Individual insolvencies, January 2026
Monthly tables and commentary on the numbers and rates of individual insolvencies, including bankruptcies, debt relief orders and individual voluntary arrangements in England and Wales and Northern Ireland, and quarterly information for Scotland. For England and Wales, Breathing Space scheme statistics are also included.
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In January 2026, 10,843 individual insolvencies were registered in England and Wales. This was 12% higher than in January 2025, but 20% lower than in December 2025, when numbers were affected by a temporary backlog of IVAs that were agreed in November but not registered until December.
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The individual insolvencies consisted of 780 bankruptcies, 3,847 debt relief orders (DROs) and 6,216 individual voluntary arrangements (IVAs). DRO numbers in January 2026 were lower than in December 2025, but similar to the historically high levels seen over the past two years. The number of IVAs was slightly higher than the 2025 monthly average. Bankruptcies were higher than in December 2025, although numbers were affected by the partial clearing of a backlog following the Insolvency Service moving to a new case management system.
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In the 12 months ending 31 January 2026, one in 394 adults in England and Wales entered insolvency (at a rate of 25.4 per 10,000 adults). This was higher than the rate of 24.2 per 10,000 adults (one in 413) who entered insolvency in the 12 months ending 31 January 2025.
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There were 5,008 Breathing Space registrations in January 2026. This was 39% lower than in January 2025. Numbers of breathing spaces were lower in December 2025 and January 2026 after the largest money advisor group by number of cases updated its eligibility and suitability criteria for its clients to apply for a breathing space.