Consumer insolvencies are suffered by individuals for their individual reasons. Debt is a proximate cause in each case, but debt is the result of prior causes, such as gambling, illness, marriage breakup, and job loss, to name just a few.
It has long been noted that there is a notable statistical correlation between the rate of consumer insolvencies and the rate of unemployment.
We provide below graphical evidence for this close correlation, first for Canada as a whole and then for Ontario alone.
Consumer Insolvencies vs. Unemployment - Canada
Source: Statistics Canada and Office of the Superintendent of Bankruptcy, computation by Eric Grossman, CGA
Consumer Insolvencies vs. Unemployment - Ontario
