I’m pleased to be able to report progress in the drive to tackle late payment.
• The Enterprise Bill, passed earlier in the summer, gave the green light to the appointment of a Commissioner for Small Business. One of the Commissioner’s key responsibilities will be to help small businesses tackle the late payment culture. The Commissioner will have the power to name and shame companies that regularly pay late.
• Legislation is in place to cascade 30 day terms down the supply chain for all public sector work.
• A new Duty to Report comes into force in April 2017. This means large businesses will have to report on payment practices. We’re still waiting on the details, but anything that exposes bad practice can only be a good thing.
• The Prompt Payment Code is proving its worth, and there have been a number of successful challenges against signatories that have resulted in getting invoices settled quickly and improving contract terms.
• The Minister responsible for small businesses has written a joint letter with Philip King (Chief Executive of the Chartered Institute of Credit Management, which administers the Prompt Payment Code) to PPC signatories, confirming Code signatories should pay within 30 days. Though the requirement for compliance will stay at 60 days unless there are exceptional circumstances, the letter clearly states that 30 days should ‘increasingly be the norm’.
Let’s hope the progress continues, and that an increasing number of firms will start to see late payment as unacceptable business practice.
In the meantime, we’re here to help – if you’re struggling with late payment, just get in touch.
Chris
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