As the financial year approaches its close, many finance teams review their ledgers with one goal in mind: cleaning them up before year-end.

Outstanding balances that appear unlikely to be recovered are often written off so the books look tidy. But while writing off debt may simplify reporting, it isn’t always the best commercial decision.

Before making that call, it’s worth asking a few important questions.

Has the debtor been reassessed recently?

Credit risk can change quickly, particularly in sectors like construction. A debtor that looked unstable six months ago may now be trading more securely. Equally, a previously reliable payer could now be showing early signs of distress.

Without a recent reassessment, writing off debt may mean walking away from money that could still be recovered.

Has trading intelligence changed?

Traditional credit reports often rely on historical financial data. However, real trading behaviour — payment patterns, disputes, and sector activity — can reveal changes much sooner.

This kind of real-time insight can dramatically alter how a debt should be handled.

Could structured recovery still work?

Internal credit control teams sometimes reach a point where chasing simply stalls. Communication slows, promises are broken, and progress stops.

That doesn’t always mean the debt is unrecoverable. In many cases, a structured recovery process or professional intervention can produce results quickly.

A recent example saw a construction debt of £80,000 outstanding since September. Internal chasing had made little progress. When the account was escalated in December, formal action and direct contact resulted in full payment the following day.

The debt wasn’t uncollectable; it simply needed the right intervention.

Writing off isn’t the only option

Year-end decisions don’t just affect the current reporting period. They also shape next year’s cash flow.

Before writing off another balance, it’s worth taking a final look at whether the situation has changed and whether action could still recover value.

Because sometimes, the difference between writing off debt and recovering it is simply timing.

If you’d like to explore how real-time construction intelligence can help you minimise debt and maximise cash flow:

📧 sales@top-service.co.uk
📞 01527 503990

When foresight is better than hindsight!

By Philip King

As we moved into 2026, I spent a morning chatting with members of the Member Support and Debt Recovery teams at Top Service. I wanted to know what they had seen in 2025 and what lessons they learned for the year ahead. Several key themes emerged.

Insolvency issues have always been the subject of many calls to the Member Support Team, but slightly less so in 2025. Perhaps members have built their knowledge, or they’re becoming better at dealing with it. The general impression was that, while insolvencies remain high, there have been fewer high-profile instances in construction over the past year, although Corbyn Construction Ltd and Sheen Lane Developments Ltd stood out as impacting a number of clients and involving sizeable amounts. In both cases, Top Service had issued warnings six months before their demise and had successfully collected £1.3m and £250,000 respectively on behalf of clients in the intervening period.

Fraud has replaced insolvency as the number one subject of calls. Long-firm and short-firm frauds are still frequently seen, and impersonation fraud is increasing exponentially. This often seems to be perpetrated by the same people or organisations who repeatedly target suppliers with a view to getting materials or equipment shipped using a genuine customer’s details. By the time the fraud is spotted, the supplies have disappeared, and the fraudulent party/ies cannot be traced.

All too often, members believe that, while they recognise the risks, they won’t get caught. They start to take preventative action only after they have been scammed and become a victim. Where the amounts are sizeable, for a small or micro business, this can be too late. Members are urged to look far more closely at the information they obtain. Checking for cloned websites and minor email inconsistencies can reveal and help avoid the risk.

While the changes being introduced by the Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act (ECCTA) 2023 are to be welcomed, especially the verification and validation of directors’ details, there remains a fear that fraudsters will find ways to circumvent the controls. Their ingenuity is breathtaking at times!

Debt Recovery specialists saw 2025 follow the pattern of previous years for the can’t pays. The inability to pay is often the result of the domino effect caused by a larger or main contractor delaying payment, or through difficulty in finding work or contracts to generate the cash flow needed to pay suppliers promptly or at all. The complexity of contracts signed without having been properly reviewed continued to be a problem. Sub-contractors only find out too late that non-compliance with a particular clause is preventing payment. The relevant clause might be considered unreasonable or even immoral, but that makes it no less effective. Sadly, and all too often, the excitement offered by landing a big new order or contract outweighs the need to be vigilant beforehand.

By far the biggest change in 2025 was the rising eminence of a new weapon for the won’t pays! The increasing use of Artificial Intelligence tools such as ChatGPT allows debtors to identify alleged reasons not to pay, even if those reasons are inappropriate, inapplicable or factually wrong. The use of such tactics, even when the grounds cited are without substance, causes delays while investigations have to be conducted and responses prepared, often leading to a repeated cycle of the process! This is where the Debt Recovery team comes into its own. They know the law, they know the Codes being quoted or misquoted and can have real conversations that cut through the noise being generated, and get back to the crucial issue of getting payment for unpaid invoices.

Interestingly, both teams had the same biggest wish for 2026. They wanted Top Service members to make more use of the payment experience and other shared information available to them. Better informed credit decisions would mean fewer regrets about supplying too much credit to the wrong customers, and fewer invoices being unpaid.

Foresight is so much more effective than hindsight!

Insights from CEO Emma Reilly FCICM

It’s been a bust but productive start to the year for us at Top Service. We are freshly back from the CICM’s British Credit Award,s where Top Service made the finalists lkist in two categories! It wasn’t the night for us to bring home the awards, but it was a fantastic night celebrating our wonderful credit management industry.

It was an honour to be there to watch Rosie Payne, of Saint Gobai,n collect her award for Credit Professional of the Year! A well-deserved award for Rosie. I won the award myself last year, so I know how special it feels – a huge well done to Rosie and also to the team at Saint Gobain, who also picked up an award.

We also celebrate the team at Tarmac – who picked up ‘ Excellence in Credit’ – what a win for you guys! Another well-deserved award to a brilliant team!

Further on in this update, we cover why some of our team, names I’m sure you will recognise – Laura, Lauren, Rachel and Alison decided to start their CICM qualification – a great piece for anyone thinking of doing the same.

We’ve been to a few events already this week, and Laura is attending the Let’s Talk Credit, credit circle in London in early Feb. The feeling on the ground from the majority of our contacts is that ‘volume is down and insolvencies up’. A phrase that has stuck with me since I heard it mentioned at an industry meeting I attended a couple of weeks ago.

The insolvency statistics tell us that insolvencies are down slightly, but with construction remaining the most affected industry. Now, although the numbers tell us the rates are moving in the right direction, it is clear from talking to you and other industry contacts that things are tough on the ground.

Another phrase that always. sticks with me is ‘forewarned is forearmed’, and if there’s one piece of advice I can give to you all is to make use of our member support team. If you’re looking at our credit reports and see there aren’t any trading experiences, please call us or email us. Our team can focus on the company of interest and can look at what other members have shown an active interest in and gather up-to-date, in fact up-to-the-minute trading experiences on your behalf.

Earlier escalation will also help to support you. We are seeing more and more new users to our debt recovery service, and all are experiencing great results! In fact, one of our customers sent us a test debt. It was over £50K plus statutory interest and compensation. It was collected with the charges, in full, within 8 hours, and the relationship has been maintained. My team is skilled at collecting money, professionally and quickly.

Our account managers are here to make sure you are maximising your membership and welcome the opportunity to carry out a training call with you and your teams to ensure everyone knows exactly what you have access to and how to make the most of your membership.

As always, thanks for being part of the Top Service community. Let’s stay strong, together,

We’ve already been out and about at industry events this year & and one consistent message we’re hearing on the ground is that “volume is down and insolvencies are up.” It’s a phrase that’s come up repeatedly, and it matters.

While insolvency statistics suggest a slight overall decline, construction remains the most affected sector, and from speaking with many of you, it’s clear that conditions remain challenging day to day. Numbers may be improving on paper, but the pressure on credit teams is very real.

That’s why one phrase I always come back to is “forewarned is forearmed.” My strongest advice right now is to fully utilise our Member Support Team. If you’re reviewing a credit report and don’t see recent trading experiences, please don’t stop there — call us or email us. Our team can actively investigate the company, identify which members are currently trading, and gather up-to-date — and in fact up to the minute — trading experiences on your behalf. That insight can make all the difference to your decision-making.

Early escalation is also proving critical. We’re seeing a growing number of members turn to our Debt Recovery Service, and the results speak for themselves. Recently, one customer sent us a test debt of over £50,000 plus statutory interest and compensation. The balance was collected in full, including charges, within just 8 hours, and the commercial relationship was preserved. This is exactly what our team specialises in: professional, fast, and effective collections that protect your business relationships.

Contact us today to find exactly why over 3500 other businesses in construction use Top Service to minimise debt and maximise cash. 

Call 01527 503 990 or visit www.top-service.co.uk  to see how we can help you stay financially resilient.

Why the best business outcomes still depend on people talking to people.

By Philip King FCICM

I was privileged to represent Top Service at the 2025 CICM CreditFest events held in Birmingham, Manchester, London, and Leeds in recent months. They were great events, and it was suggested I might share some of my thoughts with a wider audience through this magazine.

Let me start with the warning I gave the attendees at each event. There’s nothing here that you don’t already know. Rather, my intention is to make us think about how we communicate and consider if an alternative medium might make us more effective.

Chambers Dictionary defines communication as “to succeed in conveying one’s meaning to others”. That’s surely what we all set out to do when we start interacting with anybody, so why does it sometimes go so spectacularly wrong?

The pitfalls of modern communication

I’m sure we’ve all misunderstood the intention of an email and reacted more stridently than we should, or we’ve sent something quite innocuous, but the tone or wording we’ve used has resulted in it being misinterpreted and led to some backtracking and explanation. Might a conversation have worked better?

I recently shared a disastrous chatbot exchange, which resulted in me being asked about facial or fingerprint recognition, and avoiding fees and charges, presumably because the bank hadn’t yet taught the bot about CIFAS markers being raised on an account! Eventually, a real conversation produced a satisfactory outcome.

Has the phone fallen silent?

Let’s talk about the phone. I wonder how Alexandra Graham Bell would have felt in 1876 if he’d known how little the device he invented would be used for its intended purpose 150 years on. A Uswitch survey in 2024 found that 25% of 18-34-year-olds never answer their phone. They want a text first or respond by text before having a conversation.

And whatever happened to simple telephone conversations? These days, I suggest a follow-up conversation to someone, and they tell me they’ll send me a meeting invitation. I then sit in front of my computer, while they sit in front of their computer, as we look at each other for ten minutes and have the conversation. It can be usefu,l but is it really always necessary?

Communication is a people thing

People buy from people, people pay people, people talk to people.

That’s why I have a bad taste in my mouth, before I’ve even started eating, when I’ve stood at the podium at a restaurant entrance being ignored by several staff members, waltzing backwards and forwards until the appointed person comes across and greets me with a big smile. If only staff were trained to acknowledge customers when they see them waiting.

That’s why Mrs King didn’t buy a car from a particular dealership earlier this year. The salesman didn’t smile, didn’t make eye contact, didn’t seem interested, and just went through the motions without showing any real interest. The car was probably ideal, but the interaction failed. People buy from people.

That’s why in 1978, at the start of my career in credit, I used to telephone a customer every Monday morning; we’d chat about the weather, football, weekend activities and all manner of things, but rarely mentioned money. If I called him on Monday, his weekly cheque would arrive on Wednesday. If I didn’t call him, it wouldn’t. People pay people.

Some conversations, and especially difficult ones, need more than just words. When we sit with someone, we pick up the unsaid. Body language, eye movement, and gestures all help us to learn what’s going on beneath the surface and gain a better understanding. These are real people conversations: telephone, Zoom, email won’t cut the mustard.

When talking pays off

In my presentation, I shared some examples of Top Service members who had benefited from the organisation’s passion for conversations and sharing. Two were from member support activity and two from the debt collection team.

A member was concerned about an application for a £75,000 credit line from a potential customer. Her call into the team generated some further calls, and the team identified that the application was fraudulent. As a result, the member – and several others – avoided being duped into supplying significant sums. Another member was nervous about an application for substantial credit. Her call into the team led to the unearthing of a number of other similar applications, alongside negative information. They, and other Top Service members, declined the facilities requested and were saved from substantial losses.

The close monitoring of a winding-up petition allowed the debt collection team to act when the petitioner was paid and the petition withdrawn. Quick action allowed the full six-figure sum to be collected in full within 11 days of instruction, with an additional £10,000 recovered for late payment interest and compensation charges.

The final example related to a member of the debt collection team, noting a complete change in the tone of voice from a member of the debtor’s accounts team who moved from “the payment will be on the next run” to “I need to get authorisation to add to the next payment run” when it had failed to arrive. The collector spotted nuances in the voice of the other party. As a consequence, further digging revealed an as-yet-unadvertised winding-up petition. The Top Service member supported it and got paid.

All four examples pay tribute to the monitoring activity and speed of contact, but, more importantly, they demonstrate the value of real and timely conversations that allowed quick decisions to be made. People working with people get positive results.

Try it and see the difference

My challenge to CreditFest attendees was to go away and think before each interaction each day. Will a text elicit a simple piece of information without adding to the recipient’s inbox? Is it quicker to wander to someone’s desk and ask them for an update, and avoid the writing, responding to, and reading of emails? Could popping your head round the boss’s door and asking for a chat, or picking up the phone, work better than creating a long email chain providing the background and story, then answering questions that arise, before getting into the process of agreeing on next steps?

Do that enough, and it will become a habit, and we’ll be more effective. Why not give it a try?

Philip King FCICM is a non-executive director at Top Service Ltd

January 2026 saw a slight rise in company insolvencies across England and Wales, but the construction sector remains under the most strain.

January 2026: Monthly Results

In January 2026, there were 1,744 registered company insolvencies, up 4% from December 2025 (1,683) but 14% lower than January 2025 (2,028).

Breakdown of January 2026 insolvencies:

Compulsory liquidations: 256 (up 4% from December, but below 2025 monthly average)

Creditors’ Voluntary Liquidations (CVLs): 1,323 (slightly higher than December, but below 2025 monthly average)

Administrations: 151 (41% higher than December, 14% higher than January 2025)

Company Voluntary Arrangements (CVAs): 13 (lower than December and January 2025)

Receiverships: 1

The 12-month rolling insolvency rate stood at 51.7 per 10,000 companies, meaning 1 in 193 companies entered insolvency between February 2025 and January 2026.

While the number of insolvencies is higher than the lows seen in 2020–2021, it is still well below the peak levels of the 2008–09 recession.

2025 in Review: A Challenging Year for Construction

Looking at the full year, 2025 saw elevated insolvency levels compared to historical norms. The construction sector was hardest hit, with 3,931 construction firms entering insolvency, representing 17% of all cases where the industry was known.

Other sectors also faced challenges, including:

• Wholesale and retail trade: 3,728 cases (16%)

• Accommodation and food services: 3,353 cases (14%)

• Administrative and support services: 2,446 cases (10%)

• Professional, scientific and technical activities: 1,991 cases (8%)

• Manufacturing: 1,943 cases (8%)

Construction’s pressures are driven by tight margins, rising material and labour costs, delayed projects, and higher borrowing costs, combined with ongoing late payment issues and increasing National Insurance contributions for employers.

Our View: Stay Proactive

Even with slight monthly dips or stabilisation, construction businesses must act early to protect cash flow and mitigate risk.

At Top Service, we help construction firms:

• Identify early warning signs to prevent financial strain from escalating

• Recover overdue invoices through our specialist recovery services

• Optimise cash flow and credit management tools to minimise risk

📞 Don’t wait until problems become critical. Call 01527 503 990 or visit www.top-service.co.uk  to see how we can help you stay financially resilient.

We are midway through the first month of 2026, and from all of us at Top Service Ltd, we wish you a very happy New Year.

As we move into 2026, the UK construction sector continues to operate in a uniquely challenging environment. Economic data from late 2025 shows construction output remained subdued, driven by weaker demand across both residential and commercial markets. While there have been pockets of resilience, particularly within civil engineering, overall confidence across the industry remains cautious.

One of the clearest indicators of this pressure has been insolvency levels. Throughout 2025, construction continued to account for one of the highest proportions of corporate insolvencies in the UK, often representing around 16–17% of all business failures. Smaller and specialist subcontractors were particularly exposed, highlighting just how vulnerable businesses can be when operating on tight margins and under cash-flow pressure.

Although insolvency figures fluctuated during the year, the underlying trend was consistent: financial stress remains a significant risk across the supply chain.

At Top Service Ltd, we spent time reviewing the insolvencies in 2025 that had the greatest impact on the construction sector — and on businesses like yours. Two examples stand out.

Corbyn Construction Ltd entered administration on 15 May 2025, with over £120,000 in County Court Judgments at the point of appointment. Our team issued an early warning in November 2024, enabling members using our services to act decisively. As a result, almost £1 million in overdue invoices was successfully recovered before administration.

Similarly, Sheen Lane Developments Ltd went into administration on 26 March 2025, with £246,000 in outstanding CCJs. Following an early warning issued in October 2024, our team successfully collected £250,000 for members prior to the company’s collapse.

These examples clearly demonstrate the importance of reacting early to changes in credit information, accelerating escalation when risk indicators appear, and managing overdue invoices on a case-by-case, informed basis rather than relying on generic processes.

Our team also identified a significant rise in scams and fraud during 2025, with last year described internally as the most challenging they have experienced in this area. Fraud continues to have a serious impact not only on individual businesses, but on confidence across the wider construction industry.

We understand that as we head into 2026, anyone responsible for credit management within construction is facing pressure from every direction — including:

• Late payments and ongoing cash-flow strain
• Rising labour, material, and operational costs
• Increased overtrading risk as businesses chase volume

All of these factors reinforce the need for robust, proactive credit management — something we take very seriously at Top Service Ltd.

By working with us, you gain access to our market intelligence, specialist services, and experienced team, all focused on protecting your cash flow and reducing your exposure to risk. Now is the right time to ensure you fully understand where and how we can support your business.

Please contact us to explore how Top Service Ltd can help you strengthen your credit processes — and together, let’s make 2026 a more secure and successful year.

The latest insolvency figures are in, and while headline numbers dipped at the end of 2025, risk in the construction supply chain remains very real.

In December 2025, 1,671 companies across England and Wales became insolvent:

• 10% lower than November 2025
  
• 13% lower than December 2024
  

While this monthly fall is welcome, it mirrors normal volatility rather than a meaningful recovery. Insolvency levels remain elevated by historical standards, particularly for voluntary closures.

What the Numbers Show

December 2025 insolvencies included:

• Creditors’ Voluntary Liquidations (CVLs): 78% of all cases
  
• Compulsory liquidations: down 4% on November
  
• Administrations: down 21% month-on-month
  
• Company Voluntary Arrangements (CVAs): low and declining
  
• Receiverships: none recorded
  

CVLs continue to dominate, underlining a clear trend: more businesses are choosing to shut down voluntarily, often after prolonged cashflow pressure and mounting debt.

Construction: Still Under Pressure

Although December saw a short-term dip overall, the past four years have recorded the highest CVL volumes since records began in 1960.

For construction, this matters.

Voluntary liquidations are particularly damaging for suppliers and subcontractors:

• Less warning
  
• Limited recovery prospects
  
• Outstanding balances are often written off entirely
  

Even when demand exists, tight margins, rising costs, and delayed payments continue to push construction firms toward closure rather than recovery.

What’s Driving the Trend?

Despite the December slowdown:

• Compulsory liquidations in 2025 were at their highest level since 2012
  
• Administrations fell overall in 2025, suggesting fewer companies are able, or willing to restructure
  
• CVLs in 2025 were 10% lower than the 2023 record high, but still historically elevated
  

This points to a market where businesses are running out of road, not just experiencing temporary pressure.

Insolvencies by Industry: Construction Remains the Most Exposed

The number of insolvencies in the 12 months to November 2025 was:

• Construction
  • 3,950 insolvencies
  • 17% of all cases with industry recorded
  • The highest of any sector, reflecting sustained pressure from tight margins, rising costs, and ongoing cashflow disruption
    
• Wholesale & Retail
  • 3,773 insolvencies (16%)
    
• Accommodation & Food Services
  • 3,372 insolvencies (14%)
    
• Administrative & Support Services
  • 2,451 insolvencies (10%)
    
• Professional, Scientific & Technical
  • 1,983 insolvencies (8%)
    
• Manufacturing
  • 1,970 insolvencies (8%)
    

Key takeaway:
Construction continues to lead all sectors by insolvency volume, underlining the need for early action, tighter credit control, and real-time construction-specific risk intelligence.

Our Take – What This Means for You

At Top Service Ltd, we look beyond headline statistics.

As the UK’s only credit reference agency dedicated solely to the construction industry, we use real-time, construction-specific trading data shared by our members to identify distress months – often over a year – before insolvency occurs.

What we consistently see:

• Payment delays are creeping in, long before failure
  
• Sudden changes in payment behaviour
  

In the current environment, late payment is no longer just a nuisance; it’s often the first sign of collapse.

This isn’t the time to rely on outdated credit reports or annual accounts. It’s the time to act on live intelligence from inside the industry.

What Should You Do Now?

• Review and tighten payment terms where needed
  
• Monitor customer behaviour: missed payments, CCJs, director changes
  
• Use live credit alerts, not static reports
  
• Act early on overdue debt
  
• Speak to specialists who understand construction risk
  

Still Trading in a High-Risk Sector? Stay Protected.

Insolvency numbers may fluctuate month to month, but construction remains one of the most exposed sectors in the UK economy.

At Top Service Ltd, we help construction businesses:

• Minimise debt exposure
  
• Make confident credit decisions
  
• Get paid faster
  
• Stay one step ahead of insolvency risk
  

Let’s talk. With the right tools and real-time, industry-specific data, you can trade safely, without the surprises.

Stay ahead. Minimise risk. Maximise cash.

We’re here to help – whether it’s insight, tools, or recovery.

Call us on 01527 503990 or visit top-service.co.uk

January is a critical time for construction businesses. With tight margins, long projects, and the financial pressure of overdue invoices rolling over from last year, cash flow can start the year under strain.

At Top Service Ltd, we help construction suppliers and merchants minimise debt, maximise cash, and start the year with confidence. Our specialist credit management solutions are designed specifically for the UK construction sector, giving you real-time intelligence, proactive support, and expert guidance.

Why January is the Perfect Time for a Credit Control Review

Many businesses enter the new year without a proper credit reality check. Some common pitfalls we see in January include:

• Overdue invoices carrying over from the previous year
• Letting old debt slide in the hope it will “resolve itself”
• Limited visibility of debtor days and credit limits
• Lack of monitoring for insolvency or late payment risk

Even small oversights can have a significant impact on cash flow, so taking a proactive approach now can protect your business from larger problems later in the year.

2026 Credit Management Checklist

Starting the year strong means reviewing and updating your processes. Here’s a practical checklist for construction businesses:

✔️ Have you reviewed your credit limits?
✔️ Are payment terms being enforced consistently?
✔️ Do you have clear visibility of debtor days?
✔️ Are you actively monitoring insolvency risk?

If you’re unsure about any of these, your cash flow could be exposed. Top Service can provide the tools, intelligence, and support to fill those gaps.

How Top Service Supports Construction Businesses

We understand the challenges of construction complex projects, multiple trading partners, and variable payment behaviours. Our services help you stay protected at every stage:

• Credit Information & trading experience: Real-time insights from thousands of trading partners
• Company and director monitoring: Identify linked or high-risk companies early
• Proactive collections support: Targeted debt recovery before overdue invoices escalate
• Expert guidance: Tailored advice when you need it most

Early Awareness Protects Your Business

January is also the perfect time to raise insolvency awareness. Being informed about companies showing signs of financial distress can make the difference between recovering funds and writing them off.

By monitoring customers and suppliers, staying on top of overdue accounts, and acting quickly, construction businesses can reduce credit risk and improve cash flow from the very start of the year.

Your Credit Management Goals for 2026

What’s your priority this year? Some of the most common goals we see include:

• Reducing late payments
• Improving cash flow
• Minimising credit risk
• Strengthening insolvency awareness

Top Service can help you achieve these goals with sector-specific intelligence and actionable support, giving you the confidence to trade safely.

Start the Year Strong with Top Service

Don’t let overdue invoices and credit risks slow your business down. Whether you need guidance, monitoring, or debt recovery support, we’re here to help you start 2026 with stronger cash flow and greater confidence.

📞 Call us today on 01527 503990
✉️ Email: sales@top-service.co.uk

The latest company insolvency figures for England and Wales provide a welcome (though cautious) signal for the construction sector.

In November 2025, there were 1,866 registered company insolvencies, down 8% on October and 7% lower than November 2024. While insolvency numbers across 2025 remain slightly higher than last year, they are still significantly below 2023, which saw the highest annual insolvency levels in 30 years.

For construction businesses operating in an environment defined by tight margins, extended payment terms, and ongoing cost pressures, these figures matter — not just as statistics, but as indicators of risk across the supply chain.

A Closer Look at the Numbers

The majority of insolvencies in November 2025 were creditors’ voluntary liquidations (CVLs), accounting for 1,461 cases. These are typically used when directors conclude that a business can no longer meet its obligations, a familiar scenario in construction where cash flow can deteriorate quickly following delayed payments, cost overruns, or the failure of a key client.

There were also:

• 250 compulsory liquidations, down 21% on the previous month
  
• 136 administrations, a slight increase month-on-month
  
• 18 company voluntary arrangements (CVAs)
  
• One receivership appointment
  

The reduction in compulsory liquidations is particularly notable. These often follow sustained creditor pressure or HMRC action, so the decline may indicate that fewer businesses are being pushed to the crisis point, or that more directors are acting earlier.

At the same time, the increase in administrations and CVAs suggests a growing willingness to explore restructuring and rescue options, rather than allowing businesses to fail outright.

Construction Still Most Affected Sector – November 2025

In November 2025, construction remained the sector most impacted by company insolvencies:

• Construction: ~15–18% of all insolvencies – the highest of any sector
  
• Wholesale & retail trade: ~16%
  
• Accommodation & food services: ~14%
  
• Administrative & support services: ~10%
  
• Manufacturing: ~8%
  

Even as total insolvencies fell compared with October, construction businesses continue to face cashflow pressures, contract challenges, and rising costs, keeping sector risk elevated.

Our takeaway: Creditors and suppliers should keep a close eye on cash flow and payment behaviour, and businesses should consider early action to protect liquidity and manage exposure.

What This Means for Construction Businesses

Construction remains one of the sectors most exposed to insolvency risk, not just at a company level but across entire project chains. When a contractor, subcontractor, or key supplier fails, the impact can be immediate and far-reaching.

Key structural challenges remain:

• Long payment cycles and retentions, which restrict working capital
  
• Price volatility in materials makes fixed-price contracts riskier
  
• Dependency on a small number of contracts or clients
  
• Knock-on exposure when another party in the chain collapses
  

Although the 12-month rolling insolvency rate has dipped slightly to 52.9 per 10,000 companies, this does not remove the need for caution. Insolvency rates have risen from the unusually low levels seen during 2020–21 and, while still well below the peaks of the 2008–09 recession, the risk landscape remains challenging.

It is also important to note that the apparent moderation in insolvency rates is partly due to the number of registered companies more than doubling over the past decade. In practical terms, failures remain a regular feature of the commercial environment.

Early Indicators From A Creditor Perspective

For construction businesses, insolvency is rarely sudden. Financial distress typically develops over several months, leaving early warning signals that creditors can identify through credit monitoring, payment behaviour, and commercial intelligence.

Creditors should be alert to:

• Deteriorating payment performance, including slower settlement of invoices, partial payments, or increased reliance on extended terms
• Changes in supplier behaviour, such as requests for revised terms, staged payments, or early-settlement concessions
• HMRC-related risk indicators, including signs of PAYE, VAT, or CIS arrears, or repeated Time to Pay arrangements
  
• Evidence of contract underperformance, where rising labour or material costs are eroding margins and increasing cash dependency
• Escalating creditor activity, including frequent chaser correspondence, statutory demands, or the emergence of winding-up threats
• Overtrading indicators, where turnover increases, but liquidity weakens, suggesting contracts are being used to fund short-term cash gaps
• Withdrawal or tightening of third-party support, such as reduced bank facilities, bonding capacity, or insurance cover
• Reduced financial transparency, including delayed filings, inconsistent management information, or limited visibility over work in progress and profitability
  

Businesses exhibiting multiple indicators are typically operating under sustained cashflow pressure.

Our Take

The November figures point to stabilisation rather than recovery.

The fall in liquidations is encouraging, but the dominance of CVLs shows that many businesses are still reaching the point where directors feel they have no viable alternative. For construction, this reinforces a long-standing truth: cash flow, not profit, determines survival.

We are also seeing a gradual shift toward earlier intervention, with more companies exploring administration or CVAs before creditor pressure becomes overwhelming. That is a positive development — but only for those who act in time.

Construction businesses that stay close to their numbers, actively manage supply-chain risk, and seek advice early are best placed to navigate the months ahead.

Strengthening Your Foundations

If you operate in the construction sector — whether as a contractor, subcontractor, developer, or supplier — now is the time to review your financial position and risk exposure.

• Are you confident in your cashflow forecasts?
  
• Do you understand your exposure to supplier or client insolvency?
  
• Do you have a plan if a major contract underperforms or payments are delayed?
  

Early advice can make a critical difference. Speaking to an experienced advisor before problems escalate can help protect your business, your projects, and your people.

📩 Contact us today to see how our insight and support can help you manage credit risk, minimise debt, and protect cashflow.