There was an 18.2% rise in the number of companies going out of business last year, according to the latest Equifax Business Failures Report.

Equifax external affairs director, Neil Munroe said: “To see the number of businesses going bust for the whole of the year rise so significantly is very worrying.

"But what is equally worrying is the increase in failures in the last quarter of the year.

"Comparing Q4 2007 with Q4 2008, there is an increase of 32.1% in businesses going into administration.”