ALEXANDRIA, Va., and NEW YORK -

A jump in bankruptcies lasted just two months before returning to levels seen during most of last year.

Epiq recently released its May bankruptcy filing statistics from its AACER bankruptcy information services business, reporting that new filings for May dropped to 34,734 across all chapters.

Analysts indicated that level represented a 15% drop from the April new filings count of 40,913.

Epiq indicated non-commercial consumer filings across all chapters totaled 32,958, down 15% from 38,830 in April. The firm said commercial filings across all chapters were also down in May with a total of 1,776 new filings, down 15% from 2,083 in April.

“Bankruptcy filings in May returned to similar levels during the COVID-19 global pandemic after a two-month spike in March and April,” said Chris Kruse, senior vice president of Epiq AACER.

“This is not unexpected, as historically March and April new bankruptcy filings have spiked each year due to holiday over spending,” Kruse continued in a news release. “However, the continued stimulus investments are positively impacting the consumer and holding down bankruptcy volumes.”

In separate news release, American Bankruptcy Institute executive director Amy Quackenboss made a similar assessment, while looking forward to what might be next on filing front.

“Continued stabilization efforts by the federal government, forbearance by lenders and sustained low interest rates have helped keep many businesses and households afloat during the crisis,” Quackenboss said.

“As the pandemic relief runs its course, however, mounting financial challenges may result in more households and companies seeking the shelter of bankruptcy,” she went on to say.

Eqip went on to mention there were 182,629 total new bankruptcy filings across all chapters for the first five months of 2021, down 29% from 255,697 in the same period in 2020.

The firm added commercial Chapter 11 filings were down 14% over April with 246 new filings in May. 

“The continued decline in Chapter 11 filings is anticipated given ample available market liquidity coupled with federal stimulus intervention,” said Deirdre O’Connor, senior managing director of corporate restructuring at Epiq.

ABI also cited Epiq’s data to note that the average nationwide per capita bankruptcy filing rate in May was 1.41 (total filings per 1,000 per population), a slight decrease from the 1.43 filing rate during the first four months of the year.

The information also indicated average total filings per day in May were 1,738, a 13% decrease from the 2,000 total daily filings during the same month last year.

States with the highest per capita filing rates (total filings per 1,000 population) in May included:

1. Alabama (3.20)

2. Nevada (2.93)

3. Tennessee (2.55)

4. Delaware (2.40)

5. Indiana (2.29)