A quarter of NHS trusts routinely pay suppliers
late. Contract regulations mean public bodies
are required to pay invoices in 30 days. NHS
Trusts should pay at least 95% of their non-NHS
invoices in this time frame.
Yet 1 in 4 NHS trusts routinely pay invoices late,
with some even reporting that they have had
their accounts stopped.
Of those who are using debt, 68% use the
money to acquire working capital or improve
cash flow, rather than investing in the business.
Invoice payment appears to be getting worse,
with drops across 74 of the Trusts.
9 out of 10 public sector suppliers have been
paid late. The Federation of Small Businesses
has found that nine out of ten public sector
suppliers have been paid late.
Local governments and public infrastructure
projects pay just 9% of SME suppliers within the
agree payment deadline.
The recent collapse of Carillion has brought
attention to public sector delays in paying
invoices. Current figures from the National
Audit Office suggest that the collapse of the
business will cost UK taxpayers £148 million.
Since its collapse many have commented on
the haphazard finances of the company, with
their standard invoice payment taking 130 days.
Many look on this as the first sign the company
was having financial problems and the collapse
has left hundreds of suppliers out of pocket.
Despite the 2017 government initiative to have
the biggest companies publicise how long it
took on average to pay invoices, businesses
aren’t required to make improvements. Of those
who reported their average payment times, just
29% settled their invoices within the suggested
30 days.
23