Expert predicts rise in insolvency rates

The number of British consumers declaring insolvency is likely to have increased bythe time the latest official figures are released, according to one finance expert.

Ian Gould, from the accountancy firm PKF, told the Birmingham Mail that he expects to see more than 30,000 Britons declare bankruptcy or enter an Individual Voluntary Arrangement (IVA) during the third quarter of this year.

Explaining his assertion, Mr Gold suggests that increases in the cost of borrowing and pressures to spend over the summer months have seen many UK consumers overstretch themselves financial.

“The government’s second quarter insolvency statistics showed a fall in the numbers of people going bankrupt or taking out an IVA,” he told the newspaper.

“With the summer season over and no letup from the Bank of England likely, I predict the figures will breach the 30,000 mark for the first time.”

Earlier this year, the accountancy firm KPMG predicted that there will be over 130,000 people declared insolvent in England and Wales over the course of this year.