greencomms.eleventeenth.com/index.jsp?i=229&s=1111&m=ne -
[Cached Version]
Last Visited: 10/16/2008
As the credit crunch bites, Professor Nick Wilson of the CMRC said: "The late payment indicators show deterioration in payment behaviour and a higher incidence of bad debts.
However, the recent signs of financial stress are signaled by the numbers and values of county court judgments against companies."
The Business Credit Index shows the number of companies being successfully sued in court for non-payment of bills has rocketed - a sign that the economic slowdown and credit crisis are forcing firms to break the law.
In some sectors, such as retail, property, transport and business services, the number of county court judgments had increased "fivefold" over the past two years.
The rapid rise has prompted the CMRC to predict that insolvencies will rise by "more than 20pc" in the next two years to the highest level since the dotcom bubble burst in 2001.
"Firms are under pressure," said Professor Wilson.