A woman who applied for two Government Covid-19 loans for her worth £100,000 before transferring them into her own account to has been banned from running a business for 10 years.

Lynne Kenyon, 50, also known as Lynne Janeczko, of Dale View, Billington, caused Kenyons Pallets Ltd, based in Sycamore Walk, Rishton, to apply for the two Bounce Back Loans in May 2020, which were designed to help companies to recover from the disruption caused by the first Covid-19 pandemic lockdown.

However, businesses were only entitled to apply for one loan.

Documents from the Insolvency Service state on May 4, 2020, Kenyon, on behalf of the firm, applied for the first loan of £50,000 from Lloyds Bank.

This loan was paid into Kenyons Pallets’ bank account with that bank on May 5.

Then, on May 8, she applied for a second loan from Barclays, also of £50,000, which was then paid into the company’s account with this bank on May 11.

The Insolvency Service said: “The Bounce Back Loan scheme provided that only one Bounce Back Loan could be obtained per business, and required the applicant to declare that no other Bounce Back Loans had been applied for or received.

“The application form for the second Bounce Back Loan requires the applicant to declare ‘I/We confirm that this is my/our only application for a Bounce Back Loan for this business, and I am/we are not part of a wider group which is in the process of applying for or has already received a Bounce Back Loan’.

“Mrs Kenyon was appointed as a director of Kenyons Pallets Ltd at the time both applications for Bounce Back Loans were made.

“The application for the second Bounce Back Loan confirms that, whilst the application was made in the name of her co-director, it included Mrs Kenyon’s address and contact details, rather than those of her co-director.

“The proceeds of both the first and second Bounce Back Loans were transferred to a personal account in Mrs Kenyon’s name within three weeks of receipt.

“The completed application form for the second Bounce Back Loan failed to declare that Kenyons Pallets Ltd had previously applied for (and received) a Bounce Back Loan.”

The company still owes £46,410 in respect of the first loan, and £40,830 in respect of the second. Kenyons Pallets entered liquidation on April 28, 2022.

As a result of her conduct, Lynne Kenyon (or Janeczko) has been disqualified from being the director of a company for 10 years, with her ban starting on August 10, 2023.