by Alan Jacques
LIMERICK city council has been asked to speed up payments to local contractors who are being left out of pocket for weeks after completing jobs.
Limerick Fianna Fail TD Willie O’Dea says he has been contacted by a number of local builders who have completed City Council grant-aided work for householders without receiving payment.
He described the situation as “disgraceful” and insisted that the Council should be part of the Government push to create employment and assist small businesses with cash flow issues.
“Contractors have been left with serious cash flow problems because the City Council are extremely slow about paying once the contract is completed. In some cases, the contractors have completed several contracts without payment and are asked to do even more jobs before they receive a penny,”he claimed.
“All of these contractors have to pay wages and purchase materials with no credit from suppliers long before they get paid by the Council. As a result, these contractors are encountering serious cash flow issues.
“One contractor suggested to me that his cash flow situation was so bad he would have to take out a credit union loan to get through Christmas. Unfortunately, it’s another example of paying only lip service to the needs of the small and medium enterprise sector,” he said.
One local contractor who carried out work for the City Council onseveral occasions told the Limerick Post that this issue was an “on-going problem”.
The contractor, who wished to remain anonymous for fear of losing further contracts with the Council, said the situation was putting unnecessary pressure and worry on his business.
“I can’t understand why it’s taking seven to eight weeks to receive payment and why the Council don’t pay the contractor directly. The cheque is sent to the person in council housing that we carry out the work for and then the onus is on them to pay us. It’s a bizarre situation.
“I first have to pay thousands of euro out of my own pocket on materials and wages. There have been emergency situations where I’ve have had to go to the Credit Union and take out money because of the delay in payment from City Council.
“Up to a few days ago when a cheque finally arrived, it was looking like I would have to take it out of the Credit Union to get through Christmas. The Council should pay the contractor directly and sooner,” said one angry contractor.
There was no comment from Limerick City Council at the time of going to press.
