THE parent company of London to Scotland rail firm GNER yesterday filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in the United States.
Sea Containers, the passenger and freight transport business, said it was unable to pay a $115m (£62m) bond which had been due yesterday.
The company, which has outstanding debts of $650m (£350m), is in the midst of a restructuring programme after being suspended from the New York Stock Exchange earlier this month.
The move will give it protection from legal action by creditors and space to restructure.
Sea Containers said the control and operations of GNER, the rail franchise which runs the East Coast Main Line, were not affected.
The group and two subsidiaries, Sea Containers Services and Sea Containers Caribbean, filed for protection in the US Bankruptcy Court in the district of Delaware.
Bob Mackenzie, president and chief executive of the group, said: "The prime reason for seeking protection is to prevent any individual creditor from taking action on its own, which would be against the interests of the majority of creditors.
"The Chapter 11 process is very different from administration in the UK because we remain in charge."
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