More businesses have been declared insolvent during July to September, according to the latest statistics released by the Insolvency Service on Friday, October 27, 2017.
An estimated 4,152 companies entered insolvency in the third quarter of the year, an increase of 15% on the previous three months and of 14.5% compared with the third quarter of 2016.
Construction companies, Manufacturing and Accommodation and Food Service Activities topped the list of insolvencies, as they have in the previous two quarters, and, although final figures have not yet been released for the latest period, the trend is clearly upward.
The news comes as R3, the insolvency and restructuring trade body, released the latest findings of its long-running research into business health.
It revealed that more businesses were showing signs of financial distress increasing from one in five in April to one in four in September. Among the causes cited were decreased sales and increasing use of overdrafts with many reporting that they were at their overdraft maximum limit.
R3 President Adrian Hyde said: “Businesses have faced a number of fresh challenges over the last year. Increasing input costs caused by post-referendum inflation increases and a weaker pound, a rising national living wage, the added costs of pensions auto-enrolment, and, for some businesses, rising business rates will have hurt bottom lines.”
He said investment in new equipment had dropped between April and September from 33% to 22%, which suggested that concern over the economic prospects for the UK was prompting company directors envisaging trouble ahead and building up cash reserves to get them through tougher times ahead.
“The question of balancing competing needs – whether to prioritise solidifying their cash position or investing in their businesses, a key concern in the digital age – is more urgent than ever for many companies, especially with the economic landscape becoming more unsettled,” he said.
Time to revisit the business model?
It is, in our view, more imperative than ever that businesses retain tight control over their cash flow, revisit their business plans and have a close look at their operations to identify where savings could be made. Uncertain times only offer opportunities for those with deep pockets, for most businesses surviving them requires a focus on margins and hoarding cash until a more stable future can be predicted.
It may be a time, sooner rather than later to take a thorough look at the whole operation to identify whether it is time to restructure or pivot the business model to one which is more sustainable. This can involve some level of restructuring in order to be prepared for the possibility of worse to come.