New figures show that more than 40,000 companies in Yorkshire are now classified as being in business distress, mirroring the picture throughout the UK as a whole following the COVID-19 pandemic.

These figures come from top corporate recovery and rescue firm Begbies Traynor, which publishes a quarterly Red Flag Alert on the state of firms in the UK. The report for the first quarter of 2021 shows that 42,719 firms in Yorkshire are now classed as being in the initial stages – or displaying more advanced evidence – of financial distress. This represents a rise of 39% in comparison to the figures for the first quarter of last year.

During the opening quarter of this year, an additional 5,400 firms throughout Yorkshire had started to hit rough waters in terms of their finances. Asking for the help of a qualified business accountant in Doncaster could help such firms find solutions to issues – such as insufficient cashflow – that would make a real difference to them.

When it comes to more advanced indicators of distress, the numbers jump – with a rise of 21% during the first quarter of 2021. This reflects the nationwide situation, where 15% more firms were showing serious signs of being in financial trouble compared with the year before.

The Yorkshire Regional Managing Partner at Begbies Traynor, Julian Pitts, stated that the results of its latest Red Flag Alert were concerning for businesses in Yorkshire, especially given the measures that have been introduced via the government to try to help companies survive the pandemic.