Bankruptcy Filing Stats

Bankruptcy filings reflect the economy as a whole – and it’s clear we are not on a fast path toward recovery. Consumers are clearly struggling to pay off the debt they’ve accrued over the years, and are turning to bankruptcy as a last resort.


The regions that appeared to be the hardest hit by personal bankruptcy filings were situated in the Southwest, with some exceptions, while the Southeast appeared to experience the most dramatic declines in personal bankruptcy filings. The states that saw the largest increases in bankruptcy filings in 2010 from the previous year included Hawaii (28.9%) California (25.0%), Utah (24.4%) and Colorado (17.4%). Conversely, states that saw drops in the rate of personal bankruptcy filings included Tennessee (-7.2%), West Virginia (-7.1%), South Carolina (-4.1%), Iowa (-3.6%) and Kentucky (-2.7%).

The number of U.S. consumers who filed petitions for personal bankruptcy protection grew 9 percent to 1.53 million in 2010 and this could rise as consumers struggle with excess debt in an uncertain economy, according to the American Bankruptcy Institute (ABI), an association of attorneys and other bankruptcy professionals, and the National Bankruptcy Research Center (NBKRC).