According to a survey by credit checker Experian, the motor industry ranks eighth among industry sectors in the time firms take to pay supplier invoices at an average 61.83 days. Small automotive enterprises take an average 58 days, compared to 59 days for medium-sized firms and 82 for large ones. The water industry is the slowest payer in the UK, at an average of 73.84 days.

Italian, French and Belgian firms pay more slowly than their British counterparts, but their standard invoice terms are also longer than the UK's 31-day norm. The survey provides disappointing evidence that a Government-backed campaign to reduce late payment has so far borne little fruit.