More than 25,000 people now face homelessness, according to the Irish Mortgage Holders Organisation (IMHO).

The group was reacting to Q3 figures released by the Insolvency Service of Ireland today, which showed that the number of Debt Relief Notices was down 56% to 51 and Debt Settlement Arrangements were down 15% to 64.

The number of Personal Insolvency Arrangements increased by 35 arrangements to 185 in the same period.

Commenting on the figures, David Hall, CEO of the Irish Mortgage Holders Organisation said: “The figures released today are hugely concerning.

“From an initial expectation of thousands of cases, the output from the ISI is anaemic and the schemes of arrangement have failed.

“The Insolvency Service is not fit for purpose and is not serving the thousands of citizens who are at risk of losing their family home and face homelessness.”

The Q3 figures also showed that the number of bankruptcies was down by 39% from Q2 to just 83 in Q3.

The IMHO said that the bankruptcy figures were of “considerable additional concern”, saying the reduction was “the result of many who should avail of bankruptcy holding back to see if the bankruptcy term will be reduced”.

“The time for flip flopping by the government on this issue is over,” said Mr Hall.

“Thousands of indebted families face an uncertain future, an insolvency service that doesn’t work and they now need to know if a one-year bankruptcy term will be available to them. Clarity on this matter is required as a matter of extreme urgency.”

The number of insolvencies in Ireland decreased by 12% to 300 in the July-September period this year, according to Insolvency Service of Ireland figures.