A further 18 firms suspended from Prompt Payment Code

23/07/2019

Another 18 companies have been suspended from the Prompt Payment Code, a result of them failing to honour their commitment to pay at least 95% of suppliers’ invoices within 60 days.

In May, the Chartered Institute of Credit Management (CICM) announced that 12 companies who had failed to meet this commitment were being suspended, with another 5 being removed completely.

It has since been announced that a further 18 companies are to be suspended. In the case of 17 companies, an action plan detailing how they intend to remedy the situation has been received.

These 17 companies are:

Severfield (Design & Build) Ltd
Stantec UK Limited
Screwfix
Prudential
British American Tobacco (Holdings) Limited
Galliford Try PLC
Alun Griffiths
Ferrovial Agroman (UK) Limited
BAE Systems Global Combat Systems Limited
BAE Systems Applied Intelligence Limited
BAE Systems (Oman) Limited
Centrica
Maintenance Management Limited
Fujitsu Services Limited
De La Rue Holdings plc
Domino UK Ltd
BT plc

One company has also been suspended without an action plan:

AB World Foods

With regards to the latest wave of suspensions, CICM’s Chief Executive Phillip King says:

“We will continue to challenge signatories to the code if the obligatory Payment Practise Reporting data suggests that their practises are not compliant. We are encouraged that of the 18 who have been suspended or removed today, all but one has already submitted actions plans to achieve future compliance, and we are working closely with those businesses to support a better payment culture.”

The Prompt Payment Code was created as a way for suppliers to feel assured that the companies they were working with have committed to paying invoices on time.

Late payments can cause poor cash flow, a roadblock to the day-to-day running of a business, and occasionally even an inability to continue to operate. This is particularly true for small businesses, who may rely on invoices paid by one or two large clients to keep them afloat.

There could be more support coming for SMEs however, as Small Business Minister Kelly Tolhurst has said:

“As a former small business owner I know how damaging late payments can be. Although the vast majority of businesses pay their bills on time, we recently announced ambitious new measures to level the playing field for small businesses as part of our modern Industrial Strategy. These include plans to hold company boards accountable for payment practices and proposed new powers for the Small Business Commissioner to tackle late payments through fines and binding payment plans.”

There is good news for the customers of one company however, as Atos IT Services UK Limited, one of the businesses removed from the Code earlier this year, has been reinstated as it is now meeting the commitments.

If your business is being threatened by late payments, we can help you to collect the invoices you’re owed. Get in touch or call us on 0800 9774848 and get help with your late payment worries today.