R3 report shows insolvency and restructuring profession rescued 297,000 jobs in 2019

The insolvency and restructuring profession rescued 297,000 jobs and returned £1.82 billion to creditors in insolvency cases in the UK in 2019 – the equivalent of around 800 jobs and £5 million a day, according to a new report from R3, the insolvency and restructuring trade body for the south and Thames Valley.

The report, The value of the profession: how insolvency and restructuring supports the UK economy, is based on responses to a survey of representatives of 71 companies from the insolvency and restructuring profession in the UK carried out by Savanta ComRes.

Of the £1.82b members of the insolvency and restructuring profession returned to creditors in 2019, £353m was from corporate insolvency and restructuring cases, and £1.47b from personal insolvency cases.

R3’s research also shows the profession rescued a total of 7,200 UK businesses in 2019, with nearly four out of 10 (39%) businesses advised by R3 members still open after their insolvency procedure concluded.

Further findings include the discovery that the insolvency and restructuring profession advised 60,000 businesses and 144,000 individuals in 2019, with an average of £13,300 returned to creditors upon completion of each personal insolvency procedure.

Garry Lee, chair of R3’s Southern and Thames Valley region, said: “This research shows the scale of the economic contribution made by the profession – the businesses and individuals it helps, the jobs it saves, and the money it returns to creditors – which can be hard to quantify because of the nature of insolvency and restructuring cases.”

Lee, who is an associate director in the recovery and restructuring services department at accountancy firm Smith & Williamson’s Southampton office, added: “This report shows what a contribution the profession made in a relatively calm period for the economy, but it also underlines the important role we can play in supporting businesses, individuals and the wider economy to resolve financial distress in a post-pandemic environment, and why our members are at the forefront of getting the UK back to work.”