Subcontractors are having to wait longer for payment says report

There has been a sharp rise in the number of subcontractors waiting 60-90 days for payment, data from the National Specialist Contractors Council has revealed.

Its quarterly State of Trade survey showed 31% of NSCC members had to wait 60-90 days for payment last quarter, a rise of 12% on the previous one. The number for the quarter before was just 5%.

Suzannah Nichol, chief executive of the National Specialist Contractors Council, said: “I think it demonstrates that things aren’t getting better at all, and in light of things like the OGC Fair Payment Charter that’s not good news, and is going in completely the wrong direction.”

The survey also showed 87% of members reported an increase in supplier prices, meaning subcontractors are being squeezed further.

Nichol said: “At one hand you’ve got the specialist contractors paying increased supplier prices, and on the other hand being told to cut their own costs, so that’s putting the pressure on contractors even more.”

Topics