Businesses took longer to pay their suppliers in Q3 compared to Q2, according to figures released this week.

Data released by Experian showed that companies were taking on average a day longer to complete payments than they did earlier in the year. The average time for a payment to be received was 26 days after the payment was due.

The data also showed that smaller companies tended to pay more quickly than larger organisations – businesses with more than 500 employees paid an average of just under 35 days late, with small companies of less than 100 employees paying 26 days late.

There was also a regional distribution, with companies in the North West taking almost 18 days longer to settle invoices than those in the South East.

The report has highlighted growing support for a campaign to decrease the time large companies take to pay smaller suppliers – time wasted chasing late payments is thought to cost SME’s an average of 3.4 hours per week.

Suppliers and purchasers have both been advised to keep a close eye on payment performance.