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

Individual insolvency statistics for England and Wales – October 2024

In October 2024, 8,952 individuals entered insolvency in England & Wales. This was 14% lower than in September 2024, but similar to October 2023. The total amount of individual insolvencies consisted of:

• 4,563 individual voluntary arrangements (IVAs)
• 3,793 debt relief orders (DROs)
• 596 bankruptcies

In the 12 months to 31 October 2024, 56% of individual insolvencies were IVAs, 37% were DROs, and 7% were bankruptcies.

IVAs

The number of IVAs was 23% lower than September 2024 and 13% lower than October 2023 after seasonal adjustment.

IVA numbers over the past year have been lower than the record high annual number seen in 2022.

DROs

The number of DROs in October 2024 were slightly lower than the numbers seen in September 2024 and 12% lower than the record high monthly numbers seen in June 2024.

However, the number of DROs in October 2024 was 79% higher than the long-term (2014 to 2023) monthly average, and levels remain much higher than at any other point since their introduction.

Bankruptcies

The number of bankruptcies in October 2024 was lower than monthly numbers seen over the past 12 months. Bankruptcy numbers have declined since 2009 and fell further during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Bankruptcies in October 2024 consisted of:

• 436 resulting from debtors’ applications, which was 5% higher than in September 2024, but 16% lower than in October 2023.
• 160 resulting from creditors’ petitions, which was 1% higher than in both September 2024 and October 2023.

Individual insolvency rate statistics for England and Wales – October 2024

The individual liquidation rate in the 12 months to October 2024 was 23.4 per 10,000 adults in England and Wales. This corresponds to 1 in 427 adults having entered an insolvency procedure in the past 12 months.

The rate in the 12 months to October 2024 was higher than the rate in the 12 months to October 2023. The increase was driven by higher rates of DROs over the past year, while IVA rates decreased, and bankruptcy rates remained similar.

Individual insolvency statistics for Scotland – Q2 2024

The Accountant in Bankruptcy (AiB), Scotland’s Insolvency Service, administers individual insolvency in Scotland. The AiB produces individual insolvency statistics on a quarterly basis. Therefore, the numbers in this section are updated once every three months only.

In Q3 2024, there were 1,891 individual insolvencies in Scotland, which was similar levels to the same quarter of 2023. The individual insolvencies were comprised of:

• 1,327 protected trust deeds
• 564 sequestrations (of which 299 went into bankruptcy via the minimal asset process route)

Individual insolvency statistics for Northern Ireland – October 2024

In Northern Ireland in October 2024, there were 155 individual insolvencies, which was 24% higher than in October 2023. Of the total individual insolvencies, there were:

• 99 IVAs
• 33 DROs
• 23 bankruptcies

Please note, individual insolvency in Northern Ireland is governed by separate, but broadly similar, legislation to England and Wales, and so figures are presented separately.

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 November 2024 will be released on 17 December 2024.

You can see all personal insolvency notices in The Gazette.

See also

Company insolvency statistics – October 2024

Individual insolvency statistics - September 2024

Find out more

Individual Insolvency Statistics October 2024 (GOV.UK)

The Insolvency Service (GOV.UK)

Accountant in Bankruptcy (AiB)

Images

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Publication date

19 November 2024