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West Midlands Payment Practices Report 2020

•By PaymentCheck•Reports

West Midlands Businesses Pay Suppliers Significantly Faster Than UK Average, But Stark Disparities Exist

The Numbers

  • Companies analysed: 371
  • Average PaymentCheck Score: 59.3/100
  • UK average: 50.0/100 (West Midlands is 9.3 points above)
  • Top score: 100/100 (achieved by two companies)
  • Lowest score: 15.4/100
  • Sector with highest average score: Hardware (89.0/100)
  • Sector with lowest average score: Data (77.9/100)

What Stands Out

While the West Midlands outperforms the national average for payment practices, the considerable gap between the highest and lowest scoring companies suggests significant inconsistency. The Hardware and Data sectors had the highest and lowest average scores respectively, but note the low company numbers in both, suggesting this might be unrepresentative.

Best Payers

These West Midlands firms are leading the way in prompt payment, scoring nearly perfect marks:

  1. SANDERSON ASSET MANAGEMENT LLP - 100/100 - A financial services firm setting a high bar.
  2. DPD LOCAL UK LTD - 100/100 - Demonstrating efficient payment practices within the logistics sector.
  3. CLICK TRAVEL LTD - 99.8/100 - The travel management company shows commitment to timely payments.
  4. EPYX LIMITED - 99.7/100 - Indicating efficient financial operations at this tech firm.
  5. NPOWER NORTHERN LIMITED - 99.4/100 - A strong showing for a company in the Energy sector, which had a respectable average.

Worst Payers

These companies need to drastically improve their payment habits, according to the data.

  1. ASTON MARTIN LAGONDA LIMITED - 15.4/100 - A particularly concerning score for a prominent manufacturer.
  2. MEGGITT PLC - 17.7/100 - Another large firm that evidently struggles with timely payments.
  3. T. C. LANDSCAPES LIMITED - 18.9/100 - Signalling potential cash flow issues for this smaller landscaping company.
  4. WILLIAM KING LIMITED - 20.35/100 - Showing room for improvement within their payment cycle.
  5. MELITTA UK LTD - 21.9/100 - Suggesting a need for reassessment of payment processes within the coffee products provider.

Sector Breakdown

The limited number of companies in the Hardware (1) and Marketing and Sales (1) sectors make drawing broader conclusions difficult despite scores of 89.0 and 79.8 respectively. The Energy sector, with 9 companies, scored a respectable 80.9, while Financial Services (16 companies) averaged 79.5. The Data sector, though, is somewhat concerning with an average of 77.9 across just 2 companies, making it an unreliable indicator.

Knowing when you can expect to be paid, and calculating the impact of late payments is crucial - use our late payment calculator to find out more.

Takeaway: Despite a West Midlands average PaymentCheck score of 59.3, being 9.3 points above the UK average of 50, Aston Martin's score of 15.4 shows some suppliers could be waiting much longer than others to get paid.