Skip to main content
Legal news

New late payment regulations

Jonathan Winston Jonathan Winston
1 min read

Late payment has long been recognised as a problem within the European Union. To combat the problem further, a new Late Payments Directive has been proposed. Some of the key provisions are as follows:

  • Payment within 30 days of receiving the supplier's invoice, receipt or, in certain circumstances, verification of the goods or services, whichever is latest.
  • Extensions to 60 days may be agreed between the parties.
  • Interest at 8% above base rate on late payments.
  • Automatic entitlement to 40 Euros compensation for late payment.
  • In contracts which contain ‘verification periods’ to allow purchasers to check that goods conform to the contract, interest will not start to run until this period has expired.
  • Verification periods will be limited to 30 days to prevent abuse.
  • Parties will still be able to agree to payment by installments.

The Directive has been adopted by the European Parliament. It is expected that it will now be adopted by the EU and come into force by the end of the year. The Directive must then be implemented by the UK by early 2013.

Client feedback

Every part of the process was well explained and dealt with in a swift/timely manner.
Mark
Heidi was very helpful with my compensation application and was able to answer any questions I had in a timely matter
Anonymous
Very efficient and always available to answer any questions
Alastair
Winston Solicitors handled our recent house purchase and sale and provided an excellent service throughout. Sidraa Razaq, supported by Tom McIlroy, exhibited an outstanding professionalism, expertise, and responsiveness from te moment we first made contact, all of which made what was at times a less than straightforward transaction much easier to navigate. I'd have no hesitation in recommending them to others.
Kieran
Excellent service, very efficient and able to answer questions when needed.
Ben
Fast, excellent and highly professional conveyancing solicitors. Cannot recommend highly enough.
Anonymous
Winstons are brilliant, very responsive to messages, professional and patient. Fantastic customer service- face to face and email/telephone. Would 100% recommend!
Lucy
I recently contracted Winston Solicitors to support me in obtaining a grant of probate following the death of a parent. I worked closely with Emily and found her to be supportive, have great communication and be able to navigate the IHT and probate processes very efficiently.
John
Contact Jonathan