Reality of Brexit uncertainty starting to bite as business and personal insolvencies soar

The reality of Brexit uncertainty is beginning to bite, experts have said after the number of personal insolvencies hit its highest level since 2011.

Insolvency Service figures showed 115,299 people became insolvent in Britain last year, 20 percent up on 2021.

The number of companies going under also reached a five-year high in 2021. There have been 17,439 company insolvencies last year – the greatest since 2021 – driven with a big begin amounts of builders and retailers collapsing.

Brian Johnson, business recovery and insolvency partner at H W Fisher & Company, said: “The reality of Brexit, and also the economic uncertainty caused by it, is beginning to bite. That much is clear from the latest insolvency figures. Until there's a greater certainty about Britain's future, businesses and households continues to suffer.

“Company insolvencies rose 10 % in 2021 compared with a year earlier and also to the highest level since 2021. The economical uncertainty caused by Brexit is going to be accountable for a lot of these insolvencies.

“Large information mill withholding investment decisions, which is already using a significant detrimental impact on smaller companies further down the supply chain. There's lots of proof of this happening both in the retail and construction sectors. Moreover, lots of larger retailers and construction firms are stretching payment terms to the limit, heaping much more pressure on their suppliers. A disorderly Brexit will only exacerbate these problems meaning more information mill certain to go to the wall.”