Almost 18,000 UK residents faced bankruptcy in the first three months of this year, statistics have shown.

A total of 17,931 petitions for bankruptcy were launched – a rise of ten per cent on the last quarter of 2007.

Some 4,851 moves for bankruptcies came from creditors and 11,674 from debtors themselves.

Company winding up orders rose 2.6 per cent to 2,965 in total.

However, the figures represent a fall in company and individual bankruptcies were recorded from a year ago.

Figures from the Ministry of Justice show a ten per cent decrease in company winding up order from a year ago, while individual bankruptcy petitions fell 13.8 per cent.

The figures will be keenly watched to adjudge any sign of the credit crunch and economic slowdown hitting Britons.

Further to the bankruptcy figures, the Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML) now predicts as many as 45,000 households will face repossession in 2008.

“Over recent months, however, we’ve observed a steady growth in the numbers of worried homeowners calling us for debt help and advice,” said a spokesperson for debt management firm Gregory Pennington.

“We would, however, like to stress that individual homeowners don’t have to become a statistic.

“In the vast majority of cases, there’s no need for it to come to repossession, as long as people spot potential problems early on and take action before it’s too late. As a rule of thumb, the earlier someone seeks debt advice, the more options they will have at their disposal – and the greater their chances will be of retaining ownership of their property.”