“The increase in both corporate and personal insolvencies in Scotland is not surprising given the current political uncertainties – the overall upward trend may well continue. The year ahead could prove more difficult for struggling businesses and those in a precarious financial position.” said Rachel Grant, Head of Scotland for Manolete Partners Plc.
According to a report on Insider news the annual number of company and personal insolvency cases has risen 4%.
Analysis by insolvency professionals organisation R3 found there were 980 corporate insolvencies in 2019, 4% higher than in 2018. There were 13,589 personal insolvencies, 13% higher than the previous year and at their highest level since 2013.
The report points out that the number of corporate insolvencies in Scotland fell by 4% in October to December last year compared with July to September but rose by 8% compared with October to December in 2018.
There were 3,312 personal insolvencies (bankruptcies and protected trust deeds (PTDs)) in Scotland in 2019-20 Q3, more than the 3,213 personal insolvencies in the same quarter in the previous financial year (2018-19 Q3).
A total of 1,214 bankruptcies were awarded during this quarter – a 1.5% decrease on the same quarter in 2018-19. PTDs increased by 5.9% to 2,098 over the same period.
There were 822 debt payment programmes (DPPs) approved under the Debt Arrangement Scheme (DAS) compared with 665 in the same quarter of 2018-19.
A total of 457 DPPs approved under the DAS were completed in 2019-20 Q3 – a 9.6% increase on the same quarter in 2018-19. There were 166 DPPs revoked in 2019-20 Q3 – a 39.9% decrease on the same quarter in 2018-19.
The number of Scottish registered companies becoming insolvent or entering receivership increased in the third quarter of 2019-20, with 226 companies becoming insolvent compared with 210 in the same quarter of 2018-19.
There were 161 members’ voluntary liquidations (solvent liquidations) in 2019-20 Q3 compared with 121 in 2018-19 Q3 – an increase of 33.1%.