According to the business group ISME, small businesses are in danger of closing due to delayed and late payments from large firms and State agencies. ISME’s quarterly Credit Watch survey showed that the average payment period in Ireland for small and medium sized enterprises is 71days.
- 40% of companies are waiting 3 months or more
- 12% of companies are waiting over 120 days
The Credit Watch survey has shown that Ulster businesses are suffering most and are waiting 79 days while Dublin businesses are waiting 68 days. With regard to business sectors, construction firms are waiting on average 77 days to be paid while services are waiting 67 days.
Cashflow management is essential for the health of all businesses and it should never be ignored.
Amatino Partners are bringing their business roadshow to the Headfort Arms Hotel, Kells on Wednesday the 5th of October.
We are offering local business owners a
free, private consultation to discuss any issues regarding accounts, taxation, grants, marketing or other business issues.
We offer a full range of competitively priced services to our clients including:
• Preparation of Accounts & Taxation Returns
• Tax Planning & Consultancy
• Outsourced bookkeeping & payroll
• Assistance with bank and grant applications
• Marketing Consultancy
• Business Advisory services including debtor & cashflow management programmes, cost reduction programmes, ISO quality assurance and assistance with public sector tendering.
To Book a place, call Grainne Brady on 047 84955 or email
grainne@amatino.ie
Are you a business or thinking of starting a business? We are holding our next Business Roadshow in the Bailie Hotel in Bailieborough, Co Cavan next Wednesday, the 20th July from 2-7pm.
If you are interested in a FREE meeting with an Accountant, Business Advisor, Tax or Marketing Consultant to answer any queries you may have about your business, call now to reserve a one-to-one meeting. Call 047 84955 or email grainne@amatino.ie
The Minister for Finance announced in the budget the introduction of a simple effective review process to protect SME’s and farm enterprises who may have had requests for credit refused or credit facilities withdrawn.
Banks involved at present are those engaged with NAMA: AIB, Bank of Ireland, EBS, Anglo Irish Bank & Irish Nationwide.
The following eligibility criteria apply;
• The business is an SME, sole trader or small to medium-sized farm
• The business has applied for credit facilities from €1,000 up to €250,000 with one of the participating banks
• The credit facility was refused and the business has exhausted the banks internal appeals process
Direct credit refusals
• A refusal to lend on a written credit application from €1,000 up to €250,000
• A credit application which has been sanctioned by the participating bank but at a lower level than requested
• Refusal to assist with the restructuring of a credit facilities up to €250,000
• Withdrawal or reduction of credit
Constructive credit refusals
• When a decision on an application for review is not given by the participating bank within 15 working days, this shall be regarded as constructive refusal.
• Where the borrower considers that the terms or conditions attached to a credit facility or its price are so onerous as to amount to a constructive refusal.
If the borrower has exhausted the banks internal appeals process they may then make and application to the Credit Review Office. http://www.creditreview.ie/
We are hosting a seminar for businesses to help drive their performance and improve efficiencies. We will be joined by Marianne Mc Eneaney from Cavan Monaghan Leader who will discuss the grant opportunities for start up and existing businesses. Niall Thornton from Key Financials will be on hand to give tips on dealing with your bank and preparing information for bank meetings.
Our own, Patrick Cunningham will give a presentation on the practical ways to improve efficiencies, maximise grants and increase your business performance.
The economy has effected all business sectors including retail. Most retailers have experienced a dip in sales while their costs have remained high and urgently need to take a closer look at their cash flow in order to survive.
There are 3 principles that companies should follow if they are to seriously examine their cashflow:
1. Increase cash awareness throughout the business
Everyone in the business must be cash focused, from the sales staff right through to support. There is no point in pushing the sales staff to win sales with customers who will not pay or who already have outstanding invoices.
We send out a monthly newsletter to our clients and those who have signed up to our newsletter. The topics we cover vary but we try to keep them as relevant as possible to you and your business.
It is a great source of information for new budget changes, taxation, marketing and business news. Sign up today by clicking here.
I joined Amatino Partners in 2009 after moving my accounts from a large well known practice in Dublin. I was delighted to have a dedicated Partner in Barry Kieran who took a hands on approach to my business and my accounts. Barry's ability to analyse issues, develop & implement practical, beneficial solutions across my business has helped my business immensely.
For any business these days, it's a familiar scenario: You win the business submit the invoice, wait 30 days and then - nothing. Your staff and creditors expect to get paid on time, so is there anything you can do? Here's a methodology that may help you speed up delivery of payment of your invoices, and avoid hassle with your clients.
Define Your Terms
Define your terms and conditions It’s really important to define your terms and conditions for payment on your invoice.
The government has agreed to create formal new arrangements which could allow individuals who cannot pay off their personal debts to have a sizeable portion of them written off without going into bankruptcy or losing their home.
The newly agreed Programme for Government includes a commitment to create a system of personal insolvency which allows for legally binding agreements to be reached out of court in settling personal debt.
The precise details of the scheme have yet to be worked out, but it is understood that discussions between the Green Party and Fianna Fáil at talks last week examined a system based on the British model of what are called individual voluntary arrangements (IVAs).
With IVAs, someone who can’t pay their debts agrees to disclose the full extent of their indebtedness to all creditors. Then, an independent financial adviser makes a ruling on how much of the individual’s debts should be written off. The scheme is only binding if creditors representing 75 per cent of the total debts agree to its terms.
Last year, 37,000 people in Britain availed of IVAs and saw an average of 62 per cent of their debts written off.
Debt management is a critical activity in any business, especially now as the banking institutions will no longer be an automatic option to provide short term funding. In addition bank funding is going to get progressively more expensive.
Where excessive credit is granted to customers the incidence of bad debt does increase. A bad debt is a real cost to business and indeed it is an unexpected cost.
Debt is becoming more and more a part of our daily lives both on a personal and business level. Getting to grips with debt can be difficult but until a plan is in place to combat debt it can take its toll on your personal and financial health.
In a white paper released this week, the Law Reform Commission has recommended that those people who genuinely cannot pay personal debts should not be sent to prison. However, it said legal sanctions should remain against those who refuse to pay.
Approximately 200 people a year go to prison over unpaid debts.