Former England rugby captain Lawrence Dallaglio has had his bankruptcy extended by a further year, with accusations of excessive spending on a lavish lifestyle contributing to the decision. Dallaglio, a member of the 2003 World Cup-winning squad, was declared insolvent last year following his divorce from his wife of nearly 20 years.
His bankruptcy discharge, typically ending after 12 months in England and Wales, has now been suspended until August 31 of next year. This extension follows an initial three-month extension granted in May.
According to reports, a hearing regarding the bankruptcy was postponed and could occur next spring. Earlier this year, Dallaglio was accused of continuing to spend heavily, allegedly leaving insufficient funds to cover his debts. Reports indicated monthly expenditures included approximately £1,000 on clothing and footwear, the same amount on travel and transport, £800 on groceries, and £500 on alcohol.
Between August and January, Dallaglio reportedly earned around £200,000 through his work as a rugby pundit and a columnist, but these earnings were allegedly spent in full, with no funds set aside for taxes or his divorce settlement. His ex-wife Alice was central to the divorce proceedings that led to the sale of their family home for £2.4 million in May of last year, down from its initial listing of £3.3 million. The day after the sale, Dallaglio was declared bankrupt and ordered to transfer his share of the proceeds to address an overdrawn director's loan exceeding £366,500.
Trustees of Dallaglio's bankruptcy have also accused him of being largely uncooperative, with claims of an undisclosed bank account surfacing. These allegations emerged after a joint trustee sought an Income Payments Order (IPO), a court directive requiring bankrupt individuals to pay a portion of their surplus income towards their debts.
Dallaglio has contested these claims, asserting he has made significant efforts to cooperate and has not attempted to evade the bankruptcy proceedings. He stated that he did not conceal assets and that his engagement was impacted by his father's death, after which he reportedly transferred his entire inheritance to the bankruptcy estate. His legal representative has stated that many allegations are strongly disputed.
Further financial disclosures revealed in December showed Dallaglio owed an additional £423,570 in overdrawn director's loans for his defunct company, Lawrence Dallaglio Ltd. He also owed more than £60,000 to liquidators and faced claims totaling approximately £350,000 from HM Revenue & Customs and two other creditors.