AUGUSTA, Maine (AP) Maine bankruptcies have bee been down since the start of the coronavirus pandemic, but officials worry that trend is coming to an end.

Government financial support, banks’ willingness to defer loan and interest payments, and a moratorium on evictions and foreclosures have kept most consumers and businesses out of insolvency.

But bankruptcy experts forecast more people and companies will seek relief from insurmountable debt in the months ahead as aid runs out, courts reopen and banks call in loans, the Press Herald reports.

Maine consumer bankruptcies year to date were down 14 percent in July from 2019, according to the American Bankruptcy Institute.