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Professional Services Payment Practices Report 2023

•By PaymentCheck•Reports

UK Professional Services Pay Suppliers Significantly Faster Than Average… But There's a Catch

The Numbers

  • Companies analysed: 162
  • Average PaymentCheck Score: 72.8/100
  • UK average: 50.0/100 (Professional Services is 22.8 points above)
  • Top Payer: SLAUGHTER AND MAY SERVICES COMPANY - 100/100
  • Bottom Payer: APLEONA UK LIMITED - 13.5/100
  • South West Average: 86.1 (6 companies)
  • London Average: 73.7 (99 companies)

What Stands Out

While the professional services sector boasts an average payment score nearly 23 points above the UK average, the data reveals a significant disparity between the top and bottom performers, highlighting the unevenness of payment practices within the industry itself. The dominance of London-based companies (99 out of 162) suggests the data heavily reflects practices in the capital.

Best Payers

  1. SLAUGHTER AND MAY SERVICES COMPANY - 100/100
  2. R&C PMK LIMITED - 99.73/100
  3. EVERSHEDS SUTHERLAND LEGAL SERVICES LIMITED - 99.65/100
  4. FBC (FUTUREBRAND) LIMITED - 99.6/100
  5. GRANT THORNTON AGILE TALENT SOLUTIONS LIMITED - 99.4/100

Worst Payers

  1. APLEONA UK LIMITED - 13.5/100
  2. KENNEDYS LAW LLP - 18.38/100
  3. FIRSTPORT GROUP LIMITED - 19.6/100
  4. ADMIRAL LAW LIMITED - 21.43/100
  5. MSIX COMMUNICATIONS LIMITED - 30.1/100

Regional Patterns

The South West leads the regional averages with a score of 86.1, significantly higher than London's 73.7, though the smaller sample size of only 6 companies in the South West compared to London's 99 suggests the South West figure may not be representative. Given that 61% of the companies are from London, its average of 73.7 heavily influences the overall sector score.

Suppliers should be wary of the significant 86.5-point difference between the best and worst payment scores within the Professional Services sector and consider using a late payment calculator to assess potential impacts on their cashflow.