The number of companies that went into liquidation fell in the third quarter but the number of individuals becoming insolvent continued to rise, according to official data.

Figures from the UK’s Insolvency Service showed that while the number of corporate insolvencies, at 4,716 in the three months to September, was 14.6 per cent above the same quarter in 2008, it was 9.8 per cent below the level seen in the three months through June 2009.