This business was unpaid for 10 months

At the Office of the Small Business Commissioner (OSBC), we run a free service for small businesses who have unresolved payment disputes with larger customers.

The small business is often stressed, and dealing with the larger business is proving a challenge. My amazing caseworkers will step in, and then work with the businesses involved to resolve the issue.

Recently, we were contacted by a small business that had been commissioned to redesign a large company’s website. They had an outstanding invoice that remained unpaid for 10 months, and their client had stopped communicating with them.

As the small business owner told us: “I was beginning to lose hope of ever recovering the payment.”

We reached out to the larger company and, thanks to our efforts, the full payment was issued in under a week. Of course, I was pleased we could intervene and achieve a good result for the small business. But it just seemed frustrating that communication wasn’t maintained. Had it been, the business might have resolved the problem without us needing to get involved.

Sometimes, tackling individual late payment issues can feel like a David and Goliath battle. But we can help small companies with navigating difficult conversations with the giants.

For example, we worked with a small consulting engineering company which was commissioned to carry out installation work for a well-known large retailer. After numerous unsuccessful requests to contact the client, the business approached us and requested assistance to retrieve several unpaid invoices.

Why was the retailer withholding the funds? Why was it not paying up? I am sure you have a theory. However, upon engaging with the larger company directly, it became apparent that the delay stemmed from internal communication issues following a recent change in leadership. It was a simple matter of miscommunication.  

As a result, a prompt resolution was found, resulting in the full amount owed to the small business being successfully recovered.

The OSBC caseworkers have great knowledge and deep understanding of payment issues and challenges. Yet, so often the issue is a simple one of poor communication.

Of course, this is no excuse for not paying on time. But if companies could have better communication systems in place with their suppliers, many of the issues which come into our inbox would never need to.

This content is contributed by a guest author. Startups.co.uk / MVF does not endorse or take responsibility for any views, advice, analysis or claims made within this post.