Debt news: personal insolvencies up by almost 25%

Figures released by the Insolvency Service have shown that the number of people declared insolvent in the final quarter of 2009 was almost 25% higher than it was a year earlier, the BBC reports.

In total, 35,574 people were declared insolvent in the final three-month period of the year, taking the total for 2009 to 134,142 - a record high.

The annual figure was up 26% compared with 2008, and was 26,854 higher than the previous record for personal insolvencies set in 2006 - suggesting that many more people have been struggling with unmanageable debt over the past year.

The insolvencies seen in the final quarter of 2009 were made up of 17,007 bankruptcies, 13,219 IVAs (Individual Voluntary Arrangements) and 5,348 Debt Relief Orders (DROs).

Pat Boyden, from accountancy firm PricewaterhouseCoopers, said: "We expect to see the numbers continue to rise as the upwards trend in personal insolvencies traditionally continues for nearly three years after the worst of a recession has passed."

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