Data · Companies House
Cash position of UK accommodation and food service (hospitality) companies in 2026
Draft, not published
76.2% of UK accommodation and food service (hospitality) companies in our sample hold less cash than the creditors they must pay within one year. Across the whole sample the figure is 63.8%. Based on 122 companies in this sector with the figure tagged, from Companies House filings in June and July 2026.
Every figure we can publish for this sector
Each row shows what this sector reported, the same measure across the whole sample, and how many companies in the sector carried that figure. The counts differ by row because companies tag different fields, and the median ratio row uses its own smaller count: it needs both figures tagged and creditors above zero.
| Measure | Accommodation and food service (hospitality) | UK-wide | Companies in this figure |
|---|---|---|---|
| In net current liabilities (net current assets below zero) | 51.9% | 37.3% | 295 |
| Holding less cash than the creditors due within one year | 76.2% | 63.8% | 122 |
| Median cash as a share of creditors due within one year | 35% | 48% | 119 |
| With £1,000 or less in the bank at the balance sheet date | 14.6% | 20.6% | 157 |
| Median cash at the balance sheet date | £17,218 | £12,327 | 157 |
Reading these numbers
Hospitality shows the highest share of companies holding less cash than the creditors due within a year, 76.2% against 63.8% UK-wide, and 51.9% are in net current liabilities against 37.3%. The caveat from the source method belongs here: net current liabilities is not insolvency, and some healthy businesses run negative working capital by model, for example where customers pay up front. A balance sheet shows that shape either way. The median company's cash covers 35% of the creditors due within a year against 48%, while median cash of £17,218 is above the UK median of £12,327. Larger middle balance, thinner median cover. Negative net cash is not published for this sector.
Where these numbers come from. The Companies House monthly accounts bulk product, which is free and public, for accounts filed in June and July 2026. Dataset 2026-08: 10,000 filings randomly sampled (seed-reproducible), 6,863 with usable iXBRL facts; SIC joined from BasicCompanyDataAsOneFile-2026-08-01. Balance sheet facts were read from the filings themselves; each figure carries its own count of companies, because companies do not all tag the same fields.
Small companies file balance-sheet-only accounts with no profit and loss, so nothing on this page describes cover over time. Every claim here is cash against what is owed. Full method, definitions and caveats. This sector page draws on 307 sampled companies.
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