UK SME late payment epidemic revealed – 46% of invoices are paid late
UK freelancers and small business owners continue to be plagued by chronic late payments, according to new research.
The analysis of over 2 million invoices sent by FreeAgent customers between January 2019 and June 2020 has revealed that just over half (54%) of invoices sent over the past 18 months were paid on time, meaning over 2 in 5 invoices are paid late.
The research reveals the late payment epidemic is getting worse, not better for SMEs and freelancers, as the number of invoices paid on time has fallen 4% from the 58% recorded in the company’s 2019 research. The findings also show the impact of the pandemic on SMEs finances, as invoices sent by UK SMEs and freelancers plummeted by 33% over lockdown (April-June 2020) impacting heavily on cash flow.
Free Agent have recently (May 2021) published the survey carried out, for full details see Source.
