THE NUMBER of companies becoming insolvent in Ireland fell by 8 per cent between the second and third quarters of this year, according to figures released by InsolvencyJournal.ie.

Meanwhile, liquidations (both voluntary and court liquidations) rose 12 per cent in Q3 2011 compared with the third quarter of 2010 – up from 283 to 318.

In total, 389 insolvencies were recorded in the quarter ending September 2011 and insolvencies have reached 1,208 for the year to date. By this time last year, there were 1,132 insolvencies.

The number of receivers being appointed to businesses fell for the third month in a row in September, falling from 17 in August to 12 last month. However, just three companies went into examinership – a “disappointingly low” figure, according to Ken Fennell of KavanaghFennell, which compiled the statistics.

“The total number of examinership appointments remain disappointingly low considering this is the only form of corporate restructuring available for Irish businesses and we believe changes to the examinership legislation is urgently needed,” Fennell said.

The latest statistics show a 12 per cent decrease in insolvencies within the construction industry, from 115 in Q3 2010 to 101 for the same period of this year. Meanwhile, insolvencies within the retail and hospitality industries rose by 7 and 22 per cent respectively.