Strathmore Hotels Administration 2026: Tax Dispute Explained

The owners of the Ben Wyvis and Nethybridge hotels have been placed into administration after HMRC claimed the company owed £2.8 million in unpaid taxes, marking a significant disruption for one of Scotland's larger independent hotel groups. Strathmore Hotels Administration 2026 proceedings began in August, when Strathmore Hotels Limited, which owns the Strathpeffer and Strathspey hotels among several others across Scotland, entered administration following a dispute with HMRC over unpaid VAT.

After a winding-up petition was published, Strathmore Hotels' bank, Handelsbanken, appointed administrators Interpath, motivated, the bank said, "by a desire to have a controlled insolvency process." Further information on the company's properties is available through Strathmore Hotels' official website.

A Profitable Company Facing a Tax Dispute

Notably, Strathmore Hotels had been profitable ahead of the administration, with accounts for 2025 indicating a profit of £5.6 million on a turnover of £22 million. In the six months before administrators were called in, the company generated revenues of around £9.3 million, underscoring that the administration stemmed specifically from the HMRC dispute rather than broader operational or trading difficulties.

Business as Usual for Staff and Guests

Despite the administration, the company has described it as "business as normal" for the hotels themselves, with 390 staff still employed and all locations continuing to take bookings. Strathmore owned eight hotels across Scotland and England, including the Salutation in Perth, The Royal in Oban, and the Alexandra and Ben Nevis hotels in Fort William.

Staff were treated as preferential creditors throughout the process, with all outstanding wages through August 2026 paid in full, and all retained employees continuing to be paid in full as administration proceeds. However, three of the seven staff employed at the company's East Kilbride head office were made redundant as part of the process.

What Happens to the Hotels Now

Interpath has appointed Christie & Co as specialist estate agents to market each hotel for sale. According to the administrators, whether the properties are sold individually or as a full portfolio will depend on the offers received. Interpath has also appointed Legacy as a specialist management agent to run the hotels during the administration process, ensuring continuity of operations while a sale is arranged.

The Financial Details Behind the Administration

Handelsbanken was Strathmore Hotels' sole lender, holding standard securities and fixed charges on all eight hotels, along with a floating charge over the company's wider assets and business. The bank petitioned the Court of Session, where it was granted the ability to appoint administrators to recover the funds owed to it as holder of a qualifying floating charge. At the time administration began, the company's debt to Handelsbanken totalled £11.1 million, and administrators expect the eventual sale of the hotels to generate sufficient funds to repay the bank in full.

HMRC is considered a secondary preferential creditor in the process, with its claim standing at £2.8 million. The dispute between Strathmore Hotels and HMRC over that VAT liability was the direct catalyst for the administration, despite the underlying business remaining financially sound by its own trading figures.