British bar closures double since 2020
According to analysis by UHY Hacker Young, 789 pub and bar groups in England, Scotland and Wales became insolvent in 2025.
The figure is more than double the 367 that went under in 2020.
Compared with 2024, pub and bar company insolvencies rose by 2.6%.
The impact was made mostly in Scotland, where on-trade group insolvencies rose by 33% to a total of 53.
England and Wales fared better, with insolvencies rising by 0.96%.
Notable on-trade business failures in 2025 included cricket-themed chain Sixes and pub group Oakman Inns.
UHY Hacker Young noted that 2026 has been off to a rocky start, with the collapse of The Revel Collective and BrewDog.
“Pubs and bars are firefighting on several fronts and, with the exception of Covid-19 and 2024, insolvencies have risen every year over the past decade. I would not be surprised to see more,” Peter Kubik, partner at UHY Hacker Young, said.
“Pub groups will be worried how war in the Gulf is going to impact their energy prices. The government will be giving pubs a 15% discount on pubs and bar groups’ business rates bills from April, but it simply is not enough when you look at the costs and burdens they face. It is like giving someone facing a tidal wave in a small boat a bucket.”
Earlier this month, pub chain Wetherspoon revealed its wage costs had risen by £28 million.
In the February issue of The Spirits Business magazine, we asked if the UK spirits industry can survive another duty hike.
Related news
UK gov uses tags to detect criminal drinking
