Q1 How serious for your business is the impact of late payment?
	Very serious		Serious		Not that serious		No impact

If the current situation regarding late payment continues, would it put your business in danger of going into administration?
	Yes		No		Do  not know		No impact

Q2 Over the last year, has the scale of late payment grown worse, improved or stayed the same?
	Grown worse		Improved		Not changed		Do not know

How has late payment grown worse? (Select all options)
	More clients paying late		Clients wanting early payment discounts even when they pay on time
	Previous late-payers paying even later		Clients refusing to pay
	Larger contacts being paid late		Other
	Clients changing contract terms

Other reason for late payments growing worse:

Q3 What is your standard period for payment once your work has been completed?
	30 days		More than 90 days
	60 days		No fixed payment period
	90 days		Other

Other period of payment:

Q4 On average, how much longer does it take your customers to pay?
	A few days more		One to three months		Do not know
	One to two weeks		Three to six months		Do not pay late
	A fortnight to a month		More than six months		It varies too much to give an answer

Q5 Approximately how much does late payment cost your company in total each year? (Please include any bank charges and loss of revenue caused by chasing payments)
	Under £100		£1,001 to £5,000		£50,001 to £100,000
	£101 to £500		£5,001 to £10,000		Over £100,000
	£501 to £1,000		£10,001 to £50,000		Do not know

Q6 How do you currently minimise late payment? (Select all that are relevant)
	No method used		Penalty for late payment
	Legal enforcement		Chase debtors ourselves
	Discount for payment by Direct Debit		Use debt collectors
	Discount for early payment		Other

Other method of minimising late payment:

Q7 How effective do you think the following solutions to late payment would be?
	Very effective		Effective		Marginal use		No impact		Detrimental to the business
Factoring
Offsetting any late payments against the amount that HMRC can demand
Code of conduct for government and large companies to pay within 30 days
Subsidised credit checks on potential clients
Subsidised debt recovery
Interest of 11% on the amount owed
Automatic late payement fee of 11% of the amount owed

Q8 Which one of the above solutions do you think would be most effective? (Select one only)
	Factoring		11% interest on the amount owed
	Offsetting late payments		Automatic late payment fee of 11%
	Code of conduct		Other
	Subsidised credit checks on customers		There is no solution
	Subsidised debt recovery

Other suggestion:

Q9 Do you currently have to pay your own suppliers late for cashflow reasons?
	Yes		No		Do not know

Q10 Is the Government better or worse at paying suppliers on time?
	Better		Do not deal with government contracts
	Worse		Do not know
	No different

Q11 Should the Government set an example in paying suppliers on time?
	Yes		No		Do not know

Q12 If there were no legislation on it, do you think that late payment would get better or worse in the next 12 months?
	Better		Stay the same
	Worse		Do not know

The next few questions are about your company and will only be used to help us profile responses

Q13 Which of the following industrial sectors best describes your business?
	Agriculture		Hotels and restaurants		Education and health
	Manufacturing		Transport and communications		Other
	Construction		Finance
	Wholesale and retail		Real estate and commerical services

Q14 How many people do you currently employ?
	None		6 to 9		15 to 19
	1 to 5		10 to 14		More than 20

Q15 For how long has your business been established?
	Fewer than 12 months		3 to 5 years		More than 10 years
	1 to 3 years		5 to 10 years		Do not know

Q16 What region is your business located in?
	Scotland		North West		East of England		London
	Wales		West Midlands		South West
	North East		East Midlands		South East

Please use the space below to add any general comments on the issue of late payment.