Insolvency statistics released for June 2021
Company and individual insolvencies remain low, CVLs are increasing
The latest monthly release of insolvency statistics for England and Wales was published on the 16 July 2021. *
Overall, the numbers of registered company insolvencies have remained low since the start of the first UK lockdown in March 2020, when compared with pre-pandemic levels..
In June 2021 there was a total of 1,207 registered company insolvencies which is higher than last month (1021). The insolvencies comprised 1,116 CVLs, 38 compulsory liquidations, 14 CVAs and 39 administrations.
Impact of COVID-19 business support measures
The overall low numbers are likely to be at least partly driven by Government measures set up in response to the coronavirus (COVID 19) pandemic, including:
- Reduced court and tribunal operations and reduced HMRC enforcement activity since the UK lockdown was applied
- Temporary restrictions on the use of statutory demands and certain winding-up petitions (leading to company compulsory liquidations) from 27 April and extended further to 30 June 2021 under the extensions to the Corporate Insolvency and Governance Act.
- Enhanced Government financial support for companies and individuals.
As the Insolvency Service does not record whether an insolvency is directly related to the coronavirus pandemic, it is not possible to state its direct effect on insolvency volumes.
The statistics in detail – June 2021*
Company insolvencies
- There were 1,116 CVLs, which is twice the amount registered in June 2020 and 11% higher than June 2019;
- 38 were compulsory liquidations, which is 46% lower than June 2020 and 86% lower than June 2019;
- 14 were CVAs, which is the same as June 2020 but 60% lower than June 2019;
- There were 39 Administrations, which is 61% lower than June 2020 and 74% lower than June 2019; and
- There were no receivership appointments.
New procedures introduced by CIGA 2020
Between 26 June 2020 and 30 June 2021, five companies obtained a moratorium and nine companies had a restructuring plan registered at Companies House. These two new procedures were created by the Corporate Insolvency and Governance Act 2020.
Monthly company insolvency data for England & Wales can be found in the accompanying tables. Further breakdowns of company insolvencies by Standard Industrial Classification (SIC 2007) are also presented to three-digit level.
Debt relief orders and bankruptcies
There were 1,410 DROs and 735 bankruptcies in June 2021 in England & Wales.
The number of DROs in June 2021 was 21% lower than in June 2020 and 33% lower than in June 2019. Changes to DRO eligibility came into effect on 29th June 2021, so applied only to the final two days of this publication period. Any impact of these changes is unlikely to be visible until the next edition of this publication.
The bankruptcies were made up of 645 debtor applications and 90 creditor petitions.
Bankruptcies were 17% lower than in June 2020 driven by a drop in debtor applications (21% lower), but creditor petitions were 27% higher. Compared to June 2019, total bankruptcies were 44% lower; debtor applications were 37% lower and creditor petitions were 67% lower.
The fall in creditor bankruptcies will likely have been a result of reduced HMRC enforcement activity during this period and in part, a result of reduced operational running of the courts.
Individual voluntary arrangements
There were, on average, 7,184 IVAs registered per month in the three-month period ending June 2021, 15% lower than for the three-month period ending June 2020 and 11% higher than the three-months ending June 2019.
Note that the IVA series is historically volatile as it is based on date of registration at the Insolvency Service (see the Data Sources and Methodology section for more information).
Advice
We publish a summary of the reports here each month. For advice relating to support, insolvency or recovery options, please contact us.
* This content and data was reported in full in the Insolvency Service Statistics for June 2021 published 16 July 2021 – see the full report here: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/monthly-insolvency-statistics-June2021
Image source: The Insolvency Service Monthly insolvency statistics, June 2021