Insolvency Service Management Information on Breathing Spaces, 4 May 2021 to 30 April 2022
Published 29 June 2022
Applies to England and Wales
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This publication is available at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/insolvency-service-management-information-on-breathing-spaces-4-may-2021-to-30-april-2022/insolvency-service-management-information-on-breathing-spaces-4-may-2021-to-30-april-2022
This management information relates to breathing spaces registered under the Debt Respite Scheme during the first year of the scheme.
Table 1: Breathing Space registrations and outcomes of debtor eligibility reviews
England and Wales, registered between 4 May 2021 and 30 April 2022
| Standard | Mental Health | |
|---|---|---|
| Total number of registered breathing spaces | 62,852 | 1,012 |
| Number where an eligibility review was requested, of which: | 546 | 14 |
| Eligible following review | 408 | 14 |
| Review cancelled by creditor | 77 | 0 |
| No outcome recorded | 42 | 0 |
| Not eligible following review | 19 | 0 |
Source: Insolvency Service Management Information
Eligibility review: Creditors can ask a debt adviser to review the breathing space, or specific debts being included in it, only if they consider that:
-
the breathing space unfairly prejudices their interests. For example, they think that there has been discriminatory treatment in respect of them, or their debt
-
the debtor does not meet at least one of the eligibility criteria for a breathing space
-
any of the debts included in the breathing space do not qualify
-
the debtor has enough funds to repay their debts
Table 2: Closures by reason, and average length
England and Wales, breathing spaces ended between 4 May 2021 and 30 April 2022
| Standard | Mental Health | |
|---|---|---|
| Total number of completed breathing spaces | 51,207 | 417 |
| Mean average length of completed breathing spaces (days) | 60 | 80 |
| Reason for closure | ||
| Ended automatically | 49,017 | 0 |
| The client has not met their Breathing Space obligations | 906 | 0 |
| The client is now using a debt management solution | 668 | 13 |
| The client is not eligible anymore | 239 | 5 |
| The client is now able to pay their debts | 222 | 5 |
| We have not been able to consult the client | 111 | 0 |
| The client has asked us to cancel | 41 | 15 |
| The client has died | 3 | 7 |
| The client has stopped receiving mental health crisis treatment | 0 | 284 |
| We’ve not been able to reach the point of the contact to confirm mental health crisis treatment is ongoing | 0 | 86 |
| We consider the information provided by the approved mental health professional contains inaccurate, misleading or fraudulent information | 0 | 2 |
Source: Insolvency Service Management Information
Standard breathing spaces automatically end after 60 days. The Insolvency Service does not record the outcome other than where breathing spaces end early.
Table 3: Average debts
England and Wales, breathing spaces ended between 4 May 2021 and 30 April 2022
| Standard | Mental Health | |
|---|---|---|
| Total number of completed breathing spaces | 51,207 | 417 |
| Total debts associated with these breathing spaces: | 452,880 | 3,458 |
| Mean average debts (total) | 8.8 | 8.3 |
| Mean debts added once the breathing space has been registered | 1.1 | 2.8 |
| Mean debts removed once the breathing space has been registered | 1.0 | 3.2 |
Table 4: Number and outcomes of debt eligibility reviews
England and Wales, breathing spaces ended between 4 May 2021 and 30 April 2022
| Standard | Mental Health | |
|---|---|---|
| Number of debts where a review of the debt’s eligibility was requested, of which: | 2,794 | 41 |
| Eligible following review | 1,369 | 14 |
| Review cancelled by creditors | 718 | 27 |
| No outcome recorded | 664 | 0 |
| Not eligible following review | 43 | 0 |
Source: Insolvency Service Management Information
Eligibility review: Creditors can ask a debt adviser to review the breathing space, or specific debts being included in it, only if they consider that:
-
the breathing space unfairly prejudices their interests. For example, they think that there has been discriminatory treatment in respect of them, or their debt
-
the debtor does not meet at least one of the eligibility criteria for a breathing space
-
any of the debts included in the breathing space do not qualify
-
the debtor has enough funds to repay their debts
Table 5: Summary management information on compliance notifications sent to creditors
4 May 2021 to 30 April 2022
| Letter | ||
|---|---|---|
| Communications to creditors by the Insolvency Service, reminding them of their obligations under the Breathing Space Scheme | 283 | 112 |
Source: Insolvency Service Management Information
Creditors must apply all the breathing space protections for a debtor after being notified about a breathing space. This Management Information only covers communications sent directly by the Insolvency Service. Debtors are also able to complain to creditors either directly, or through the money advice organisation that registered their Breathing Space.