ABI: May Consumer and Commercial Bankruptcy Filings Dip

June 06, 2012

Email this story Printer Friendly Version

ALEXANDRIA, Va. — With the expectation of more declines, the American Bankruptcy Institute determined May filings dropped by double digits year-over-year, according to data provided by Epiq Systems.

Total bankruptcy filings in the United States for May decreased 11 percent to 109,392, down from the 122,836 filings registered in May of last year.

ABI indicated total commercial filings for May came in at 5,259, representing a 21-percent drop from the 6,631 filings during the same month a year ago.

Officials added the 104,133 total noncommercial filings for May signaled a 10-percent drop from last May's noncommercial filing total of 116,205.

"Households have reduced their spending and businesses are benefiting from sustained low interest rates," said ABI executive director Samuel Gerdano.

"Expect a continued drop in bankruptcy filing rates as families and businesses reinforce their balance sheets and cut costs," Gerdano continued.

Looking deeper into the May data, ABI noted total commercial Chapter 11 filings also decreased.

Overall, the May total commercial Chapter 11 filing figure of 682 represented a 6-percent decrease from last May's total of 722, but a 3-percent increase above the April number of 660.

Officials added May bankruptcy filings also represented slight increases from April as total filings were up 0.4 percent from the April 2011 total of 108,908.

ABI went on to mention commercial filings increased 2 percent in May from the April total of 5,170, and noncommercial filings increased 0.4 percent from the April total of 103,738.

In wrapping up the latest report, the Institute pointed out the average nationwide per capita bankruptcy-filing rate for the first five calendar months of 2012 (Jan. 1 through May 31) increased to 4.13 (total filings per 1,000 per population) from the 4.10 rate for the first four months of the year.

The association also said the average total filings per day in May was 3,529, an 11-percent decrease from the 3,962 total daily filings in May of last year.

Finally, states with the highest per capita filing rate (total filings per 1,000 population) through the first five months of 2012 were:

1. Nevada (7.17)
2. Tennessee (7.01)
3. Georgia (6.45)
4. Utah (6.13)
5. Alabama (5.87)

ABI reiterated that it partnered with Epiq Systems in order to provide the most current bankruptcy filing data for analysts, researchers and members of the news media. Epiq Systems is a leading provider of managed technology for the global legal profession.