Late payment pressures intensified for North West businesses in the first quarter of 2026, with a growing number of companies carrying overdue invoices on their books, according to a new report from R3, the UK’s trade body for restructuring, turnaround and insolvency professionals.
An analysis by R3, shows that there were around 178,500 companies in the region carrying overdue invoices, an increase of 3% compared to the same period last year when 173,700 companies were affected.
R3's latest Quarterly Business Health report, based on data from Creditsafe, also revealed that the total number of late payments in the region declined by 4% (from 1.87 million in Q1 2025 to 1.8 million last quarter) bucking the national trend which saw total numbers of overdue invoices rise by 3%.
Insolvency‑related activity in the region, including administration and voluntary and compulsory liquidations, increased by 5% over the last quarter to 1,226 cases, compared to the final quarter of 2025 when there were 1,167 cases, but levels were similar to the same quarter last year. Only Greater London saw more insolvency activity over the last quarter with 1,558 cases.
Mark Davies, Head of Restructuring & Insolvency at Aaron & Partners and chair of R3 in the North West, said:
“R3's latest Business Health report highlights an early warning sign for local businesses, with more companies being affected by late payments. More than 178,000 companies are carrying overdue invoices, showing that day‑to‑day cashflow remains under real strain.
“Late payments are a significant contributor to business failure, and mounting arrears can quickly turn manageable cashflow issues into a wider crisis, particularly for small and medium sized companies. With businesses also facing higher energy and fuel costs linked to global uncertainty, our members expect pressure to intensify as the year progresses.
“With this in mind, business owners should prioritise credit control and seek professional advice early if they begin to struggle, rather than waiting until problems become unmanageable.” The government states that late payments cost the UK economy £11 billion each year and lead to the closure of 38 UK businesses every day, while announcing plans to tackle the issue.
If you would like more information you can view the full R3 report.
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Mark Davies
Partner | Head of Restructuring & Insolvency
Mark is the Head of the Restructuring & Insolvency team and advises Insolvency Practitioners on a national level in relation to insolvency cases. He also advises unsecured creditors in relation to their claims in insolvent estates.
