TILDEN GIVEN BANKRUPTCY PROTECTION
By Adnews Staff
Tilden Corp. was granted protection from its creditors this week after a deal to sell the 70-year-old company was stalled by U.S. lawsuits. Tilden's owners were negotiating the sale of the company to National Car Rental System of Minneapolis. However, National balked after 17 suits were filed over an incident in which a Tilden rental car was hit by a gasoline tanker in New York City in 1991. With the sale being delayed and creditors pressing because the car rental firm was behind in some payments, Tilden went to court to have some of the pressure lifted. The court's protection, granted under the federal Companies' Creditors Arrangement Act, gives Tilden breathing space for a restructuring. It lets Tilden limit the liability from the New York lawsuit and give it time to find financing. Advertising for Tilden is done by Bensimon*Byrne of Toronto. The company has 99 corporate and 275 franchised locations in Canada.