Late payments hurt distribution sector
July 20th 2011 Distribution SMEs wait longest for late payments and spend the most time chasing outstanding bills, according to a new survey.
Small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) in the distribution sector are forced to wait a average of 50 days beyond agreed terms before they are paid - 10 days more than the national average, according to research from Bacs, the organisation behind Direct Debit.
In contrast, service sector SMEs wait an average of 33 days beyond agreed terms, and those in manufacturing an average of 41 days before they are paid.
The research also reveals that, out of the national late payments debt of £24bn, distribution SMEs are owed a massive £7.9bn, with individual companies claiming an average of £39,000 each in overdue invoices.
This is £5,000 more than their manufacturing counterparts (£34,000) and more than double that experienced by service sector SMEs (£18,000).
Over half (53%) of distribution SMEs have experienced late payments and nearly a third now employ a dedicated member of staff to chase payments. More articles from Handling & Storage Solutions: | 
