Monthly insolvency statistics – November 2024

Corporate Insolvencies

England and Wales

Corporate insolvencies in November 2024 totalled 1,966 and were 12% lower than in November 2023, continuing a trend of slightly lower monthly insolvency procedures when compared to the prior year.

When viewing the figures on a statistical basis it indicates a lower number of insolvency procedures when compared to November 2023, however, whether the trend continues will be closely monitored due to the current macro-economic conditions and comments from various industry sectors around the impact of national insurance and wage pressure.

Creditors Voluntary Liquidations (“CVLs”) totalled 1,565, 15% lower than November 2023.

Compulsory Liquidations (“WUCs”) totalled 254 but were still 6% lower than November 2023.

There were 132 Administration appointments which is 12% higher than November 2023 and 36% higher than the October 2024.  This could be an indicator of more transactions to rescue insolvent businesses. 

There were 14 CVAs in November 2024, 17% higher than November 2023. 

Scotland

In November 2024, there were 114 company insolvencies registered in Scotland, 5% higher than November 2023. There were 54 compulsory liquidations, 55 CVLs and 5 Administrations. There were no CVAs or Receivership appointments.

Northern Ireland

In November 2024, there were 16 company insolvencies registered in Northern Ireland, 47% lower than November 2023. This is comprised of 10 CVLs, 3 compulsory liquidations, one Administration and two CVAs.  There were no receiverships appointments.

Personal Insolvencies

England and Wales

There were 10,012 individual insolvencies in November 2024, which was 25% higher than November 2023 (7,978) and a 12% increase from the numbers seen last month (8,924).

The number of Debt Relief Orders (DRO’s) was similar to the number seen last month (3,734), although 15% lower than the record high seen in June 2024 (4,353) with 3,693 applications in November. However, monthly numbers between April and November 2024 were higher than at any other point since their introduction in 2009.

With DRO’s now increasingly being the debt solution of choice for many, bankruptcy numbers have decreased, with the total number of bankruptcies in November (589), being notably lower than the last 12-month average (652), and still significantly lower than pre-covid levels.

In November, there were 145 creditor petitions, with HMRC leading the push on filing petitions, showing a slight decrease on the previous 12-month average of 154.

Debtor’s applications are being replaced by DRO applications by many of those with liabilities between £30,000 and £50,000. The numbers are beginning to reflect this, with debtor’s bankruptcy applications dropping to 444 in November, compared to 525 in the same month last year.

Individual Voluntary Arrangements (IVA) numbers over the past year have been significantly lower than during 2022. The number of IVA’s registered in November (5,730) was slightly higher than the average monthly number seen over the last 12 months (5,341). This month’s figure was 34% higher than November 2023 (4,288) and 25% higher than the previous month (4,585).

There were 7,626 Breathing Space (BS) registrations in November, which was roughly the same as this month last year (7,351). Standard BS registrations stood at 7,506 and there were 120 mental health BS registrations.

The numbers continue to indicate that BS applications have levelled out, although, this procedure is merely a pause in the process and the individuals concerned will still have to deal with their indebtedness.

The numbers suggest that those exiting a BS application are being sign-posted to a DRO as their chosen exit route once the BS period has expired.

Plans to modernise the current Personal Insolvency framework could result in a single gateway to enable people to access independent, regulated debt advice, via a digital platform, or dovetailed with the current BS scheme, which may see the removal of previous barriers into appropriate and regulated insolvency procedures.

Scotland

The Accountant in Bankruptcy produces individual insolvency statistics on a quarterly basis. Therefore, the numbers in this section are only updated once every 3 months.

In Q3 2024, the individual insolvencies were comprised of 1,327 protected trust deeds and 564 bankruptcies (also known as sequestration), of which 299 went into bankruptcy via the minimal asset process route. The rules regarding bankruptcy differ to those in England and Wales, so numbers of bankruptcies are not directly comparable.

Northern Ireland

In November 2024, there were 144 individual insolvencies in Northern Ireland. This was 30% higher than in November 2023. There were 78 IVAs, 41 bankruptcies and 25 DROs.