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Forum welcomes delay to
Prompt Payment Certification
»»THE FORUM OF PRIVATE BUSINESS,
a champion for Prompt Payment, has
welcomed the delay in introducing the
certification scheme SHA-256-SSL until
19th September when it became clear
that a small number of businesses had
not updated their software packages.
The certification scheme was due to
be introduced on Monday 13th June but
Bacs research has indica ted that some
businesses had not acted on the advice
that they had been given.
A statement from BAC’s indicated:
‘Changes which are being made by
the internet community will affect your
access to Bacs via the Payment Services
Website and Bacstel-IP. It is important
that action is taken now to prevent
interruption to the Bacs services used.
Information on what is needed,
depending on how the services are
accessed via either ‘Direct’ submission if you submit directly to Bacs or ‘Indirect’
submission - if a Bacs Approved Bureau
submits to Bacs on your behalf can be
found on the company’s website www.
bacs.co.uk.
Those without the certification would
have found it hard to pay suppliers and
staff electronically which could have
caused severe reputational damage,
cashflow issues and staff morale.
According to Ian Cass, managing
director of the forum, “The change
is needed as SHA-1, its predecessor,
does not take account of the increased
sophistication of software and hardware,
meaning businesses needed an
improved payments platform for their day
to day business. New cyber threats are
dealt with more effectively through the
upgraded system.
Bacs is right to delay the introduction
of the scheme until full certification is
in place. Without this we could see an
increase in late payment and additional
cashflow issues.”
“We would urge businesses to spend
a few minutes just checking they are
compliant by contacting their software
solutions provider. Paying staff and key
Forum of Private Business
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suppliers on time shows that a company
is well run and gives customers the
confidence to work with it. There is good
evidence of improved productivity and
innovation if such people are paid on
time.”
“As well as working with Bacs to
produce a leaflet on the subject, the
Forum has also communicated the
change to its members through emails
and blogs. We are concerned that their
customers appear not to be as well
prepared” stated Ian Cass.
Bacs’ Mike Hutchinson said: “This
is the last chance for businesses to
become compliant - if they don’t make
the necessary upgrades by the new
deadline, they won’t be able to use Bacs
to pay staff or their suppliers; they’ll have
to make other arrangements.”
Any business yet to make the
necessary changes should contact
their software solutions provider who
will be able to help them in becoming
compatible with the new security
measures.
The Code itself is an industryled initiative for the Department of
Business Innovation and Skills, along
with the Chartered Institute of Credit
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Management who have brought
together an Advisory Board made up of
signatories to discuss how the Code can
be strengthened.
THE CODE IS BEING
STRENGTHENING BY:
• introducing a 60 day maximum
payment term, and enshrining a 30
day payment term as a norm for all
signatories as standard practice;
• creating a Code Compliance board
to enforce the Code, including its
maximum payment term;
• requiring small and medium sized
signatories to report annually on
their payment performance, on a
comply of explain basis, and for
large signatories to report on their
payment practice and performance
in line with the new statutory
reporting requirement;
• increasing the number of references
needed to validate membership;
and
• promoting and strengthening the
Prompt Payment Code website.
Source: www.promptpaymentcode.org.
uk, www.bacs.co.uk