The findings are part of the ‘ECCTA Regulations Report’ by compliance training provider Skillcast, which analysed over 37,000 data points from 2,000 private limited UK companies in ten sectors. The report used publicly available data from Companies House, now central to tackling economic crime under the Act, to create an overall readiness score out of 1,200.
HR and recruitment scored 612 out of 1,200, placing them among the least prepared sectors for compliance readiness and highlighting gaps in governance, transparency and fraud prevention.
The research revealed that HR and recruitment firms had the highest number of overdue confirmation statements, with 18.5% of the 200 firms analysed having missed filing within the past 12 months.
A further 7.5% were flagged for overdue accounts, both of which are a direct violation of core governance duties under the Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act (ECCTA), which leaves firms at serious risk of penalties.
Despite this, the sector performed relatively stronger on transparency measures, with close to 90% of firms naming a clearly identifiable person as their ‘Person with Significant Control’ (PSC), which is a key corporate accountability requirement.
But with just over 10% either listing another company as their PSC or failing to name one at all, the sector could invite tougher regulatory scrutiny under the ECCTA.
The sector also had a high number of compulsory strike-off actions (91), which can be a sign of limited administrative resilience. As an industry characterised by a high volume of start-ups, sole traders, and fast-scaling firms, this may indicate minimal back-office infrastructure to support compliance planning.
The findings come with less than two months remaining before the ECCTA’s new corporate offence ‘failure to prevent fraud’ takes effect on September 1st, which will tighten corporate liability, place stricter obligations on large businesses in the UK to bolster anti-fraud measures.
The financial services industry was identified as the least prepared for compliance with the new requirements, scoring just 453.4 out of 1,200. Hospitality (592.9) and legal (605.7) also followed closely behind due to weaker governance and compliance controls.
In contrast, technology (889.4), property and real estate (828.4) and construction firms (783.2) ranked highest for overall readiness, marking them as the most prepared industries.
Skillcast’s “ECCTA Regulations Report” Industry Rankings (Most to Least Prepared)
- Technology
- Property and Real Estate
- Construction
- Manufacturing
- Retail
- Utilities
- HR and Recruitment
- Law
- Hospitality
- Financial Services
Vivek Dodd, CEO at Skillcast, commented on the findings:
“The ECCTA places a clear legal obligation on large organisations to demonstrate they have reasonable procedures to prevent fraud, and that does not just mean having policies on paper. Businesses must be able to evidence undertaking detailed risk assessments, embedding fraud controls into daily operations, and ensuring visible, top-level commitment to compliance.
“The findings from our ‘ECCTA Regulations Report’ should serve as a wake-up call for the HR and recruitment sector. With less than three months to go until the new ‘failure to prevent fraud’ corporate offence requirements are enforced, many companies are operating in high-risk conditions that leave them exposed to serious criminal liability.
“While firms in some sectors like technology and construction are already taking clear steps to strengthen governance, HR and recruitment are falling dangerously behind. Without urgent action, these firms risk severe reputational damage and financial fallout, making strong governance, due diligence, and company-wide fraud prevention training business-critical.”
