Kettering haulage company Knights of Old group goes into administration with 730 redundancies

Hundreds of employees have been made redundant after Kettering-based haulage company Knights of Old’s parent company KNP Logistics Group entered administration.

A source says trucks were turned around and ordered back to base as the financial difficulties emerged within KNP Logistics Group on Friday.

KNP Logistics Group was formed in 2016 when Knights of Old was merged with Nelson Distribution Limited including Steve Porter Transport Limited and Merlin Supply Chain Solutions Limited.

Rajnesh Mittal and Philip Armstrong of FRP Advisory Trading Limited were appointed as joint administrators of the main trading entities in the group on Monday (September 25), blaming a cyber attack in June this year for the financial woes.

Mr Mittal said: “Despite being one of the UK’s largest privately owned logistics group, KNP fell victim of a ransomware attack earlier this year that caused significant disruption.

“Against a backdrop of challenging market conditions and without being able to secure urgent investment due to the attack, the business was unable to continue.

"We will support all affected staff through this difficult time.”

Ransomware is a type of malware – malicious software – that prevents computers being accessed by encrypting files. A criminal group will then demand a ransom in exchange for decryption. The computer itself may become locked, or the data on it might be encrypted, stolen or deleted. The attackers may also threaten to leak the data they steal.

In June 2023, KNP Logistics Group suffered a major ransomware attack that ‘adversely impacted on the financial position’ of the group and ultimately, ‘its ability to secure additional investment and funding’.

A spokesman for FRP Advisory said: “With the exception of Nelson Distribution Limited, unfortunately the majority of the group’s employees have been made redundant with a small group being temporarily retained to assist in the winding-down of operations.

“Regrettably, approximately 730 employees will be made redundant.

“A sale of the Nelson Distribution business and its assets was completed by the directors prior to the Company entering administration with about 170 employees transferring to the purchaser.”

Administrators will be contacting creditors in ‘due course’. Email enquiries to [email protected].

Accounts published for KNP Logistics Group on Companies House reveal annual revenues of around £100m in 2022. The group had loans of £11,581,137 with a wage, pension and social security bill of £32,738,384. The most recently-published valuation of freehold land and buildings estimate a worth of £2m.