Official Statistics

Commentary - Company Insolvency Statistics March 2024

Published 26 April 2024

Released

26 April 2024

Next release

17 May 2024

Media enquiries

press.office@insolvency.gov.uk

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Statistical enquiries

Thomas Evans (author)

statistics@insolvency.gov.uk

David Webster (responsible statistician)

This publication relates to company insolvency only. Statistics relating to individual insolvency can be found on the individual insolvency releases page. These new monthly publications contain some additional information that was previously only released quarterly, such as seasonally adjusted numbers and rates of insolvency per 10,000 companies. This is in accordance with the plans announced following a user consultation. Archived monthly publications can be found here.

1. Main messages for England and Wales

• After seasonal adjustment, the number of registered company insolvencies in England and Wales in March 2024 was 1,815, 17% lower than in February 2024 (2,177) and 17% lower than the same month in the previous year (2,193 in March 2023). However, numbers of company insolvencies remained much higher than those seen both during the COVID-19 pandemic and between 2014 and 2019.

• Company insolvencies in March 2024 consisted of 261 compulsory liquidations, 1,437 creditors’ voluntary liquidations (CVLs), 108 administrations and 9 company voluntary arrangements (CVAs). Numbers of all types of company insolvency were lower than in both March 2023 and February 2024.

• One in 179 companies on the Companies House effective register (at a rate of 55.8 per 10,000 companies) entered insolvency between 1 April 2023 and 31 March 2024. This was an increase from the 53.5 per 10,000 companies that entered insolvency in the 12 months ending 31 March 2023. These 12-month rolling rates are calculated as a proportion of the total number of companies on the effective register to show longer term trends and reduce the volatility that would be associated with estimates based on single months.

• While the insolvency rate has increased since the lows seen in 2020 and 2021, it remains much lower than the peak of 113.1 per 10,000 companies seen during the 2008-09 recession. This is because the number of companies on the effective register has more than doubled over this period.

Figure 1: Company insolvency numbers were lower in March 2024 than in February 2024, with decreases seen across all company insolvency types.

Company insolvencies by type, England and Wales, March 2019 to March 2024, seasonally adjusted

Sources: Insolvency Service (compulsory liquidations only); Companies House (all other insolvency types)

Monthly numbers back to January 2021, and annual numbers back to 2014 can be found in Table 1a of the tables accompanying this release. The monthly series back to January 2000 as well as record-level data back to 2013 can also be found in the accompanying CSV file at the same link.

Quarterly data prior to 2000 can be found in the long-run company insolvencies CSV file or back to 1960 (where available) on the National Archives website.

1.1 Things you need to know about this release

This statistics release contains the latest data on company insolvency in the United Kingdom, presenting the numbers of companies that have entered a formal insolvency procedure after being unable to pay their debts. Information is presented separately for England and Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland.

Solvent company closures such as members’ voluntary liquidations and dissolutions are not included in these statistics. Information on business closures in general can be found in the ONS Business demography publication.

Information relating to the revenue, number of employees and trading location of the company is generally not held by the Insolvency Service, so statistics relating to company demographics are not presented here.

Underlying data for these monthly statistics for England and Wales were adjusted using an ARIMA model where there was evidence of seasonality. This removal of systematic calendar-related variation enables comparisons to be made between months and the underlying trend in insolvency numbers to be determined. In accordance with the outcome of the April 2024 Seasonal Adjustment Review, compulsory liquidations, creditors’ voluntary liquidations and administrations were all seasonally adjusted.

All figures presented within this release are provisional and subject to review. Further detail can be found in the accompanying Monthly Statistics Methodology and Quality document.

1.2 Review of designation as accredited official statistics

This official statistics publication is a successor to the quarterly Company Insolvency Statistics, which were accredited official statistics. At the time of publication, the Office for Statistics Regulation was assessing this new publication for compliance with the standards of trustworthiness, quality and value in the Code of Practice for Statistics. Because the review is ongoing, this edition of the publication is labelled as ‘official statistics’ instead of ‘accredited official statistics’.

You are welcome to contact us directly with any comments about how we meet these standards. Alternatively, you can contact OSR by emailing regulation@statistics.gov.uk or via the OSR website.

2. Company insolvency in England and Wales

2.1 Numbers of company insolvencies

After seasonal adjustment there were 1,815 company insolvencies in March 2024. That was 17% lower than in February 2024 and 17% lower than the number in March 2023.The decrease of 17% compared to February 2024 is less than the average absolute change of a 11% between consecutive months over the past three years.

Company insolvencies peaked during the 2008-09 recession following the gradual decline seen over the early 2000s. Volumes then rose during 2018 and 2019 before falling to the lowest monthly volumes on record during the COVID-19 pandemic. Company insolvencies then increased during 2021 and 2022, with 2023 seeing the highest annual number of company insolvencies since 1993.

Figure 2 shows the historical trend of company insolvencies covering the past 20 years.

Figure 2: Company insolvencies in 2023 and the first three months of 2024 were at levels last seen during the 2008-09 recession

Monthly company insolvencies, England and Wales, January 2000 to March 2024, seasonally adjusted.

Sources: Insolvency Service (compulsory liquidations only); Companies House (all other insolvency types)

Single-month peaks in ‘Other insolvencies’ in November 2006 and October 2008 are due to large numbers of connected managed service companies entering administration on the same day in these quarters.

Monthly numbers back to January 2021, and annual numbers back to 2014 can be found in Table 1a of the tables accompanying this release. The monthly series back to January 2000 as well as record-level data back to 2013 can also be found in the accompanying CSV file at the same link.

Quarterly data prior to 2000 can be found in the long-run company insolvencies CSV file or back to 1960 (where available) on the National Archives website.

CVLs

In March 2024, CVLs accounted for 79% of all company insolvencies. The number of CVLs decreased by 18% from February 2024 and was 19% lower than during the same month last year (March 2023) after seasonal adjustment.

2023 saw the highest annual number of CVLs since the start of the time series in 1960, continuing the year-on-year increases in CVL numbers seen since 2021. CVLs had been increasing at approximately 10% per year between 2017 and 2019, before decreasing to the lowest levels seen since 2007 during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Compulsory liquidations

The number of seasonally adjusted compulsory liquidations in March 2024 was 3% lower than in February 2024 and 9% lower than in March 2023.

The number of compulsory liquidations in 2023 increased by 44% from 2022, but remained 4% lower than 2019 (pre-pandemic levels). Numbers have increased from record low levels seen in 2020 and 2021 while restrictions applied to the use of statutory demands and certain winding-up petitions (leading to compulsory liquidations).

Figure 3: The numbers of administrations and CVAs in March 2024 were lower than both February 2024 and March 2023

Registered monthly company insolvencies, England and Wales, March 2019 to March 2024, seasonally adjusted.

Source: Companies House

Monthly numbers back to January 2021, and annual numbers back to 2014 can be found in Table 1a of the tables accompanying this release. The monthly series back to January 2000 as well as record-level data back to 2013 can also be found in the accompanying CSV file at the same link.

Quarterly data prior to 2000 can be found in the long-run company insolvencies CSV file or back to 1960 (where available) on the National Archives website.

Administrations

The number of administrations in March 2024 was 30% lower than in February 2024 and 14% lower than in March 2023, after seasonal adjustment.

Numbers of administrations increased during 2022 and 2023 from an 18-year annual low number seen during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2021. Current levels are similar to those seen between 2015 and 2019.

CVAs

The number of CVAs was 25% lower in March 2024 than March 2023 and 31% lower than in February 2024. Numbers remain low compared to historical levels. CVAs are not seasonally adjusted due to low volumes.

The number of CVAs in 2023 was 68% higher than in 2022 which saw the lowest ever annual total in the time series going back to 1993, however the number in 2023 remained approximately half of 2015 to 2019 levels.

Receivership appointments

There were no receivership appointments in March 2024. Receivership appointments are now rare, there have been two in the past 12 months ending March 2024 (see Glossary for further information).

Moratoriums and restructuring plans

There was one restructuring plan and no moratoriums registered at Companies House in March 2024. Between 26 June 2020 and 31 March 2024, 52 companies obtained a moratorium and 23 companies had a restructuring plan registered at Companies House. These two procedures were created by the Corporate Insolvency and Governance Act 2020. Monthly numbers back to January 2021, and annual numbers back to 2020 can be found in Table 1e of the tables accompanying this release.

Table 1: Company insolvencies in March 2024 were 17% lower than in February 2024.

Company insolvencies, England and Wales, March 2023 to March 2024, seasonally adjusted.

Period	Total Company Insolvencies	Compulsory liquidations	Creditors’ voluntary liquidations	Administrations	Company voluntary arrangements	Receivership appointments
Mar 2023	2,193	288	1,767	125	13	0
Dec 2023	2,110	188	1,786	121	15	0
Jan 2024	1,767	287	1,340	124	16	0
Feb 2024	2,177	268	1,742	155	12	0
Mar 2024	1,815	261	1,437	108	9	0
Percentage change, latest month compared to:
vs Mar 2023	-17%	-9%	-19%	-14%	-31%	[z]
vs Feb 2024	-17%	-3%	-18%	-30%	-25%	[z]

Sources: Insolvency Service (compulsory liquidations only); Companies House (all other insolvency procedures)

[z] indicates percentage changes are not applicable as these have not been calculated where both numbers are less than five.

Monthly numbers back to January 2021, and annual numbers back to 2014 can be found in Table 1a of the tables accompanying this release. The monthly series back to January 2000 as well as record-level data back to 2013 can also be found in the accompanying CSV file at the same link.

Quarterly data prior to 2000 can be found in the long-run company insolvencies CSV file or back to 1960 (where available) on the National Archives website.

2.2 Insolvency rates per 10,000 companies on the effective register

The company liquidation rate in the 12 months to March 2024 was 55.8 per 10,000 companies on the effective register in England and Wales, as shown in Table 2 and Figure 4 below. This corresponds to 1 in 179 companies entering insolvency.

Insolvency rates are calculated as a proportion of the total number of companies on the effective register and are more comparable over longer time periods than the absolute numbers.

A 12 month rolling rate is presented to reduce the volatility that would be associated with estimates based on single months. The March 2024 rates, for example, were calculated using data covering the period 1 April 2023 to 31 March 2024.

Table 2: The rate of company insolvency in the 12 months to March 2024 was higher than in the 12-month periods ending March 2023 and February 2023

Company insolvencies 12 month rolling insolvency rate per 10,000 companies on the effective register, England and Wales.

Period	Total Company Insolvencies	Compulsory liquidations	Creditors’ voluntary liquidations	Administrations	Company voluntary arrangements	Receivership appointments
Mar 2023	53.5	5.4	44.9	2.9	0.3	0.0
Dec 2023	57.2	6.4	46.7	3.6	0.4	0.0
Jan 2024	57.1	6.7	46.4	3.6	0.4	0.0
Feb 2024	57.6	6.8	46.6	3.7	0.4	0.0
Mar 2024	55.8	6.6	45.1	3.7	0.4	0.0
Change in rate, latest month compared to:
vs Mar 2023	2.4	1.3	0.3	0.7	0.1	0.0

Source: Insolvency Service (compulsory liquidations only); Companies House (all other insolvency procedures)

Changes in rate numbers may not equal the difference in rates presented due to rounding.

Monthly numbers back to January 2021, and annual numbers back to 2014 can be found in Table 3 of the tables accompanying this release. The monthly series back to January 2000 as well as record-level data back to 2013 can also be found in the accompanying CSV file at the same link.

Quarterly data prior to 2000 can be found in the long-run company insolvencies CSV file or back to 1960 (where available) on the National Archives website.

Figure 4: The insolvency rate in the 12 months ending March 2024 was higher than pre-pandemic levels, driven by a higher rate of CVLs.

12 month rolling insolvency rate per 10,000 companies on the effective register, England and Wales, January 2000 to March 2024.

Sources: Insolvency Service (compulsory liquidations only); Companies House (all other insolvency procedures)

Monthly numbers back to January 2021, and annual numbers back to 2014 can be found in Table 3 of the tables accompanying this release. The monthly series back to January 2000 as well as record-level data back to 2013 can also be found in the accompanying CSV file at the same link.

Quarterly data prior to 2000 can be found in the long-run company insolvencies CSV file or back to 1960 (where available) on the National Archives website.

Although company insolvency volumes between April 2023 and March 2024 were at the highest levels seen since the 2008/09 recession, the number of companies on the Companies House register has increased over time. Therefore, recent insolvency rates have remained much lower than the peak rate of 113.1 insolvencies per 10,000 companies on the effective register during the 2008/09 recession. More information on the size of the Companies House register is available in Companies House Official Statistics publications.

2.3 Company insolvencies by industry (SIC 2007)

The following analysis excludes insolvencies where the company industry was unknown, non-trading or dormant (409 in the 12 months to February 2024, compared to 243 in the 12 months to February 2023). In some cases, confirmation of industry sector for compulsory liquidations may be delayed by one month or more and therefore insolvency numbers by industry are provided with a one month lag.

Note that the numbers of insolvencies in these categories are likely to be partly driven by the number of companies on the effective register in a given category and do not reflect the relative likelihood of companies in each industry entering insolvency. SIC codes are self-reported and for the these statistics the first recorded SIC code is used to determine which industry a company is in.

The five industries (in accordance with SIC 2007) that experienced the highest number of insolvencies in the 12 months to February 2024 were:

• Construction (4,403, 18% of cases with industry captured);

• Wholesale and retail trade; repair of motor vehicles and motorcycles (3,941, 16% of cases with industry captured);

• Accommodation and food service activities (3,822, 15% of cases with industry captured);

• Administrative and support service activities (2,378, 9% of cases with industry captured);

• Professional, scientific and technical activities (2,041, 8% of cases with industry captured);

Figure 5: In the past 12 months, insolvencies have increased the most in the Accommodation & food service sector.

Company insolvency by industry, England and Wales, March 2023 to February 2024 compared with March 2022 to February 2023.

Sources: Insolvency Service (compulsory liquidations only); Companies House (all other insolvency procedures)

Monthly numbers by 3-level standard industrial classification back to January 2021, and annual numbers back to 2014 can be found in Table 1c of the tables accompanying this release. Record level data back to 2013 also accompanies the monthly release.

Quarterly data back to 1990 is on the National Archives website.

Except for a few industries each accounting for less than 1% of company insolvencies, all industries saw increases in company insolvency numbers in the 12 months to February 2024, compared to the preceding 12 months, as shown in Figure 5. For the larger sectors (those accounting for at least 5% of insolvencies), increases ranged from 1% in Other service activities to 34% in Accommodation and food service activities.

3. Company insolvency in Scotland

Legislation relating to company insolvency in Scotland is partly devolved. AiB, Scotland’s Insolvency Service, administers the Register of Insolvencies, which is a publicly accessible statutory register regarding the insolvency of individuals and businesses in Scotland, and includes company liquidations and receiverships.

This statistical release presents the numbers of compulsory liquidations, CVLs, administrations, CVAs and receivership appointments based on their registration date at Companies House, and numbers therefore reflect company insolvency registrations rather than insolvency procedure start dates.

In March 2024 there were 115 company insolvencies registered in Scotland, 11% higher than the number in March 2023. This was comprised of 44 compulsory liquidations, 62 CVLs, and 9 administrations. There were no CVAs or receivership appointments.

Historically, compulsory liquidations were the most common type of company insolvency in Scotland. However, since April 2020, numbers of CVLs have remained higher than numbers of compulsory liquidations.

Figure 6 shows the historical trend of company insolvencies in Scotland covering the past five years.

Figure 6: Company insolvency numbers were similar in March 2024 to March 2023, but higher than levels seen both during and before the COVID-19 pandemic.

Monthly company insolvencies, Scotland, March 2019 to March 2024, not seasonally adjusted.

Source: Companies House

Monthly numbers back to January 2021, and annual numbers back to 2014 can be found in Table 4 of the tables accompanying this release. The monthly series back to January 2000 as well as record-level data back to 2013 can also be found in the accompanying CSV file at the same link.

Quarterly data prior to 2000 can be found in the long-run company insolvencies CSV file.

Further breakdowns of company insolvencies by Standard Industrial Classification (SIC 2007) are also presented to three-digit level in Table A7 of the industry tables accompanying this release.

More statistics can be found in the AiB (Scotland’s Insolvency Service) statistical release.

Between 26 June 2020 and 31 March 2024, in Scotland, no moratoriums were obtained and two companies had a restructuring plan registered at Companies House. These two procedures were created by the Corporate Insolvency and Governance Act 2020.

The total insolvency rate in Scotland in the 12 months to March 2024 was 53.1 per 10,000 companies on the effective register, as shown in Figure 7. This was up by 1.9 from the preceding 12 months ending March 2023.

Figure 7: The insolvency rate in Scotland increased in the 12 months to March 2024 compared to the 12 months to March 2023.

12 month rolling insolvency rate per 10,000 companies on the effective register, January 2000 to March 2024, Scotland.

Source: Companies House

Monthly numbers back to January 2021, and annual numbers back to 2014 can be found in Table 5 of the tables accompanying this release. The monthly series back to January 2000 as well as record-level data back to 2013 can also be found in the accompanying CSV file at the same link.

Quarterly data prior to 2000 can be found in the long-run company insolvencies CSV file.

More statistics can be found in the AiB (Scotland’s Insolvency Service) statistical release.

4. Company insolvency in Northern Ireland

This statistical release presents the numbers of CVLs, administrations, CVAs and receivership appointments based on their registration date at Companies House, and therefore numbers reflect company insolvency registrations rather than insolvency procedure start dates.

In March 2024 there were 26 company insolvencies registered in Northern Ireland, twice as many as (100% higher than) in March 2023. This was comprised of 14 CVLs, 8 compulsory liquidations, 3 CVAs and 1 administration. There were no receivership appointments.

Figure 8: The number of company insolvencies in Northern Ireland was twice as high in March 2024 than in March 2023

Company insolvencies, Northern Ireland, March 2019 to March 2024, not seasonally adjusted

Sources: Department for the Economy, Northern Ireland (compulsory liquidations only); Companies House (all other insolvency procedures)

Monthly numbers back to January 2021, and annual numbers back to 2019 can be found in Table 6 of the tables accompanying this release. The monthly series back to October 2009 (where available) can be found in the CSV file that also accompanies this release.

The total insolvency rate in the 12 months to March 2024 in Northern Ireland was 33.9 per 10,000 companies on the effective register, as shown in Figure 9. This is a decrease of 5.9 from the 12 months to March 2023.

Figure 9: The insolvency rate in Northern Ireland was higher in the 12 months to March 2024 compared to the preceding 12 months.

12 month rolling insolvency rate per 10,000 companies on the effective Register, January 2020 to March 2024, Northern Ireland.

Sources: Department for the Economy, Northern Ireland (compulsory liquidations only); Companies House (all other insolvency procedures)

Monthly numbers back to January 2021, and annual numbers back to 2019 can be found in Table 7 of the tables accompanying this release. The monthly series back to October 2010 (where available) can be found in the CSV file that also accompanies this release.

5. Data and Methodology

5.1 Data Sources

Company insolvency data were sourced from Companies House, except for compulsory liquidation data for England and Wales which were sourced from the Insolvency Service administrative systems, and compulsory liquidation data for Northern Ireland which were sourced from the Department for the Economy.

Companies House data were used to determine the number of companies on the effective register in each month, to calculate insolvency rates. These data are separately published by Companies House on the Gov.uk website on a quarterly basis.

More information on the administrative systems used to compile insolvency statistics can be found in the accompanying Methodology and Quality document.

5.2 Methodology and data quality

Detailed methodology and quality information for these statistics can be found in the accompanying Methodology and Quality document.

The main quality and coverage issues to note:

1. Numbers are provided at a national (England & Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland) level only. Data on location is not provided, because address information held by the Insolvency Service relates to the address of the company on the Companies House register at the time of insolvency. This is often the address of an insolvency practitioner, a head office or a virtual office, which does not reflect the location at which the company traded at before its insolvency.

2. All formal insolvency procedures entered into by an individual are required by law to be reported to the appropriate body. These statistics should be a complete record of registered company insolvencies. Solvent company closures such as members’ voluntary liquidations and dissolutions are not included in these statistics. Information on business closures in general can be found in the ONS Business demography publication.

3. Insolvency Service data for the most recent month were extracted five working days after month end and may be revised in the future. In particular, some compulsory liquidations for the latest month may not yet have been entered onto the administrative system at the time of data extraction.

4. Industry breakdowns are reported one month in arrears. This is because for compulsory liquidations, the industry of the company may not be recorded until several weeks after the insolvency date.

5. Bulk CVLs during the period 2016 to 2019 (see Glossary) have been removed from numbers presented in these statistics. Numbers with bulk CVLs included can be found in Table 1d of the accompanying tables.

Seasonal adjustment

Underlying data for these monthly statistics for England and Wales were adjusted using an ARIMA model where there was evidence of seasonality. This removal of systematic calendar-related variation enables comparisons to be made between months and the underlying trend in insolvency numbers to be determined. In accordance with the outcome of the April 2024 Seasonal Adjustment Review, compulsory liquidations, creditors’ voluntary liquidations and administrations were all seasonally adjusted. Seasonal adjustment in this publication typically results in numbers being adjusted by up to 10%. There are a few cases where the adjustment is larger. For example, compulsory liquidation numbers tend to be 20-30% lower during April which often contains Easter. Therefore, when Easter is in April, the process of seasonal adjustment increases the April compulsory liquidation numbers by approximately this amount to correspond to the underlying trend.

For Scotland and Northern Ireland only the unadjusted series have been presented, as agreed with the appropriate officials in the devolved administrations.

Rates of insolvency

Insolvency rates were calculated for England and Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. The total number of companies entering insolvency in each location during the previous twelve months was divided by the mean average number of all companies on the effective Companies House register in that location in the same twelve-month period.

5.3 Revisions

These statistics are subject to revisions, as set out in the published Revisions Policy. Revisions tend to be made as a result of data being entered onto administrative systems after the cut-off date for data being extracted to produce the statistics. In addition, seasonally adjusted numbers are revised in subsequent publications, as the ARIMA model used is updated with additional data. Any future revisions will be noted in the accompanying data tables.

6. Glossary

Key Terms used within this statistical bulletin

Term	Definition
Administration	The objective of administration is the rescue of the company as a going concern, or if this is not possible then to obtain a better result for creditors than would be likely if the company were to be wound up. A licensed insolvency practitioner, ‘the administrator’, is appointed to manage a company’s affairs, business and property for the benefit of the creditors.
Bulk Creditors’ voluntary liquidation	IR35 rules are intended to prevent the avoidance of tax and National Insurance contributions using personal service companies and partnerships. Between April 2016 and early 2019, following changes to the IR35 rules and/or changes in VAT flat rate, some directors of personal service companies had cited these changes as the primary reason that their company’s activities had become unviable, therefore leading to creditors’ voluntary liquidation (CVL) of large numbers of these companies. These additional CVLs are referred to as “bulk insolvencies”.
Company voluntary arrangement (CVA)	CVAs are another mechanism for business rescue. They are a voluntary means of repaying creditors some or all of what they are owed. Once approved by 75% or more of creditors, the arrangement is binding on all creditors. CVAs are supervised by licensed insolvency practitioners.
Compulsory liquidation	A winding-up order obtained from the court by a creditor, shareholder or director. See Liquidation for details on the process.
Creditors’ voluntary liquidation (CVL)	Shareholders of a company can themselves pass a resolution that the company be wound up voluntarily. See Liquidation for details on the process. Administrations which result in a Creditors’ Voluntary Liquidation are recorded separately by Companies House and are excluded from CVL figures as they do not represent a new company entering into an insolvency procedure for the first time. These cases are only ever recorded as Administrations.
Liquidation	Liquidation is a legal process in which a liquidator is appointed to ‘wind up’ the affairs of a limited company. The purpose of liquidation is to sell the company’s assets and distribute the proceeds to its creditors. At the end of the process, the company is dissolved – it ceases to exist. Statistics on compulsory liquidations and creditors’ voluntary liquidations are presented in these statistics. A third type of winding up, members’ voluntary liquidation is not included because it does not involve insolvency.
Moratorium	Moratoriums were introduced under the Corporate Insolvency and Governance Act 2020 to give struggling businesses formal breathing space in which to explore rescue and restructuring options, free from creditor or other legal action. Except in certain circumstances, no insolvency proceedings can be instigated against the company during the moratorium period. It also prevents legal action being taken against a company without permission from the court.
Partnership Winding-up Orders	This is similar to the liquidation of a company. When the partners have decided that the partnership has no viable future or purpose then a decision may be made to cease trading and wind up the partnership. There are two basic ways that the partnership can be wound up: the creditors petition and a partner’s petition.
Receivership Appointments	Administrative receivership is where a creditor with a floating charge (often a bank) appoints a licensed insolvency practitioner to recover the money it is owed. Before 2000 receivership appointments also included other, non-insolvency, procedures, for example under the Law of Property Act 1925. The use of this procedure is restricted to certain types of company, or to floating charges, created before September 2003.
Restructuring Plan	New restructuring measures were introduced under the Corporate Insolvency and Governance Act 2020 to support viable companies struggling with unmanageable debt obligations to restructure under a new procedure. They allow the court to sanction a plan that binds creditors to a restructuring plan if it is fair and equitable. Creditors vote on the plan, but the court can impose it on dissenting classes of creditors (‘cram down’) provided that the necessary conditions are met.
Standard Industrial Classification (SIC 2007)	Used in classifying business establishments and other statistical units by the type of economic activity in which they are engaged. Further information can be found on the ONS website