Updated October 2026. We refresh this list every month as new reports and accounts are filed.
Bennett Construction (London) pays its suppliers in an average of 5 days, the fastest of the main contractors we list. Across the 107 main contractors with a recent government payment report, the middle average time to pay is 31 days, and 51 pay in 30 days or less on average.
Average days to pay suppliers, fastest first
| Value | |
|---|---|
| Bennett Construction (London) | 5 days |
| Hercules PLC | 6 days |
| M Group Highways | 15 days |
| Heron Bros. | 15 days |
| J Murphy & Sons Ltd | 17 days |
| Morgan Lovell PLC | 17 days |
| Lendlease Europe | 19 days |
| BDL Group | 19 days |
| Overbury PLC | 19 days |
| Van Oord UK | 20 days |
| Laing O'Rourke | 21 days |
| Beard Construction | 21 days |
Payment practices reports, Check Payment Practices (GOV.UK)
The list
What this tells you
Fast average payment is a good sign: it usually means a contractor has the cash to pay on time and processes to match. It's one of the first things worth checking before you take on a package, and the gap between the fastest and the middle is often several weeks of your money.
These reports cover every invoice a company pays, not only subcontractors: materials suppliers, plant hire, consultants and utilities are in there too. A good average doesn't mean every subcontractor is paid quickly, so the share of invoices not paid to agreed terms is worth reading alongside it.
How to use it
- Check before you price. The cash tied up calculator uses a contractor's own payment days to show how much of your money a package could tie up.
- Compare against everyone. The payment league table shows every company we list, sortable by average days, invoices paid within 30 days and the share paid late, with retentions on a second tab.
- Look at the trend. Each company page shows every report it has filed since 2017 as a chart, so you can see whether it's getting better or worse.
- If you're paid late, the late payment interest calculator works out the statutory interest and fixed compensation you can claim.
Questions
Which main contractors pay fastest?
Bennett Construction (London) (5 days), Hercules PLC (6 days) and M Group Highways (15 days) top the list, from their latest government payment reports. The full list is above.
How long do main contractors take to pay on average?
The middle company takes 31 days on average to pay its suppliers, and 51 of the 107 with a recent report pay in 30 days or less. The figures cover all suppliers, not only subcontractors.
Where do these figures come from?
From the payment practices reports that large UK companies must file with the government every six months, published on the Check Payment Practices service. We update this list every month.
How we built this list
Large companies and LLPs must report how they pay their suppliers every six months. We take each company's latest report from the government's Check Payment Practices service, as long as it ends within the last 18 months. Where a group reports through its main trading company, that company's report is used. Every row links to the report it came from.
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