This page is updated monthly as the Office of the Superintendent of Ontario releases data.
Updated for August 2026
2026 Consumer Insolvency Filings
Consumer insolvencies returned to modest growth in August. Ontario insolvencies increased 5.4% year-over-year, while Canada-wide filings rose by 4.0%.
The mix between bankruptcies and consumer proposals remains weaker than a year ago. In Ontario, consumer proposals accounted for 79% of insolvencies in August, down from 81% in August 2025. Nationally, the proposal share declined to 77%, from 79% a year earlier.
In Ontario, bankruptcies have now grown faster than consumer proposals for 15 consecutive months, compared with five consecutive months nationally. Year-to-date, Ontario bankruptcies are up 24.1% while national bankruptcies have increased 9.2%.
Year-to-date, total Ontario consumer insolvencies are up 10.1% over the first eight months of 2025, while Canadian filings are up 6.1%. We expect filing volumes to remain elevated through the balance of the year, even as reported year-over-year growth rates moderate.
The persistent gap between bankruptcy and proposal growth remains the clearest insolvency signal to monitor. A consumer proposal requires enough monthly income to sustain payments over several years. The sustained increase in bankruptcies relative to proposals may indicate that more insolvent consumers lack the surplus income to make a proposal to creditors or are concerned about the long-term stability of that income.
Our Homeowners Bankruptcy Index was 10.7% in August, with a year-to-date average of 10.9%.
Ontario Consumer Insolvency Statistics by Region 2025
In 2025 52,838 Ontarians filed for insolvency. Year-over-year personal bankruptcies increased by 31.1%, while consumer proposals grew by 16.8%.
To understand the profile of an average Canadian in consumer insolvency, read our annual Joe Debtor Bankruptcy Study
Below is a summary of insolvencies by geographic region as summarized by Hoyes Michalos based on insolvency statistics by FSA provided by the Office of the Superintendent of Bankruptcy (OSB). Regional FSA allocations may differ slightly from annual economic region data provided by the OSB as the regional data summarized by Hoyes Michalos provides additional location details than is available by economic region.
REGION* |
Consumer Insolvencies | Total Growth | Growth Bankruptcy | Growth Proposal | % Proposals |
| Canada | 140,457 | 2.3% | 4.3% | 1.8% | 79.5% |
| Ontario | 51,637 | 2.3% | 7.7% | 1.1% | 80.1% |
REGION* |
|||||
| Barrie Region | 2,360 | 26% | 10% | 30% | 85% |
| Belleville Region | 1,011 | 10% | 4% | 11% | 81% |
| Brampton | 2,470 | 24% | 43% | 21% | 83% |
| Brantford Region | 1,069 | 24% | 53% | 20% | 83% |
| Brockville Region | 382 | 25% | -17% | 40% | 82% |
| Cambridge | 608 | 22% | 25% | 22% | 83% |
| Chatham Region | 550 | 7% | 20% | 3% | 77% |
| City of Toronto | 3,201 | 18% | 10% | 20% | 83% |
| Cornwall Region | 524 | 31% | 34% | 30% | 78% |
| Essex-Leamington Region | 313 | 5% | 15% | 2% | 77% |
| Etobicoke | 1,509 | 14% | 34% | 10% | 81% |
| Guelph | 484 | 12% | 28% | 8% | 79% |
| Hamilton Region | 2,550 | 19% | 22% | 18% | 81% |
| Huron Region | 641 | 23% | 18% | 24% | 77% |
| Kingston Region | 668 | 12% | -13% | 21% | 80% |
| KW-Wellington Region | 1,577 | 19% | 35% | 16% | 81% |
| London Region | 2,850 | 19% | 38% | 14% | 78% |
| Markham | 762 | 15% | 19% | 15% | 85% |
| Mississauga | 2,305 | 14% | 19% | 13% | 84% |
| Newmarket & Area | 1,023 | 20% | 31% | 19% | 83% |
| Niagara Region | 1,976 | 21% | 16% | 22% | 78% |
| North Bay Region | 454 | 2% | -14% | 6% | 80% |
| North York | 3,881 | 24% | 27% | 24% | 85% |
| Burlington-Oakville Region | 1,397 | 21% | 16% | 23% | 82% |
| Orangeville & Area | 451 | 36% | 65% | 31% | 82% |
| Oshawa-Bowmanville Region | 1,927 | 17% | 19% | 17% | 84% |
| Ottawa Region | 3,592 | 15% | 0% | 19% | 81% |
| Parry Sound-Huntsville Region | 343 | 20% | 24% | 19% | 79% |
| Pembroke Region | 293 | 8% | 25% | 3% | 76% |
| Peterborough Region | 950 | 24% | 0% | 30% | 82% |
| Pickering | 850 | 28% | 61% | 23% | 84% |
| Richmond Hill | 620 | 37% | 58% | 33% | 80% |
| Sarnia Region | 399 | 3% | -11% | 8% | 75% |
| Sault Ste. Marie Region | 437 | -3% | -31% | 11% | 77% |
| Scarborough | 2,665 | 19% | 27% | 18% | 84% |
| Stratford Region | 180 | 2% | -26% | 10% | 82% |
| Sudbury Region | 1,039 | 10% | 14% | 9% | 78% |
| Thunder Bay Region | 618 | 1% | -9% | 4% | 79% |
| Timmins Region | 512 | 2% | 48% | -7% | 77% |
| Vaughan | 577 | 28% | 20% | 30% | 83% |
| Windsor Region | 1,210 | 5% | -3% | 8% | 79% |
| Woodstock Region | 420 | 14% | 24% | 12% | 80% |
| *Region includes surrounding rural areas | |||||
Press Inquiries
For commentary and information about consumer insolvencies and debt issues in Ontario, contact:
J. Douglas Hoyes
CA, CPA, Licensed Insolvency Trustee
Email Doug
Ted Michalos
CA, CPA, Licensed Insolvency Trustee
Email Ted