Company insolvency statistics - December 2025

The December 2025 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 –2025

After seasonal adjustment there were 23,938 company insolvencies in 2025. This was similar 2024 and 5% lower than 2023, which saw the highest annual number since 1993.

In December 2025 there were:

18,525 creditors’ voluntary liquidations (CVLs)
3,730 compulsory liquidations
1,495 administrations
186 company voluntary arrangements (CVAs)
2 receiverships

While numbers in 2025 were similar to 2024, there was a slight decrease in CVLs, which was offset by an increase in compulsory liquidations to the highest annual number since 2012. In 2025, administrations saw a 6% decrease between 2024 and 2025, whilst CVA numbers were down 8% from 2024 to 2025.

In 2025 CVLs were the most common company insolvency procedure (77%), followed by compulsory liquidations (16%), administrations (6%) and CVAs (1%), whilst receivership appointments made up less than 1% of cases.

Company insolvency statistics for England and Wales – December 2025

After seasonal adjustment there were 1,671 company insolvencies in December 2025. This was 10% lower than in November 2025 and 13% lower than December 2024. The decrease of 10% compared to November 2025 is similar to the average absolute change of 11% between consecutive months over the past three years.

In December 2025 there were:

1,305 creditors’ voluntary liquidations (CVLs)
245 compulsory liquidations
106 administrations
15 company voluntary arrangements (CVAs)
0 receivership

CVLs

In December 2025, CVLs accounted for 78% of all company insolvencies. The number of CVLs decreased by 10% from November 2025 and was 11% lower than December 2024. CVLs in December 2025 were at the lowest recorded levels since August 2021.

Compulsory liquidations

The number of compulsory liquidations was 4% lower than in November 2025 and 21% lower than in December 2024. In 2025, compulsory liquidations were at the highest levels since 2012, having increased by 15% compared to 2024 volumes.

Administrations

The number of administrations was 21% lower than in November 2025 and 20% lower than in December 2024. In 2025, the number of administrations decreased by 8% from 2024.

CVAs

The number of CVAs was 17% lower than in November 2025 and 12% lower than in December 2024. Numbers remain low compared to historical levels. CVAs are not seasonally adjusted due to low volumes.

Receivership appointments

There were no receivership appointments in December 2025. Receivership appointments are now rare with only two in the past 12 months ending December 2025.

Insolvency rate statistics for England and Wales – December 2025

The company liquidation rate in the 12 months to December 2025 was 52.5 per 10,000 companies on the effective register in England and Wales. This corresponds to 1 in 190 companies entering insolvency.

Company insolvencies by industry in England and Wales – December 2025

The three industries (in accordance with SIC 2007) that experienced the highest number of insolvencies in the 12 months to December 2025 were:

construction (3,950 insolvencies, 17% of cases with industry captured)
wholesale and retail trade; repair of motor vehicles and motorcycles (3,773 insolvencies, 16% of cases with industry captured)
accommodation and food service activities (3,372 insolvencies, 14% of cases with industry captured)

Company insolvency statistics for Scotland – 2025

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

In 2025 there were 1,272 company insolvencies, which was similar to the number in 2024. Compulsory liquidations were 13% higher than in 2024, and 23% higher than in 2023. CVLs, administrations, CVAs and receivership appointments were all similar to the numbers seen in 2024.

Company insolvency statistics for Scotland – December 2025

In December 2025 there were 111 company insolvencies, which was 35% higher than the number in December 2024. Of the total company insolvencies in Scotland, there were:

69 CVLs
35 compulsory liquidations
7 administrations
0 CVAs
0 receivership appointments

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 – 2025

In 2025 there were 351 company insolvencies, which was an increase of 15% from 2024. This was largely driven by compulsory liquidations which were 56% higher than in 2024. The number of CVLs decreased by 22%, while administrations increased by 47% and CVAs increased by 16% from 2024 numbers.

Company insolvency statistics for Northern Ireland – December 2025

In December 2025 there were 20 company insolvencies in Northern Ireland, which was 13% lower than in December 2024. Of the total company insolvencies, there were:

11 compulsory liquidations
5 CVLs
4 CVAs
0 administrations
0 receivership appointments

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 January 2026 will be released on 17 February 2026.

Find out more

Company Insolvency Statistics December 2025 (GOV.UK)

The Insolvency Service (GOV.UK)

Accountant in Bankruptcy (AiB)

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Publication date

20 January 2026