Insolvencies in Scotland down by a quarter since 2014
Accountant in Bankruptcy figures show long term decline continues
THE latest quarterly figures from Scotland’s Insolvency Service show Scottish total personal insolvencies, which include both bankruptcies and protected trust deeds, are 25.4% lower than in the same quarter a year ago.
Accountant in Bankruptcy, responsible for administering the process of personal bankruptcy and recording corporate insolvencies in Scotland, said a total of 2,230 personal insolvencies were recorded in the second quarter of 2015/16 up until 30 September.
The statistics also show fewer companies in Scotland going bust, with 180 Scottish-registered businesses becoming insolvent, down 13.9 % on the same quarter a year ago and 8.6% down on the previous quarter.
Personal insolvencies in Scotland have been dropping consistently since 2008/09, and the numbers fell significantly in the first quarter of the year, which signalled the first months since the legislation governing bankruptcy was amended on 1 April, 2015 by the Bankruptcy and Debt Advice (Scotland) Act.
The legislation introduced a suite of measures such as mandatory money advice for people seeking access to statutory debt relief solutions such as bankruptcy and a Common Financial Tool to promote consistency in assessing whether individuals can contribute towards repayment of their debts.
As well as a new web-based bankruptcy application system, the changes introduced a lower cost access route to bankruptcy for those with few assets and who would be unable to make contributions and a requirement for those who can pay to make payments for an additional year.
Commenting on the latest figures, business minister Fergus Ewing said: “The longer term trend of people falling into financial difficulty and seeking debt relief continues to be a declining one, which will be welcomed by everyone who wishes to see Scotland prosper.
“Fewer businesses becoming insolvent also means more people can remain in work, which is good news for industry and provides further evidence that Scotland’s economy goes from strength to strength.”