Dash-for-cash leaves self-employed workers chasing £200 a month in late payments
- 44 percent of customers have had to dash to a cash machine to get money to pay.
- Sole traders chase an average of £208 at the end of the month, with 30 percent of them saying they stopped supplying a customer due to consistent late payment.
- Customers with no cash on them can now pay small businesses using just the business’ mobile number.
The self-employed workers who keep Britain’s households clean, tidy and well-maintained are among those owed £208 in an average month by customers who don’t have cash in hand to settle bills.
This means that the UK’s sole traders – including many cleaners, decorators and gardeners – are chasing nearly a fifth (18 percent) of their earned cash income each month, significantly impacting their cash flow and forcing them to spend time recovering debts. The figure rises to £1,846 for other small businesses with between one and nine employees.
Despite having the best intentions (86 percent of us agree that paying small businesses on time is important and 57 percent would prefer to pay by cash) we regularly have to dust off cheque books, make a dash to the cash machine or simply pay late.
But the dash of shame to the cash machine to get money to pay Britain’s one man bands – or the red-faced “I’ll have to pay you next time” – could soon be a thing of the past. Paym, the easy way to pay small bills, friends and family using just a mobile number, is available to more than 90 percent of UK current account holders – and tradespeople can get paid straight to the number on their business card.
Craig Tillotson, Managing Director of Paym said:
“Sole traders are facing challenges from well-meaning customers who often don’t have the cash on them to pay there and then. Paym is an easy alternative to accepting debit and credit cards which we know many of these types of business resist because they find them expensive or inconvenient. It will be a massive help with time-poor customers.
“We know that many small businesses rely on their mobile to run their business – and Paym makes it possible to use that vital phone number to easily accept payments. We’re urging businesses and self-employed people to sign up today and to spread the word amongst their customers – it should help both parties avoid awkward situations or inconvenient trips to the bank.”
Paym in action – case study
- Tim Sutton is a sports therapist who offers massage and treatments that cost roughly around £30 per session. He currently has 1,500 customers on his database, treating around 30 people a week. The summer period is a busy time for Tim as more people venture outside for sporting activities.
- He has been using Paym for nearly a year, originally for personal use but has now introduced it to his business. As a small business Tim used to only accept cash or cheques, not wanting to invest in and carry around a card machine.
- Tim is a huge fan of Paym, he says: “‘Paym is perfect for my business and customers. Not only does it save me multiple trips to the bank, there’s no need to carry around handfuls of cash. It is quick and easy to use and my clients now only need to know my phone number.”
- Payments are made through Faster Payments or LINK at the same speeds as existing current account, online, and mobile payments – most payments arrive in seconds.
What is Paym?
- Paym is available on more than nine out of ten current accounts – more than 40 million customers of 17 banks and building societies can register for Paym.
- Paym is an easy, secure way to send and receive payments to a current account using just a mobile number.
- Paym means there is no need to ask for other people’s sort code or account number, or tell them yours.
- Anyone using Paym to send money can check the name of the recipient before confirming the payment, so they can be sure they’re sending it to the right place.