Bankruptcy filings increased by more than 10 per cent in the 12 months up to May, official data revealed Wednesday. (Canadian Press)

The number of Canadian bankruptcies declined in May, falling 11 per cent below the level of the previous month and more than 12 per cent below the level of the same month a year ago.

There were 11,526 bankruptcies and insolvencies during the month, the Office of the Superintendent of Bankruptcies said Monday.

That figure includes bankruptcies and proposals. A proposal refers to a "proposal to creditors" where a negotiated payment plan is offered to creditors as an alternative to the formalized bankruptcy process.

On a monthly basis, bankruptcies themselves decreased by 9.2 per cent whereas proposals decreased by slightly more — 16.1 per cent.

May is typically an inactive month for bankruptcies and insolvencies. The number has been lower than April in seven of the past 10 years.

For the 12-month period ending May 31, 2010, there were 153,248 total bankruptcies — an increase of 10.2 per cent compared to the 12 months ending May 31, 2009.

The increase was almost entirely because of consumer bankruptcies, the agency said, as consumer bankruptcies were 34.4 per cent higher while business insolvencies were only 3.6 higher on the year.