Hotel insolvencies 'increased by 60% in 2019'

06 January 2020 by
Hotel insolvencies 'increased by 60% in 2019'

Hotel insolvencies in the UK hit a five-year high in 2019, rising by 60% to 144, according to research by accountancy group UHY Hacker Young.

The figure compares to 90 insolvencies in 2018, with the accountancy company attributing the rise to a slowdown in the UK economy hitting corporate spend, a 3% fall in visits from overseas tourists in 2018 compared to 2017 and increased competition.

In 2018 15,500 rooms were added to the market, with a further having been 19,300 forecast for 2019, while alternative providers such as Airbnb continue to grow.

Peter Kubik, partner at UHY Hacker Young, said: "The hospitality sector is facing a period of considerable upheaval. Those hotels that are unable to fund change face being left behind.

"On top of that, Airbnb is increasing its market share and not just amongst millennials. Hotels – many of which are lagging behind in their use of technology – are going to have to quickly bring themselves up to speed."

Hotels have also been impacted by the pressures taking their toll across the hospitality sector, including increases in the National Living Wage, business rates and food costs.

The Caterer Breakfast Briefing Email

Start the working day with The Caterer’s free breakfast briefing email

Sign Up and manage your preferences below

Check mark icon
Thank you

You have successfully signed up for the Caterer Breakfast Briefing Email and will hear from us soon!

Jacobs Media Group is honoured to be the recipient of the 2020 Queen's Award for Enterprise.

The highest official awards for UK businesses since being established by royal warrant in 1965. Read more.

close

Ad Blocker detected

We have noticed you are using an adblocker and – although we support freedom of choice – we would like to ask you to enable ads on our site. They are an important revenue source which supports free access of our website's content, especially during the COVID-19 crisis.

trade tracker pixel tracking