SME payment terms improve but delinquent payments on the rise: Dun & Bradstreet

Australian businesses are taking too long to pay their bills, with payment terms reaching an average of 53 days in the September quarter, according to the latest figures from Dun & Bradstreet.

The figures show the number of severely delinquent payments – those 90 days or more overdue – also rose by 15% compared to the previous corresponding quarter, while two-thirds of businesses are now taking longer than 30 days to pay accounts.

Although the figure is an improvement from the second quarter’s 53.3 result, and 56 in the first quarter, D&B chief executive Christine Christian says businesses are still taking far too long to pay, and warns now is the most important ttime to get on top of cash flow.

“Leading up to Christmas, businesses really need to pay attention here. What happens in most years is that businesses end up waiting until the end of Janaury to get paid if they don’t step on it now.”

“This is a particularly important time to focus on all this. Even though terms have improved a little, it’s still an unacceptably high number if your terms are above 50 days.”

The forestry sector is the slowest to pay, with payments above 60 days, while the transportation industry was the fastest paying within 50 days. Publically listed companies are still slower than private companies, at 54.5 and 53 days respectively, with private firms seeing payment terms deteriorate since 2009.

Large firms with more than 500 people are still the slowest group to pay, with terms of 56 days, while businesses with between 50-199 employees were the fastest at an average of 49.4 days.

“This demographic has also maintained this figure as an average over the last two years, making it the fastest paying size bracket of the six categories,” D&B said.

However, D&B points out that companies of all sizes saw payment terms improve during the quarter.

Looking at the data from a geographic point of view, firms in the ACT and New South Wales had the worst payment times during the quarter, at 55.2 and 54 days respectively, while ACT business also saw the only increase in terms between the June and September quarters – every other state reduced payment times by 1.5 days.

The results for specific industries also confirm the downward trend for the construction and retail sectors, where payment terms rose by an average of two days. Retail saw its average days rise from 52.8 to 54.4, while the construction industry also saw its terms rise to the exact same figures.

Transportation, communications, electric, gas and sanitary services, and wholesale, all saw payment terms improve. Transportation was the fastest industry, followed by agriculture, with an average of 51.1 days.

Christian warns the payment terms are a key indicator of economic performance, and that businesses need to continue to keep on top of their cashflow even during tough times.

“Individual businesses are the unsung bankers of our economy. Business to business lending through the extension of trade credit amounts to billions of dollars a year and the rate at which these micro-loans are being paid back is a leading indicator of cash-flow performance and financial stability.”