Forum enters Aggregate Industries into their Hall of Shame
The Forum formerly entered Aggregate Industries into their Hall of Shame at 10am today for their excessively long payment terms after a member reported that the company pays in 90 days.
The construction materials provider, which can trace its heritage in the UK from the Ellis family, is now owned by Swiss-based conglomerate Lafarge Holcim. The company is the second well-publicised case where a Quaker family business that was established to trade ethically is now mistreating its suppliers, the first being Mondelez (who own Cadburys) in 2014.
The company does disputes the charge as they claim to pay their suppliers at the end of the month plus 63 days and feels that the claim is "factually incorrect". The Forum stands by its allegation on the basis that a supplier who invoices after the first week of the month should be paid in less than three months, in this instance this was not the case.
"We were initially unclear if this was a mistake on their part or an issue that had come about when they started to use a supplier management system, but the letter we received back from the company left us in no doubt", stated Ian Cass, Managing Director of the Forum of Private Business.
"EU regulation is clear that a company should pay within 60 days, there is some leeway in terms of invoice date or the receipt of the invoice but what it is clear that the customer cannot simply choose when the clock starts and then give themselves an extra three days for processing".
The Prompt Payment Code has recognised this as an issue and has asked signatories to complete a How to Get Paid Guide for suppliers. This is a powerful tool to help avoid any misunderstandings and we would be delighted to see Aggregate Industries as a signatory of the code.
The Forum has invited Aggregate Industries to join the Prompt Payment Code in December.
Ends
The Hall of Shame can be found at
https://www.fpb.org/your-voice/hall-of-shame
If you would like a copy of the correspondence please email:
thomas.parry@fpb.org
Currently the Forum has delayed entering Holland and Barrett into their hall of shame until after their supplier day as we have been promised a deluge of suppliers who are delighted by the opportunities that the retailer has given them as a result of the reduction to their invoices.