Largest businesses are the country’s worst payers

Research by Dun & Bradstreet has found that the UK’s largest businesses are the country’s worst payers, as  insolvencies remain at their highest sustained level since the financial crisis

The data showed that the largest businesses pay suppliers on time on fewer than one in seven occasions. Businesses employing more than 1,000 people paid suppliers on time just 15% of the time in March 2026, compared with more than 66% for the country’s smallest businesses. Overall, just 61% of UK businesses paid suppliers on time in March, meaning nearly four in ten businesses routinely paid late.

The findings point to a widening imbalance across UK supply chains, with many smaller businesses effectively carrying the working capital burden for their largest customers. For millions of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) operating with tighter margins and less access to capital, extended payment terms can restrict cash flow, delay investment and hiring decisions, and increase exposure to financial stress. The impact of these pressures is reflected in business failure rates, with UK business insolvencies reaching 5,295 in Q1 2026, remaining at their highest sustained period of elevated business failures that has persisted for more than three years.

Construction and hospitality continue to face some of the greatest challenges across the UK economy.  Construction recorded 769 insolvencies during Q1 2026, the highest Q1 figure for the sector in the dataset dating back to 2009. Eating and drinking establishments recorded 763 insolvencies and have now experienced more than 750 business failures for five consecutive quarters.

The report also identifies a significant concentration of businesses that are both paying suppliers late and carrying a high risk of failure – a combination that increases potential exposure for creditors, lenders and trading partners.

Sector-level payment behaviour also reveals notable contrasts. Agriculture recorded the strongest prompt payment performance at 76%, while machinery manufacturing ranked lowest at 44.6%.

Regional payment performance also revealed significant disparities across the country. The capital, home to the UK’s most sophisticated financial and legal infrastructure, pays suppliers on time, slightly below 54% of the time, the worst of any major UK region. Greater Manchester at 58% suggests a broader challenge in the large urban conurbations, though Yorkshire – which outperforms every other region at 66% – demonstrates that geography alone does not determine payment culture.

Ravi Sidhu, Subject Matter Expert, Credit Risk at Dun & Bradstreet, said “Late payment has been a persistent challenge for UK businesses for years, and the data suggests the problem runs deeper than many appreciate. Payment performance does not improve as businesses grow. Smaller suppliers are routinely absorbing cashflow pressure on behalf of their largest customers, and over time that strain accumulates. What our data makes clear is that businesses cannot afford to trade on trust alone. Having access to timely, accurate data on the payment behaviour and financial health of your counterparties is increasingly essential to making confident, informed credit decisions.”