Company insolvency statistics - March 2024

The March 2024 company insolvency stats for England and Wales have been published by The Insolvency Service, together with related figures for Scotland and Northern Ireland.

Company insolvency statistics for England and Wales – March 2024

After seasonal adjustment there were 1,815 company insolvencies in March 2024. This was 17% lower than in February 2024 and 17% lower than the number in March 2023.

In March 2024 there were:

1,437 creditors’ voluntary liquidations (CVLs)
261 compulsory liquidations
108 administrations
9 company voluntary arrangements (CVAs)
0 receiverships

CVLs

In March 2024, CVLs accounted for 79% of all company insolvencies. The number of CVLs was 18% lower than February 2024 and was 19% lower than March 2023 after seasonal adjustment.

Compulsory liquidations

The number of compulsory liquidations was 3% lower than in February 2024 and 9% lower than in March 2023 after seasonally adjustment.

Administrations

The number of administrations was 30% lower than in February 2024 and 14% lower than in March 2023 after seasonally adjustment.

CVAs

The number of CVAs was 25% lower than in February 2024 and 31% lower than in March 2023 after seasonally adjustment.

Receivership appointments

There were no receivership appointments in March 2024. Receivership appointments are now rare with only two in the past 12 months.

Insolvency rate statistics for England and Wales – March 2024

The company liquidation rate in the 12 months to March 2024 was 55.8 per 10,000 companies on the effective register in England and Wales. This corresponds to 1 in 179 companies entering insolvency.

Company insolvencies by industry in England and Wales – March 2024

The three industries (in accordance with SIC 2007) that experienced the highest number of insolvencies in the 12 months to February 2024 were:

construction (4,403 insolvencies, 18% of cases with industry captured)
wholesale and retail trade and repair of vehicles (3,941 insolvencies, 16% of cases with industry captured)
accommodation and food services activities (3,822 insolvencies, 15% of cases with industry captured)

Company insolvency statistics for Scotland – March 2023

The Accountant in Bankruptcy (AiB), Scotland’s Insolvency Service, administers company insolvency in Scotland.

In March 2024 there were 115 company insolvencies, which was 1% higher than the number in March 2023. Of the total company insolvencies in Scotland, there were:

44 compulsory liquidations
62 CVLs
9 administrations
0 CVAs
0 receiverships

Historically, compulsory liquidations were the most common type of company insolvency in Scotland. However, since April 2020, numbers of CVLs have remained higher than numbers of compulsory liquidations.

Company insolvency statistics for Northern Ireland – March 2023

In March 2024 there were 26 company insolvencies in Northern Ireland, twice as many as (100% higher than) in March 2023. Of the total company insolvencies, there were:

14 CVLs
8 compulsory liquidations
3 CVAs
1 administration
0 administrative receiverships

Please note, the figures for Northern Ireland are not seasonally-adjusted.

Where can I see insolvency notices in The Gazette?

The Gazette is the primary source of both corporate insolvency and personal insolvency information in the UK and publishes this information in the form of insolvency notices, allowing transparency for the public, the credit industry and concerned individuals to quantify risk and inform creditors. You can view all corporate and personal insolvency notices on The Gazette website.

The Gazette also provides a Data Service which provides timely official company, insolvency and deceased estates information to aid data driven decision-making. As the UK’s official public record, our authorised data can help your business with:

KYC/due diligence
risk management
regulatory compliance
business development
business intelligence and strategy

For more information on The Gazette Data Service, contact the team on 01603 985949, email data@thegazette.co.uk or click on the link below.

Enquire now

Next insolvency statistics release

Figures for April 2024 will be released on 17 May 2024.

Find out more

Company Insolvency Statistics March 2024 (GOV.UK)

The Insolvency Service (GOV.UK)

Accountant in Bankruptcy (AiB)

Images

Getty Images

Publication date

29 April 2024