THIS CASE HAS NOW BEEN REPORTED TO THE SMALL BUSINESS COMMISSIONER
A long standing supplier of key infrastructure services to Lancashire County Council (LCC) has decided to go public and call in Government support over ongoing, long term problems in getting paid for its work
Burnley based KeyPlus operates security services at 550 sites for LCC such as opening and locking up key public facilities including schools, community buildings and town halls.
Owed a total of over £465k* by the local authority, the business is now charging additional penalties and interest charges and has referred the case to the Office of the Small Business Commissioner, which deals with late payments.
£285k* of the money owed is overdue on its contracted payment terms which are to pay invoiced amounts within 30 days of the date of a correctly rendered and computed invoice. Some invoices date back to April 2024 and have never been disputed.
KeyPlus’ chief executive and founder Brian Curran has been forced to act not only out of sheer frustration but also as LCC’s systemic problems are harming his business.
“For more than seven years, KeyPlus has provided 24/7 security response services for Lancashire County Council across more than 550 buildings. These are important public facilities that local communities rely on every day.
“Throughout the entire contract term, we have experienced repeated and persistent late payment issues. On several occasions, the situation became so severe that we formally notified the council that services would be placed on stop unless overdue invoices were paid. This is not a one-off issue or an isolated administrative delay. It has been a recurring problem since 2019,” he said.
He said the late payment has seriously hampered his ambitions to grow the business.
“Like many SMEs, we are not backed by unlimited reserves. Persistent non-payment on this scale creates enormous pressure on cash flow and day-to-day operations. We have suppliers, wages, HMRC liabilities and operational commitments to meet ourselves, and there are times when we are effectively forced to decide which suppliers get paid and which do not, simply because of unreliable payment from our largest client.
Why should small business owners have to endure the stress, worry and sleepless nights around when they will get paid and they can pay their own staff and supply chain, just due to inefficiencies at best and incompetence at worst?”
Brian Curran says the lack of communication from the Council only compounds the frustrations.
“We are expected to continue delivering services while operating almost completely blind regarding when substantial current and overdue sums will actually be paid. Credit to Emma Jones and her team at the Office of the Small Business Commissioner for continuing to push this issue into the spotlight for UK SMEs.”
In the King’s Speech, The Small Business Protections (Late Payments) Bill will introduce maximum payment terms of 60 days and mandatory interest of 8% above Bank of England base rate on late payments. The Bill also includes measures that introduce a time limit for raising invoice disputes.
The delays to payments have meant that when the contract ends he won’t retender.
“While I remain hopeful that the outstanding matters can now finally be resolved professionally and amicably, I have taken the decision that KeyPlus will not tender for the next contract. We would rather focus on clients where there is greater financial certainty, stronger communication and a more sustainable long-term working relationship,” he said.