History. No count from the five: Typhoo and Claire's also went this long without administrators. Typhoo got them before the protection ended, and Claire's after it.
Hunch. On 3 November the prime minister's spokesperson said the owner needs to explain why it has taken no offer, and on 6 November Andy Burnham said it's not done yet.
The administrators market resolves on Poundland Limited's insolvency page in the UK company register and in The Gazette: YES if by the end of 12 November 2026, London time, administrators of Poundland Limited have been appointed in any way, including a sale on the day, and NO if there is a sale or deal without administrators, a new notice with no appointment, or nothing. The date of appointment counts, not the date of the notice in The Gazette, and BBC News confirms the result, with The Guardian and then Reuters as backup.
We looked for cases where a UK company filed a notice to appoint administrators while its owner was also one of its main lenders. We found five since 2020. In two, administrators came within three days. Carpetright got them on the sixth working day after filing and Typhoo on the eighth, both before the protection ended. Claire's got them on the fifteenth, after it ended.