Richard Wells, aged 39, residing in Spain and Neil Debenham , aged 43, of Norwich, have each been charged with conspiracy to defraud.
Wells is the former director of SHP Capital, the holding company that owned Safe Hands Plans Limited, Debenham – a fellow senior executive.
The two companies, now in administration, shared the same registered address in East London.
The charges relate to the collapse of Safe Hands Plans Limited, a prepaid funeral plan provider that ceased trading in 2022 having failed to obtain necessary regulatory approval for its ongoing sale of plans.
Approximately 46,000 people had bought plans before the company collapsed.
Emma Luxton, Director of Operations at the Serious Fraud Office, said
This scheme marketed peace of mind to tens of thousands of people, many of them vulnerable, – that promise dissolved when it collapsed, leaving plan holders exposed, out of pocket and uncertain about their funeral arrangements.
Today’s charges mark a critical step in our investigation.
The SFO announced its investigation in October 2023.
Wells and Debenham are due to appear at Westminster Magistrates’ Court on 5 February 2026.
