Insolvency statistics bring mixed news

Official insolvency statistics released by the DTI showed there were 2,975 company liquidations in England and Wales in the third quarter of 2004. The good news is that this represented a decrease of 5.6% on the previous quarter and a decrease of 12% on the same period in 2003.

However the news regarding individual insolvencies was not so good. This number continues to rise. The DTI statistics showed that there were 11,967 individual insolvencies in the same period. This was an increase of 6.2% on the previous quarter and 31.1% on the same period in 2003. This figure included some 9,156 bankruptcies.

If you have particular concerns about an individual that you currently, or are about to, do business with, you may be interested to know that the Insolvency Service maintains an individual insolvency register. The register contains:

• details of bankruptcies that are either current or have ended in the last three months
• current individual voluntary arrangements and fast track voluntary arrangements
• current bankruptcy restrictions orders and undertakings.

The register can be searched on-line, by post or fax or by visiting an Official Receiver’s office. There are no charges for searching the register and you can expect to find out not only the bankrupt’s name but also:

• any other name by which they were known
• their occupation and trading details
• their date of birth and last known address
• the details of the current bankruptcy order
• the automatic discharge date.

The Insolvency Service can be found at www.insolvency.gov.uk

Records of company liquidations and disqualified directors are maintained by Companies House.