How fast the UK's large companies pay their suppliers
Twice a year every large company and LLP has to tell the government how long it takes to pay its invoices. We put all 114,746 reports in one place, company by company, so a supplier can see who pays on time before signing up.
31 daysTypical average time to pay (median)
64%Typical share of invoices paid within 30 days
481Companies averaging more than 60 days (8%)
745Companies paying half or more of invoices outside agreed terms
Based on each company's latest report, for the 6,220 companies whose latest period ended between 31 May 2025 and 31 October 2026. Reports filed to 3 November 2026.
Latest news
- Large UK companies take a median of 31 days to pay suppliers, and 481 average more than 60
- 815 large companies hold back retentions on construction contracts, with 5% the usual rate
- Petrofac Engineering Limited takes 242 days to pay suppliers, up from 112, as 2,377 large companies slow down
- The Boots Company PLC is the slowest-paying PLC at 88 days, latest reports show
- 650 new payment reports filed in the week to 3 November 2026: John Dewar and Sons Limited slowest at 105 days
Slowest payers
- Petrofac Engineering Limited242 days
- Wavemaker Global Limited193 days
- Proserv UK Limited186 days
- Ernst & Young (Emeia) Services Limited138 days
- Ferraris Piston Service Limited132 days
- Reckitt Benckiser Healthcare International Limited132 days
- EY Global Services Limited130 days
- Firstport Retirement Property Services Limited130 days
Fastest payers
- Bennett Management Contractors (GB) Limited1 day
- Epyx Limited1 day
- Hilton UK Manage Limited1 day
- Invesco Asset Management Limited1 day
- Mercury Pharmaceuticals Limited1 day
- Modis International Limited1 day
- Pontoon Europe Limited1 day
- Roevin Management Services Limited1 day
Most invoices paid late
- BFSL Limited100%
- Global AD Sales Limited100%
- UBS Asset Management (UK) Ltd100%
- Investec 1 Limited100%
- Worldpay Group Limited100%
- Infrastructure Investments Holdings Limited100%
- Castrol Limited100%
- Nikkei FT Learning Limited100%
Construction and retentions
1,453 companies reported construction contracts in their latest period, with a typical average of 31 days to pay. 815 said those contracts hold back retention money, most often at a standard rate of 5%. Retention details only appear in reports made under the newest version of the rules, the first of which was filed in July 2025, so this count will grow as more companies move onto them.
Construction payers · Retention clauses · Retention bonds explained · Construction Act payment rules
Waiting to be paid?
Work out the statutory interest and compensation you can add to a late invoice with the late payment interest calculator, see when construction retention should come back with the retention release calculator, or read the guides to your rights.
Getting faster
- Vestas-Celtic Wind Technology Ltd.-104 days
- Synnovis Analytics LLP-102 days
- Prudential Corporation Holdings Limited-83 days
- Tenpin Limited-73 days
- Dentons Europe LLP-68 days
- Mercury Pharma Group Limited-68 days
Getting slower
- Petrofac Engineering Limited+130 days
- Proserv UK Limited+102 days
- Firstport Retirement Property Services Limited+65 days
- Severfield (Design & Build) Limited+65 days
- Guide Dogs for the Blind Association(the)+63 days
- EY Global Services Limited+62 days
Just filed
- Leased and Tenanted Pubs 2 Limited24 days
- Social Cellar (Gamma) Limited24 days
- Croner Limited13 days
- Croner Group Limited19 days
- The Wilf Ward Family Trust24 days
- Standard Fuel Oils Limited28 days
Year-on-year change compares each company's latest period with the same period a year earlier. 2,582 companies got faster and 2,377 got slower, of 5,715 with a comparable report. How we use the data.