UK micro-businesses owed GBP 17 bln in late payments - report

Just a few short weeks ago, the Enterprise Bill was announced in the Queen’s speech, explicitly laying out the government’s tactics to help small businesses resolve payment disputes. But whilst things are certainly moving in the right direction, it seems the UK’s smallest businesses are still disproportionately feeling the brunt of late payments.

According to research commissioned by Intuit QuickBooks, the provider of accounting software, and carried out by Opinion Matters, UK micro-businesses are owed GBP 16.9 billion by their customers. This is certainly causing these companies some significant problems. For one thing, many micro-businesses are being forced to rely on debt to shore up their finances; 32% of respondents said they have had to take out loans or rely on credit to pay wages or suppliers. Additionally, the number of customers dragging their feet over payment means that micro-businesses spend an average of 19 working days a year chasing invoices.

However, it seems that a significant proportion of the nation’s smallest businesses are not embracing technology that can speed up the gap between completing work and payment. The research found that only 36% of micro-businesses issue invoices via email, with many relying on snail mail to send out invoices for completed work.