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Financial Services Payment Practices Report 2023

•By PaymentCheck•Reports

UK Financial Services Payments Well Above Average, But Deep Divides Remain

The UK's Financial Services sector significantly outperforms the national average on payment practices, but a stark contrast exists between the best and worst performers, and even some very well known companies are failing.

The Numbers

  • 500 financial services companies were analyzed.
  • The sector's average PaymentCheck Score is 83.7/100.
  • This is 33.7 points higher than the UK average of 50.0/100.
  • Five companies achieved a perfect score of 100/100.
  • One company, Ernst & Young (Asia-Pacific) Services Limited, scored just 6.3/100.
  • Scotland leads regionally with an average of 89.9 across 21 companies.

What Stands Out

The sheer disparity between the top and bottom payers is really striking. While some companies are consistently prompt, others are lagging way behind, with scores so low it begs the question: what’s going on? The appearance of well-known names like Ernst & Young on the "worst payers" list will raise eyebrows and could reflect internal process issues or deliberate payment strategies.

Best Payers

  1. AKO CAPITAL LLP - 100/100
  2. SANDERSON ASSET MANAGEMENT LLP - 100/100
  3. VOLVO CAR FINANCIAL SERVICES UK LIMITED - 100/100
  4. TOYOTA FINANCIAL SERVICES (UK) PLC - 100/100
  5. SANTANDER CONSUMER (UK) PLC - 100/100

Worst Payers

  1. ERNST & YOUNG (ASIA-PACIFIC) SERVICES LIMITED - 6.3/100
  2. FNZ (UK) LTD - 10.1/100
  3. ERNST & YOUNG (EMEIA) SERVICES LIMITED - 18.5/100
  4. AMEC FOSTER WHEELER LIMITED - 21/100
  5. SHOP DIRECT FINANCE COMPANY LIMITED - 27.1/100

Regional Patterns

Scotland's average of 89.9, based on 21 companies, positions it as the clear leader in prompt payment within the UK financial sector, followed by East Midlands which has an average of 87.7 across 11 companies. It could be that Scotland's smaller and potentially more tightly knit financial community encourages better payment discipline.

Concerned about late payments? You can use a late payment calculator to work out what you could be owed.

While the Financial Services sector on average scores 33.7 points above the UK average, the bottom 5 companies' average score is only 16.6/100, highlighting the need for significant improvement in certain corners of the industry.