Late accounts and worsening finances: what it means
Why Senserity flags companies whose accounts are overdue while their finances are getting worse, what the combination means and what to do about it.
- Severity
- High
- Category
- Financial
- Plan
- Free and above
- Test code
- XFN-003
- Source
- Companies House register, Accounts filed at Companies House · check it yourself
6.2% of UK companies show the related measure: accounts overdue
The published figure counts every company with overdue accounts, not only those whose finances were also worsening.
338,455 of 5,415,879 companies where this can be known, measured 1 October 2026. From the UK Supplier Risk Index, public registers only.
What this test checks
Combines two findings: accounts that are overdue at Companies House, and a deteriorating trend in the company's previously filed accounts, such as falling net assets or growing losses.
Late filing on its own is common and often innocent. Late filing by a company whose finances were already weakening is a much stronger sign of distress, because a struggling company has a reason to delay putting its latest position on the public record.
What a fail looks like
The accounts are overdue and the last accounts on file showed the company in a weaker position than the year before. The next set of accounts, when it arrives, may well be worse.
Harmless explanations
- A company can file late for administrative reasons, such as a change of accountant, while its finances have already recovered.
- A one-off loss, for example from a large investment, can make the trend look worse than the business is.
What to do
- Ask the company for its most recent management accounts or a statement of its current position.
- Limit how much you are owed by it, or how much you depend on it, until the overdue accounts are filed.
- Watch for a strike-off proposal, a winding-up petition or a new charge.
Related tests
- FIN-003Accounts Overdue Check
- FIN-010Net Asset Position
- FIN-008Proposal to Strike Off
- LEG-022Winding-Up Petition Active
Part of the test catalogue. Every check Senserity runs, with its severity and the plan it is available on.
Last reviewed .