Personal insolvencies at ten year low

23rd April 2015

An Official Statistics Publication for Scotland.

The number of personal insolvencies in Scotland is now at its lowest level in ten years. The annual figure for 2014-15 is also down 19.1 per cent from the previous year.

Accountant in Bankruptcy (AiB) today released official statistics reporting personal and company insolvencies in Scotland for the fourth quarter of 2014-15. The figures show that personal insolvencies, which include both bankruptcies and protected trust deeds (PTDs), fell 15.2 per cent from the same period of the previous year. A total of 2,569 were recorded during this period.

Bankruptcies increased this quarter with 1,735 awarded which is a 10.0 per cent increase on the previous quarter. However the annual total for 2014-15 is down 5.5 per cent from the previous year and the lowest annual total recorded in seven years.

The number of PTDs also decreased this quarter, with a total of 834 recorded. This is the lowest quarterly number of PTDs recorded in fourteen years. The annual total also continues to decline and is a third lower than the previous year.

The number of people entering the statutory debt management solution, the Debt Arrangement Scheme (DAS), decreased to the lowest quarterly total in four years. The total number approved in 2014-15 is 4,147 which is down 9.4 per cent on the previous year's total. A total of £9.4 million was repaid through DAS this quarter meaning the amount repaid in 2014-15 increased by more than a fifth on the previous year to £36.8 million.

The overall demand for statutory debt solutions in Scotland continues to decline, and at an increasing rate. The combined number of bankruptcies awarded, PTDs registered and DAS applications totalled 17,940 in 2014-15 which is 16.7 per cent lower than the previous year.

The number of Scottish registered companies becoming insolvent or entering receivership decreased by 8.2 per cent in 2014-15 to the lowest annual total recorded in seven years. This is also the third consecutive year of decline.

The figures released today were produced by independent statistical staff free from any political interference, in accordance with professional standards set out in the Code of Practice for Official Statistics.