The Office of the Small Business Commissioner (OSBC) receives enquiries from small businesses who are experiencing unpaid invoices or unfair payment practices from larger organisations. The OSBC acts on behalf of the small businesses to address the reasons behind the payment dispute and seek a resolution. So far the OSBC has got £10 million of overdue invoices paid to small businesses.
Under the Enterprise Act 2016 the OSBC has a statutory duty to review enquiries and investigate formal complaints made by small businesses regarding late and overdue payments, as well as providing advice and support on issues relating to overdue payments and payment practices in the private sector.
UK Government research has shown late payments cost the UK economy £11 billion per year with 4,000 businesses closing each year because of late payments – the equivalent to 38 businesses every day. Earlier this year, the UK Government launched a consultation considering measures to tackle late payments including enhanced powers for the Small Business Commissioner.
One business we supported this year was a small IT company commissioned to carry out work for a large travel company, their business spokesperson said:
We’re incredibly grateful to the Small Business Commissioner for helping us recover a long-overdue payment after many unsuccessful attempts through email, phone calls, and website forms. While our client meant no harm, our invoice had been overlooked as we were no longer an active supplier, and being a microbusiness of just four people, we simply weren’t high on their radar.
Thanks to the SBC’s support, we were able to make payroll this month, and we would wholeheartedly encourage any small business facing similar difficulties to reach out. A timely nudge from the SBC really can make all the difference.
– Small IT company
What an incredible milestone. Over £10 million retrieved for small firms, of which almost £1 million in this financial year which is 3 times the amount recovered compared to last year. We can only deliver these numbers if small businesses contact us to raise cases of late payment and we thank every small business owner who has entrusted us to investigate their particular issue.
Late payment is not only bad for business, it also impacts the mental state of founders as they question how they will pay the bills and keep going. We remain at your service if you are being paid late by a large company and I thank the casework team that has worked so hard to deliver this result.
– Emma Jones, Small Business Commissioner
If you run a small business and have an unresolved payment dispute with a larger customer which you have been unable to resolve, the OSBC may be able to help.
