Section A53: Meaning of "pre-moratorium debt" and "moratorium debt"

Insolvency Act 1986 · 1986 c. 45View on legislation.gov.uk

Part A1: Moratorium — Chapter 8: Miscellaneous and general

In this Part "pre-moratorium debt", in relation to a company for which a moratorium is or has been in force, means—

any debt or other liability to which the company becomes subject before the moratorium comes into force, or
any debt or other liability to which the company has become or may become subject during the moratorium by reason of any obligation incurred before the moratorium comes into force,

but this is subject to subsection (3).

In this Part "moratorium debt", in relation to a company for which a moratorium is or has been in force, means—

any debt or other liability to which the company becomes subject during the moratorium, other than by reason of an obligation incurred before the moratorium came into force, or
any debt or other liability to which the company has become or may become subject after the end of the moratorium by reason of an obligation incurred during the moratorium,

but this is subject to subsection (3).

For the purposes of this Part—

a liability in tort or delict is a "pre-moratorium debt" if either—
the cause of action has accrued before the moratorium comes into force, or
all the elements necessary to establish the cause of action exist before the moratorium comes into force except for actionable damage;
a liability in tort or delict is a "moratorium debt" if it does not fall within paragraph (a) and either—
the cause of action has accrued during the moratorium, or
all the elements necessary to establish the cause of action exist before the moratorium comes to an end except for actionable damage.

The Secretary of State may by regulations amend this section for the purposes of changing the definition of "pre-moratorium debt" or "moratorium debt" in this Part.

Regulations under subsection (4) are subject to the affirmative resolution procedure.

About this text

This legislation text comes from legislation.gov.uk. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. These source and reuse terms cover the legislation text, not Remedy's commentary.

Reuse reviewed 21 August 2026 under Open Government Licence v3.0.