Small businesses across the country are being “crippled” by late payments, according to a new report.
Research recently published by the Irish Small & Medium Enterprises Association (ISME) has shown that 44 per cent of smaller organisations have experience late payments in the last three months.
Data from the report revealed that the actual average payment period is now 73 days with both big businesses and state agencies guilty of taking longer credit.
As a result, the ISME is calling for the introduction of a mandatory payments period on all national transactions of 60 days and for this to be reduced to 30 days within two years.
Mark Fielding, the association’s chief executive, commented: “Late payments have always been a problem for small businesses and this has intensified as state bodies and accountancy led big business take longer and longer to pay.
“When smaller businesses are not being paid on time, they cannot in turn pay their suppliers and the vicious domino effect ends with the smallest and most vulnerable being forced to close down, with the resultant job losses.”
