Canadians have been on a debt binge, and some cracks are starting to appear. The Office of the Superintendent of Bankruptcy Canada (OSB) saw an increased number of filings in October. Insolvency filings have been moving higher for the past year, especially in the consumer segment.

Canadians Filed Over 139,000 Insolvencies

Canadian insolvencies are rising very quickly from last year’s numbers. There were 13,512 insolvency filings in October, up 11% from a month before. The monthly number is up 13% when compared to the same month last year. In the past 12-months there were 139,194 filings ending in October, which is up 8.8% when compared to the same timeframe a year before. This implies growth could be accelerating even faster.

Canadian Insolvencies – 12 Month

The number of insolvency filings in the 12-months ending in October, by province.

Source: OSB, Better Dwelling.

Canadian Consumer Insolvencies Rise Over 8%

The majority of insolvency filings were by consumers, which is rising even faster. Consumers represented 13,200 of October’s filings, up 13.4% compared to the same month last year. Over the past 12-months consumers filed 135,482 of consumer filings, up 8.9% compared to a year before. This is a relatively small percentage of total consumers, but the speed at which its growing is concerning.

Insolvencies Are Rising In Every Canadian Province

The percent change in rolling 12-months of insolvency filings, ending in October.

Source: OSB, Better Dwelling.

Business Insolvencies Rise Over 4%

Business insolvencies are also growing, but at a slower pace than consumer filings. There were 312 filings in October, down 2.2% from the same month a year before. However, over the past 12-months businesses made 3,712 insolvency filings, up 4.2% compared to the same period last year. Smaller month, but the 12-month period is still growing quickly – just not as fast as consumers.

Canadian consumers and businesses are both seeing insolvencies bump higher. Overall, the rate is still relatively low – especially for businesses. However, this is one economic indicator that tends to rise very fast.

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