One in four freelancers currently considering position because of late payments, new WondaPay research suggests

Poor Payment of Invoices Threatening Freelance Talent Shortage

• 23.7%/one in four freelancers currently considering their position because of late payments 

• 55% for freelancer invoices are paid over a month late and the problem is getting worse
• The problem is more pronounced in the northwest than in the southeast of the UK

New research released by WondaPay, a platform providing superfast payments to freelancers, has uncovered a payment crisis among freelancers, which has the potential to generate a talent shortage in the coming months and years. With a quarter of all freelancers currently considering taking on permanent roles due to the difficulty of obtaining payment for their work. In fact, only 16% of the 500 freelancers surveyed said that they never had to chase late payments, while 7% said that they routinely have to chase between 86-100% of their invoices. 

Overall, 55% of freelancers are having to wait a month or more for each of their invoices to be paid. While one in five said that they are used to waiting at least two months for payment, and 6.2% say that they often have to wait more than 3 months. With freelancing being their sole means of income, this is putting an incredible financial – and emotional – strain on the UK’s freelance workforce. And a quarter (24.3%) say that the situation is worsening. 

Interestingly, there seems to be a north-south divide when it comes to the payment of freelancers. 22% of those based in the northwest say that 86-100% of their invoices are paid late compared to only 10% in the southeast and 2.1% in the southwest. While there is very little difference between the invoicing experiences of male and female freelancers. 

JJ Rathour, founder and CEO at WondayPay comments: ‘Throughout the last decade, freelancers have become an increasingly important part of the UK’s workforce, providing SMBs with the skills and services that they need to scale, evolve, and reach their full potential. Which is integral, especially for those businesses for which the cost of permanent employees would have been prohibitive. 

‘But without reliable payment, the position of many freelancers simply isn’t sustainable.  Implementing a system of faster, reliable payment – whether through escrow or other means – for this integral sector of the UK’s workforce could help secure their future. Because no one should have to wait months to be paid for the work that they have done. 

‘Freelancers matter. Their loss has the potential to carry serious repercussions for the wider business world. It’s of benefit to us all to ensure that freelancers receive the payment they need in order to sustain their businesses. Because at the moment, we’re setting ourselves up for a future talent shortage.’