Corporate insolvencies up in Scotland, down in England and Wales
8 Feb 10
The latest figures from the Insolvency Service show that Scottish corporate insolvencies for the last quarter of 2009 were up 20 per cent on the last quarter, in contrast to a slight fall (1.7 per cent) in England and Wales
Despite the rise from Q3 to Q4, even in Scotland the figures for the fourth quarter show a 5.5 per cent fall in insolvencies compared with the same period in the previous year. The equivalent year on year fall for England and Wales was 1.1 per cent.
Personal insolvencies in Scotland were down in the final quarter of 2009 compared with both the previous quarter (down 1.5 per cent) and the same period the year before (down 2.7 per cent).
In stark contrast, England and Wales saw a 25 per cent rise in the number of people entering bankruptcy or an Individual Voluntary Arrangement (“IVA”) or Debt Relief Order (“DRO”) in England and Wales in the last quarter of 2009, compared to the same quarter in 2008.
Blair Nimmo, head of restructuring for KPMG in Scotland, said: "Whilst the number of insolvencies have increased since the previous quarter, it is interesting to note that they have fallen when compared to this time last year. This very much supports what we are seeing when working with our stressed and distressed clients and conflicts with the general perception that insolvencies are at record levels given the recessionary environment.
“In fact insolvencies are at relatively low levels due to a variety of factors including many businesses having taken early corrective action in terms of managing their cash and costs, and banks being more supportive than commonly perceived at least in relation to existing lending if not new money. I believe 2010 will remain difficult with the uncertainty created by a general election and of course it is possible that in common with previous recessions we actively see more insolvencies as the economy recovers.”
Headline figures released by the Insolvency Service show:
- In Scotland there were 154 company liquidations in the fourth quarter of 2009 – a increase of 20 per cent on the previous quarter and a decrease of 5.5 per cent on the same period in the previous year.
- In Scotland there were 5,678 personal insolvencies in the fourth quarter of 2009 – a decrease of 1.6 per cent on the previous quarter and 2.7 per cent on the same period in the previous year.
- There were 4,566 compulsory liquidations and creditors’ voluntary liquidations in total in England and Wales in the fourth quarter of 2009. This was a decrease of 1.7 per cent on the previous quarter but an increase of 1.1 per cent on the same period a year ago.
- There were 35,574 personal insolvencies in England and Wales in the fourth quarter of 2009. This was a 1 per cent increase on the previous quarter and a 25 per cent increase on the same period a year ago.