Company Insolvency Statistics: October to December 2023
Statistics on new company insolvencies in England and Wales, and related statistics for Scotland and Northern Ireland
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Following a consultation in 2023, the Insolvency Service will merge the monthly and quarterly statistics while maintaining monthly frequency. This the last release in the current format. The first release in the new format will be published on 26 April 2024. It will be available on the Individual Insolvency Statistics releases page.
Annual Summary for 2023
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In 2023, there were 25,158 registered company insolvencies, comprising 20,577 creditors’ voluntary liquidations (CVLs), 2,827 compulsory liquidations, 1,567 administrations, 185 company voluntary arrangements (CVAs) and two receivership appointments. The number of company insolvencies was the highest annual number since 1993.
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CVLs increased by 9% from 2022 to a new record high number in the time series going back to 1960. Numbers of compulsory liquidations (up 44%), administrations (up 27%) and CVAs (up 67%) were also all higher than in 2022.
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One in 186 active companies (at a rate of 53.7 per 10,000 active companies) entered insolvent liquidation in 2023. This was an increase from the 49.6 per 10,000 active companies that entered liquidation in 2022. The rate in 2023 was the highest level since Q3 2014. Although company insolvency volumes were at a 30-year high in 2023, the number of companies on the Companies House register has increased over time, so the 2023 rate remained much lower than the peak rate of 94.8 insolvencies per 10,000 active companies during the 2008/09 recession.
Quarterly Summary for Q4 2023
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Between 1 October and 31 December 2023 (Q4 2023), there were 6,788 (seasonally adjusted) registered company insolvencies, as shown in Figure 1, comprising 5,578 creditors’ voluntary liquidations (CVLs), 780 compulsory liquidations, 379 administrations, 50 company voluntary arrangements (CVAs) and one receivership appointment.
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After seasonal adjustment, the number of company insolvencies in Q4 2023 was 9% higher than in Q3 2023, and 14% higher than in Q4 2022. This quarter saw the highest quarterly total insolvencies since Q4 2008 and the highest quarterly number of CVLs since the start of the time series in 1960. The number of compulsory liquidations increased to levels last seen before the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. Administrations in Q4 2023 fell but still remained higher than levels seen throughout 2021 and 2022.