好色先生TV鈥檚 table of biggest firms shows who鈥檚 improving and who鈥檚 not

Kier 1

The country鈥檚 two biggest contractors are still taking at least 50 days to settle their bills, new government data has revealed.

The first set of comprehensive data on how quickly firms pay their bills was released last summer and showed Balfour Beatty and Kier topped the slowest payers list among the 10 biggest contractors and housebuilders in the country at 54 days.

Balfour Beatty has now cut this to 50 days with Kier slicing just two days off the time it takes to settle up.

The figures mean that Kier is now the slowest payer among the top 10 contractors and housebuilder in the second round of payment data firms are now obliged to release under law.

The country鈥檚 biggest private contractor, Laing O鈥橰ourke, is taking 53 days to pay up but this number is for its debut set of figures as it has a different reporting period than most other contractors and housebuilders. Its next set of figures will be for the six months up to March this year which it is required to publish the following month.

In order of turnover, how the Top 40 contractors and housebuilders are doing on settling up

Contractor Reporting date Average days % within 30 days Not paid within agreed terms Average days increase/decrease Next due date
Balfour Beatty 30/01/2019 50 36% 50% -4 31/07/2019
Barratt Developments 23/01/2019 24 73% 18% 1 31/07/2019
Kier Construction 30/01/2019 52 32% 57% -2 31/07/2019
Taylor Wimpey 30/01/2019 46 26% 53% -2 31/07/2019
Interserve Construction 28/01/2019 44 49% 49% -6 31/07/2019
Persimmon 30/01/2019 7 50% 35% -43 31/07/2019
Laing O鈥橰ourke 28/10/2018 53 24%  42%  N/A 30/04/2019
Galliford Try 好色先生TV 30/01/2019 50 38% 29% 3 31/07/2019
Morgan Sindall 23/01/2019 44 35% 19% 0 31/07/2019
Berkeley Homes 19/11/2018 28 72%  5%  -4 31/05/2019
Bellway Homes 30/08/2018 23 88% 35% 0 28/02/2019
Mitie 26/10/2018 33 61%  50%  N/A 30/04/2019
Keller 25/01/2019 38 36% 16% 5 31/07/2019
Mace 31/01/2019 34 74% 26% -11 31/07/2019
Costain 30/01/2019 53 29% 61% -6 31/07/2019
ISG Construction 29/01/2019 40 46% 38% -2 31/07/2019
Redrow Homes 30/01/2019 28 71% 11% -2 31/07/2019
Skanska 25/01/2019 54 52% 10% 3 31/07/2019
Bam 24/01/2019 42 33% 28% -1 31/07/2019
Willmott Dixon 30/01/2019 32 50% 8% -1 31/07/2019
Multiplex Construction Europe 30/01/2019 46 38% 38% 3 31/07/2019
Crest Nicholson 27/11/2018 41 46% 28% 0 31/05/2019
Bovis Homes 31/01/2019 38 48% 30% 9 31/07/2019
Engie 31/01/2019 55 48% 40% -13 31/07/2019
Bowmer & Kirkland 26/09/2018 41 37% 42% 0 31/03/2019
Bloor Homes 30/01/2019 37 30% 4% -2 31/07/2019
Mears 30/07/2018 58  14%  15%  N/A 31/01/2019 - OVERDUE
Vinci Construction UK 31/01/2019 33 50% 20% -19 31/07/2019
Sir Robert McAlpine/Newarthill 27/11/2018 35 60% 28% -14 31/05/2019
Countryside Properties 24/10/2018 36 64% 24% -2 30/04/2019
Lendlease Europe 30/01/2019 37 50% 29% 2 31/07/2019
Homeserve 30/10/2018 29 74% 4% N/A 30/04/2019
J Murphy 30/01/2019 57 30% 56% -9 31/07/2019
McCarthy & Stone 27/09/2018 27 78% 21% 1 31/03/2019
Morrison Utility Services 24/10/2018 36 37% 9% N/A  30/04/2019
McLaren Construction 19/09/2018 49 33% 66% 3 28/02/2019

*Data unavailable for Amey, Wates, VolkerWessels UK and Cala

Out of the top 40 housebuilders and contractors ranked by turnover, Mears had the longest payment terms of 58 days when it last reported but the firm failed to update its figures by its deadline of 31 January.

The biggest improver was Persimmon, who went from taking an average of 50 days to pay its invoices in July 2018, to taking just seven days when it updated its figures on 30 January.

Meanwhile, McLaren Construction and Costain failed to pay the largest amount of invoices within agreed terms, paying 66% and 61% of bills outside of the agreed time frame respectively.

Large businesses are required to report their figures twice a year, within a month of both their full- and half-year reporting period ending.

A large business is a company or limited liability partnership that has at least two of the following: 拢36m in turnover, 拢18m on its balance sheet or 250 employees.

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