Billions of pounds in late payments are owed to tradespeople across the UK, according to new research from Ford Pro. The vehicle manufacturer’s commercial division conducted the research with both tradespeople and homeowners after the issue of delayed or missing payments was reported as the major issue facing sole traders heading into 2025.
Tradespeople are owed as much as £3.5 billion¹ in overdue payments, which equates to an average of £3,942 each, the equivalent of over a month’s salary for a typical UK tradesperson². Almost two-thirds of tradespeople experience late payments regularly, with an average delay of 35 days, while 71per cent of UK tradespeople have experienced outright payment refusal, likely taking its toll on home and family life.
Behind this figure emerges a worrying trend among homeowners, with 18 per cent admitting to spending money earmarked for tradespeople’s payments on personal luxuries, such as dining out, instead. Meanwhile, 14 per cent of UK homeowners have admitted to forgetting to pay altogether.
The financial strain of late payments means nearly one-quarter of tradespeople (23 per cent) are struggling to cover essential bills each month, and almost one in five (17per cent) are resorting to payday loans to make ends meet.
With the holiday season approaching, one in five (20 per cent) tradespeople expressed concern about their ability to support their families this Christmas, and the same percentage admitted to cancelling holidays in the past due to late or withheld payments.
To tackle the late payment crisis head on Ford conducted a social experiment with UK homeowners, with the results highlighting that getting customers to pay quicker could be as simple as raising awareness among homeowners. In fact, two-thirds (67 per cent) of homeowners say they would pay invoices faster if they understood the impact of delayed payments on tradespeople and their families. The experiment found that invoices are paid an average of one day sooner when homeowners are reminded of the financial strain late payments create for tradespeople.
Coinciding with the research, Ford has unveiled a festive content series, fronted by its Little Debt Collectors, an unlikely duo whose mission it is to get UK homeowners to stand-up and take responsibility for their actions and pay tradespeople on time.
References:
¹ According to the ONS, 8.9 per cent of the UK workforce are ‘skilled trade occupations’ which is 2.97 million, and Personal Today estimate 900,000 tradespeople
² The average tradesman salary is estimated to be £35,000 per year.
