Minimal Asset Process (MAP) debt case breakdown: FOI release

Information requested

You asked for the following information:

1. The level of debts owed by individuals accessing MAP in 2018 e.g. a. under 5000, b. 5000-10000 c. 10000-15000, d. over 15000.

2. The breakdown for 2018 of the nature of debts owed by debtors on a MAP, indicating the different categories of creditor and amount owed.

3. The number of MAP files for 2018 which include 1. Local Authority Council tax debt 2. HMRC debt or DWP overpayments 3. Housing rental claims and 4. Claims by utilities.

Response

I enclose a copy of the information you requested, detailed below and attached in the Excel spreadsheet format you asked for. Note that all the information below is as at 04 September 2019.

Caution is needed when interpreting figures as the total figures presented here may not be consistent with the official, headline quarterly statistics. These figures here are based on data extracted from live databases at a different point in time.

1. The level of debts owed by individuals accessing MAP in 2018 e.g. a. under 5000, b. 5000-10000 c. 10000-15000, d. over 15000:

The number of Minimal Asset Process (MAP) cases by total debt level due to creditors for the calendar year 2018 is shown in the following table:

Table 1: The number of Minimal Asset Process cases by total debt level due to creditors: Scotland, calendar year 2018(1)

Debt level	2018
£1,500 to less than £5,000	273
£5,000 to less than £10,000	866
£10,000 to less than £15,000	746
£15,000 to less than £17,000	171
Total Minimal Asset Process cases	2,056

(1) The total figure presented here may not be consistent with the official, quarterly Scottish Insolvency Statistics publication. These figures are based on data extracted from live databases at a different point in time. The quarterly statistics are the definitive source.

2. Revised Table: The breakdown for 2018 of the nature of debts owed by debtors on a MAP, indicating the different categories of creditor and amount owed.:

The number of debts and total amount of debt owed to creditors in MAP cases by creditor organisation category in Scotland for the calendar year 2018 is shown in the following table.

Please note that the creditor organisation category is derived from the free-text data field and there is no pre-defined data category. Furthermore, this data field is influenced by human errors, including incorrect label and typographical error. Therefore, since the data collection and allocation is not consistent, caution is needed when interpreting figures here.

An error has been identified when data on the amount of debt owed to creditors was compiled. In the revised table below, the original and revised figures are included in order to assess the impact. We apologise for any inconvenience we may have caused.

Revised Table 2: The number of debts and total amount of debt owed to creditors in Minimal Asset Process cases by creditor organisation category(1): Scotland, calendar year 2018

Creditor organisation category	Number of debts	Debt amount owed (£ million)	Number of debts	Debt amount owed (£ million)	Number of debts	Debt amount owed (£ million)
Local Authority Council	2870	-4.8	2870	4.8	0	0
Financial Lender	3060	-3.1	3060	3.2	0	-0.1
Bank	1893	-2.9	1893	2.9	0	0
Retails	1308	-1.5	1308	1.5	0	0
Government	798	-1.2	798	1.2	0	0
Sheriff Firms	-522	-1.1	522	1.1	0	0
Utilities (including communication)	-1237	-0.6	1237	0.6	0	0
Others	-4486	-4.5	4486	4.5	0	0
Total	-16174	-19.6	16174	19.7	0	-0.1

(1) Creditor organisation category is derived from the free-text data field and there is no pre-defined data category. Therefore, since the data collection and allocation is not consistent, caution is needed when interpreting figures here.

3. The number of MAP files for 2018 which include 1. Local Authority Council tax debt 2. HMRC debt or DWP overpayments 3. Housing rental claims and 4. Claims by utilities.

The number of MAP cases for the calendar year 2018 is shown in the following table, which contains the following broad type of debt category: Council tax; HMRC debt; DWP debt; Utility and communication debt; Housing rental debt.

Similar to the issue with the creditor organisation category as mentioned above, please note that the type of debt category is derived from the free-text data field and there is no pre-defined data category. Furthermore, this data field is influenced by human errors, including incorrect labels and typographical error. Therefore, since the data collection and allocation is not consistent, caution is needed when interpreting figures here.

Table 3: The number of Minimal Asset Process cases: Scotland, calendar year 2018(1)

Total Minimal Asset Process cases of which contains (2) (3):	2,056
Council tax	1,290
Utility (including communication) debt	939
DWP debt	484
HMRC debt	353
Housing rental debt	50

(1) The total figures presented here may not be consistent with the official, quarterly Scottish Insolvency Statistics publication. These figures are based on data extracted from live databases at a different point in time. The quarterly statistics are the definitive source.

(2) Type of debt category is derived from the free-text data field and there is no pre-defined data category. Therefore, since the data collection and allocation is not consistent, caution is needed when interpreting figures here.

(3) The sum of the constituent parts will not be equal the total because each MAP case may contain at least one of those debt.

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FOI-19-02050 - Information Released

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