Total Construction Insolvencies Down on Previous Year

TOTAL CONSTRUCTION insolvencies in 2024 were down 6.3% on the previous year, according to the latest data from the Insolvency Service.

Construction firms accounted for 15% of all insolvencies in England and Wales in November 2024, with 316 registered construction businesses becoming insolvent.

By rough comparison, construction firms accounted for 14% of all registered businesses in the UK in 2024.

In the year to November 2024, the total number of construction firms becoming insolvent was 4,102. This was a 6.3% decrease on the 4,380 insolvencies recorded in the year to November 2023, and a 27.5% increase on the 3,217 in pre-pandemic 2019.

Total Construction Insolvencies

Of all cases where the industry was captured in the statistics, construction experienced the highest number of insolvencies in the year to November 2024.

The Insolvency Service said 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. The overall rate in 2024 was 52.4 per 10,000 companies, a decrease from the 57.2 per 10,000 companies that entered insolvency in 2023.

In Scotland, there were seven construction company insolvencies in December 2024, accounting for 8.5% of all insolvencies in the country. This was six fewer than in November 2024, and 10 fewer than in December 2023.

The total for 2024 was 202, which was one less than the 203 insolvencies in 2023, and a 2.4% decrease on the 207 in pre-pandemic 2019.

Construction Sector Most Affected

Within the construction industry, firms categorised as providing specialised construction activities are consistently the most affected across Great Britain.

This includes companies providing a range of work, typically on a subcontract basis, from demolition and site preparation to electrical and plumbing installation, and finishing work like plastering, painting and glazing.

Further data released by the Insolvency Service also showed that 364, or 26%, of self-employed or trader bankruptcies in the year to October 2024 were in construction in England and Wales.

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