3. Have these details ready:

• Bank account information
• National Insurance number
• Start date and end date of employment
• Date of your last working day
• Your gross weekly pay
• Holiday entitlement (taken and remaining)
• Any unpaid wages, bonuses, commission, or expenses
• Date and amount of your last payment

You will also be asked about claiming statutory notice pay. The RPS will send you a separate email for this.

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How Will My Payments Be Calculated?

Redundancy pay is based on your age, length of service, and capped weekly pay (£719):

• Half a week’s pay for each full year you were under 22.
• One week’s pay for each full year aged 22–40.
• One and a half weeks’ pay for each full year aged 41 or older.

You can claim for up to 20 years of service.

Statutory notice pay is calculated as one week’s notice for every full year worked, up to a maximum of 12 weeks (again capped at £719 per week).

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How Long Will It Take to Get Paid?

The RPS aims to process claims within 6 weeks from when you submit your application, but this depends on:

• How quickly we verify your claim.
• The number of claims the RPS is processing at the time.

We treat this as a priority task and verify claims promptly so you can be paid as soon as possible.

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What About My Pension?

• Any contributions already sent to your pension provider are safe.
• If money was deducted from your wages but not yet paid into your pension, we will claim it from the RPS.
• If your employer’s pension scheme cannot meet its obligations, the Pension Protection Fund (PPF) may step in to protect members.

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Your P45

It is the company’s responsibility to request and issue your P45.

As liquidators, we will do everything we can to ensure this is done promptly, but we cannot guarantee the company completes this process. If you have not received your P45 after a reasonable time, you can contact HMRC directly for further guidance.

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Final Reassurance

We know this is a difficult time. The process may feel slow at points, but please remember:

• We are following the legal steps required.
• Certain timings are outside our control, but we will keep you informed.
• Our goal is to help you receive everything you’re entitled to as quickly as possible.

If you have questions after reading this guide, please check the factsheet we send with your CN number. If you still need help, our team will be happy to explain the next steps.