It was good to hear that the Minister for Business, Enterprise and Energy has pledged to introduce stricter measures to combat late payment. Invoice finance should be a part of this solution.

Ahead of the Autumn Statement, Matthew Hancock has said that he will get tough on serial late payment offenders and kick companies with unreasonable payment terms off the Prompt Payment Code. No doubt SMEs will have welcomed the news – they have long campaigned against late payment and highlighted the detrimental effect it has on cashflow and business development. The Forum of Private Business put the late payment SME debt at £30 billion earlier this year.

However, it is unlikely that there will be too much expectation in the SME sector because for all the words from and actions of policymakers and regulators in recent years, there has been little tangible development to report. Small Business Ambassador Baroness Brady added her high-profile support to the tacking late payment in 2014 but has yet to act definitely on the matter, while the Prompt Payment Code has drawn increasing criticism from small businesses over its ineffectiveness.

Invoice finance offers a more direct and immediate means of tackling the problem without affecting businesses relationships. Alternative finance has grown rapidly as part of the reshaping of the SME finance landscape and it is one of the sector’s leading products that can help small businesses finally triumph over a long-standing bête noire.

To find out more about A&T Business Associates services, contact us on 01903 602211 or info@atbusinessassociates.co.uk.