Issue 637 (Week ending 13/07/2024)

The number of commercial judgements rose by 130% in the first half of 2024, with consumer judgements also rising by 56%.

The consumer judgement value took a meteoric rise with an increase of 560% (27m euro compared to 182m euro) despite only 56% more judgements being made compared to 2023, according to our latest figures.

Increase in startups across 14 counties

Just over half the counties in the country noted an increase in start-ups for H1 2024, with Carlow (19%), Louth (17%), Waterford (17%), Galway (14%), Dublin (9%) seeing positive growth.

Counties seeing a reduction in startups include Roscommon (-31%), Kilkenny (-24%), Tipperary (-15%), Monaghan (-14%).

Amongst other counties with the largest populations, Limerick (1%) and Cork (-2%) saw slow start to the first half of the year with minimal growth and some contraction in start - up figures.

Businesses still feeling the effects from Covid-19:

With 40% of commercial judgments filed by Revenue, this would suggest that businesses are not yet out of the woods from the hangover of covid-19. The rise in commercial judgements have come at a similar time to the conclusion of The Tax Debt Warehousing scheme.

This scheme allowed businesses to temporarily defer VAT and Employer PAYE, certain self-assessed income tax liabilities, and Temporary Wage Subsidy Scheme and Employment Wage Subsidy Scheme overpayments on an interest-free basis.

The hospitality sector in particular has faced the brunt of commercial judgements, with 113 in H1 2024, representing a 223% increase year on year.

At a time when the hospitality sector has already struggled in the aftermath of the pandemic, these figures suggest that the difficulties the sector have faced may not be over just yet.

The importance of due diligence in an ever growing and teetering economy:

According to Managing Director of Provision-net, Christine Cullen, The judgment figures reveal that, during the first six months of 2024 we have seen a significant increase in financial and legal actions in Ireland for both Business and Consumer debt recovery. This highlights mounting financial pressure, a lack of forbearance and a growth in relying on legal recourse for debt recovery.

Key contributing factors include the increased cost of living, inflationary pressures, and higher interest rates, all of which has put pressure on the ability of both corporates and consumers to meet their financial commitments. Within this economic environment, there appears to be less tolerance for late payments, particularly given the cashflow challenges potentially arising from these increased consumer and business overheads. The conclusion of the Government's Pandemic support measures has also been cited as a challenge for many Irish-based businesses.

This trend underscores the critical importance of rigorous credit checking and due diligence even during a growth phase. These practices will empower businesses to make more informed business decisions and gain deeper insights into the financial standing of potential customers and partners.

On a positive note, we have seen a four percent increase in company startups. Whilst this represents only modest growth, it again demonstrates the resilience of the Irish domestic economy at a time of renewed economic uncertainty at a global level. We anticipate this growth in startup numbers will continue into the second half of the year.