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The Minister for Justice and Equality, Charlie Flanagan TD, has today laid the Annual Report on the activities of the Insolvency Service of Ireland (ISI) for 2017 before the Houses of the Oireachtas.

Minister Flanagan said, “I welcome the Annual Report of the Insolvency Service of Ireland 2017 and would like to thank and acknowledge Lorcan O’ Connor, Director of the ISI and his staff for their dedicated work in helping debtors return to solvency in Ireland.”

The Minister continued:

I am heartened by the positive outcomes of this work and, in particular, the fact that debtors have been enabled to stay in their homes in over 90% of cases where a formal Personal Insolvency Arrangement has been reached.

I am also pleased to note the initial success of the Abhaile Scheme, launched by the Government in 2016 in order to ensure people who are in danger of losing their home have access to free professional advice – including advice from a Personal Insolvency Practitioner (PIP).

Abhaile provides for free financial and legal advice and assistance to householders to identify solutions to resolve their mortgage arrears and, where possible, help them remain in their homes.

The Minister noted that in 2017, 5083 vouchers were issued to householders for a free consultation with a PIP and that 4,030 vouchers were redeemed by PIPs, indicating the completion of the provision of specific financial advice and assistance for those borrowers under the Abhaile Scheme.

Minister Flanagan also said:

I acknowledge the ISI’s recommendations to the Department of Justice and Equality in relation to options for reform of the Personal Insolvency legislation in the context of a statutory review being undertaken under section 141 of the 2012 Act. These recommendations will be taken into consideration as the review is progressed by my Department.

ENDS

Notes for Editors

The Insolvency Service of Ireland (ISI) was established on 1 March 2013 under the provisions of the Personal Insolvency Act 2012.

The core operations of the ISI centre around the provision of solutions including bankruptcy and three bankruptcy alternatives; Debt Relief Notices (DRNs), Debt Settlement Arrangements (DSAs) and Personal Insolvency Arrangements (PIAs).

This report highlights the activities undertaken by the ISI in 2017, including:

· During 2017, the eligibility criteria for a DRN was widened by increasing the worth of motor vehicles to €5,000 for the purpose of section 26 of the Personal Insolvency Act 2012.

· In 2017, the number of new applications for all insolvency solutions (DRN, DSA and PIA) through the ISI increased by 39% compared to the previous year.

· In 2017, 118 family homes were transferred back into the ownership of former bankrupts.

· During the course of 2017, the ISI’s Bankruptcy Division conducted over 300 investigations in order to pursue the recovery of assets not declared or illegally transferred by a bankrupt. Three of these investigations led to the recovery of in excess of €6.5million.