What are the consequences of failure to register a charge?

Failure to register a charge presents a significant risk, as the Companies Act states that the charge will then be ‘void (so far as any security on the company’s property or undertaking is conferred by it) against’:

• a liquidator of the company;
• an administrator of the company; or
• a creditor of the company.

In short, whilst not removing the company’s liability for the repayment of the debt, the debt has effectively become unsecured.

It is no longer an offence, not to register the mortgage.