For one reason or another, delays by companies in paying their invoices continue to grow. Last year, there was an increase of three days, up to 70 days on average, despite the good economic tone, as seen in the survey among 500 companies carried out by the Multisector Platform against Late Payments (PMcM), presented this Thursday by its president, Antoni Cañete.
The positive element is that, in the case of public administrations, the payment period has been reduced by twelve days, reaching 55. This is a partial consolation, since Law 15/2010 establishes a period of 60 days and another of 30 for public administrations, so that neither of them comply.
Cañete appealed to the "imperative need to address the problem of late payment in our country." The payment terms in Spain, he assured, are among the longest in the European Union," he denounced during the press conference presenting the report.
The survey shows that 81% of companies exceed the legal period of 60 days. Furthermore, 45% take more than 90 days to do so, while only 19% comply with the provisions of the legislation.
The president of the platform remembers the chain effect of these behaviors, since if a company does not pay a supplier on time, the supplier cannot pay the next link in the chain either. Subcontractors end up getting paid from contractors 99 days later on average.
The platform considers that the problem begins precisely in large companies and describes complaints from sectors such as the tile maker, which fears losing European aid for not meeting deadlines due to its high export activity, as "bad payer excuses". "Abusive payment conditions are imposed on most suppliers," says Cañete.
59% of those surveyed claim that the type of client that takes the longest to pay is precisely the large company, that is, the one that invoices more than 50 million euros per year. In public administrations, on the other hand, it is the town councils that are the most delayed. In any case, these practices end up prospering without any sanction, since 85% of suppliers, fearing retaliation, do not claim late payment interest.
For the PMcM, hope is placed in the new European regulation. In the last plenary session of the European Parliament before the June elections, which will be held on April 23 and 24, a new regulation already endorsed by the European Commission should be approved in which payment deadlines are mandatory and occur sanctions for defaulters if the delay exceeds 30 days.
