Over half of new transport companies close within 5 years

Breakwells Transport analysed Companies House data to uncover the number of new transport companies that were incorporated between January 2021 and December 2025. They looked at the number that have already gone into administration, liquidation, or dissolution to create a clear picture of the business mortality rates in the industry.

In the last five years, 47,205 out of 90,101 newly incorporated transport companies have closed. That means that 52% of new companies have already shut their doors before reaching the 5-year mark.  This is around a 7% increase from last year’s figures.

The data was also split by the nature of the business to see which transport companies are the hardest to run. Breakwells Transport found that businesses operating warehousing and storage facilities for land transport activities have the highest mortality rates, 61% of those companies closed within five years of opening.

On the opposite end of the scale, businesses that do cargo handling for land transport activities have a 49% closure rate, and for companies involved in freight transport by road, it’s 51%.

In response to the findings, Julie Breakwell, director of Breakwells Transport, said: “Businesses of any type can fail, and this isn’t a problem exclusive to logistics. That being said, the high business closure rate isn’t surprising as this industry has thin margins. Global supply chain disruptions, customs increases, and the volatility in the costs of running a transport business, such as fuel, labour, and maintenance, can all hugely limit a company’s ability to succeed.

“Not to mention, the lack of qualified HGV drivers means that recruiting for your business can be extremely difficult. The national minimum wage has increased to £12.71; meanwhile, employers’ national insurance contributions are now 15% of earnings. Altogether, in an industry already struggling to recruit, it has become increasingly difficult to hire and keep reliable and experienced drivers and actually make a profit in your business.

“It also only seems to be getting harder in logistics as newly announced HGV regulations, which aim to reduce emissions, will likely increase business costs. It makes deciding to expand your fleet, a big reason why companies stay afloat, much harder.”