News articles

February 24, 2012

Getting paid on time

The Government and industry is calling on businesses and public organisations to pay suppliers on time and for small firms to pursue those who put them at risk by delaying.

Prompt payment is vital for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), with many firms not able to survive the cashflow problems that late payments create.

Get Paid!, a new guide for small businesses which contains tips and advice from both suppliers and customers, has been published by the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA). It contains valuable lessons from small businesses such as advice on invoicing and developing a well-defined credit policy.

Advice and guidance for small businesses to help them make sure they are paid on time and can seek redress if they are not is part of the Finance Fitness campaign, which sees government and businesses working together to help SMEs.

The Government is encouraging SMEs to:

Proactively agree payment terms before delivering orders.
Sign-up to the Government’s Prompt Payment Code, run by the Institute for Credit Management (ICM).
Raise complaints over late payment from Code signatories and use legislation already in place to help companies pursue late payers.
Use electronic invoicing where possible, automating process and adding instant transfer of the invoice and instant verification from the customer that the invoice has been received.

If you would like help managing your finances, contact us.