Halesowen-based firm of chartered accountants and business advisers, Nicklin LLP, is advising small to medium sized businesses to pay close attention to their invoicing methods, in light of new research which shows that SMEs are waiting longer for overdue payments.

On average, smaller firms are being made to wait 41 days over the agreed due date before invoices are being settled, with large firms being cited by many as the main culprits.

In a recent study carried out by BACs Payment Schemes, it was found that the period payments are overdue by has increased by 9.5 days since June 2009.

Mark Northall, practice manager of Nicklin, said: "Consistently late payments can seriously damage a smaller firm's financial health, and so it is vital for business owners and managers to do all they can to remedy this problem.

"The first step is to consult a team of professional experts in credit control and management to find out how you can improve things like invoices, chasing methods and debt management strategies.

"At Nicklin Management Services, our credit control facility can provide you with all the help and support you need to ensure that your business doesn't become a victim of late payments."

Nicklin's credit control services provide a trustworthy and professional outsourcing solution which can handle all credit control issues, leaving a business free to concentrate on the day-to-day matters that running a company can raise.