SPECSAVERS OPTICAL SUPERSTORES LIMITED
Company number: 01721624
Reporting period:
1 March 2026 to 31 August 2026
Report filed on:
24 September 2026
Approved by:
Paul Fussey
Contracts and payments
Do any of this business's construction contracts with its suppliers include retention clauses? Yes
Payment statistics
Average time taken to pay invoices: 28 days
Total value paid:
- within 30 days: £324,870,778 (85%)
- in 31 to 60 days: £34,790,506 (9%)
- in 61 days or more: £24,101,071 (6%)
Invoices paid:
- within 30 days: 84%
- in 31 to 60 days: 8%
- in 61 days or more: 8%
Late and disputed:
- total value of payments due in the reporting period which have not been paid within the agreed period: £98,373,815
- payments due in the reporting period which have not been paid within the agreed period: 18%
- not made in the reporting period due to a dispute: 0%
Payment terms
Shortest standard payment periods
1 days
Longest standard payment period
60 days
Standard payment terms
Standard Payment Terms are 30 days, in addition, high volumes of monthly/quarterly Rental Payments are processed within 7 working days from Invoice upload as per Lease agreements between Specsavers Optical Superstores and Landlords. Efforts are being made with our Suppliers who currently invoice outside standard 30 days to agree to these terms. In addition, encourage Supplier to email PDF invoices to be processed in our P2P Invoice Processing solution with Basware, allowing our Suppliers to submit Invoices to one email address, meaning a central receipt of invoices into Accounts Payable from date of Invoice
Were there any changes to the standard payment terms in the reporting period?
No
Were suppliers notified or consulted about these changes before they were made?
N/A
Maximum contractual payment period agreed
60 days
No further comment provided
Any other information about payment terms
No further comment provided
Retention clauses
How does this business use retention clauses?
Retention clauses are used in specific circumstances:
BD framework contracts are based on the industry recognised JCT Minor Works contract
We invoke the terms and conditions agreed within the framework by issuing a Statement of Work which generally applies to all contract sums over c£25k (but we review on a contract-by-contract basis)
We withhold 5% retention and release as follows:
o First 2.5% at Practical Completion (PC)
o Final 2.5% at Making Good Defects (MGD)
Please note the industry standard is to withhold the final 2.5% retention for a period of 12 months, however, to assist with supplier cashflow, we chose to review and release the final 2.5% retention within three months of PC above
For contract values under £25k, we generally do not withhold retention and pay in full upon completion of the works
Does this business only use retention clauses in construction contracts above a specific contract sum?
Yes: £25,000
Does this business use a standard percentage rate in retention clauses?
Yes: 5%
Does this business apply retention clause practices that are no more onerous than those applied to it on the same project?
Yes:
Answering Yes, but not applicable to Specsavers as we are the Client and therefore nobody holds Retention on us.
Releasing money under a retention clause
Process for releasing money this business has deducted or retained under a retention clause
BD framework contracts are based on the industry recognised JCT Minor Works contract. We withhold a standard 5% retention until Practical Completion where the first 2.5% is released. The final 2.5% is released on the achievement of Making Good Certificate, which is generally 3 months post Practical Completion.
Is the money released in stages?
Yes:
We either staged payments or timings of applications for payments with our Supply Chain and is included within the agreed contract.
Amount retained from suppliers in the reporting period
Amount retained stated as a percentage of the money retained from this business by its clients
0%
Amount retained stated as a percentage of the total construction payments made by this business
5%
Dispute resolution process
All disputed invoices are referred back to the supplier to address and resolve. A disputed invoice is processed in our Accounting System and flagged as Disputed to ensure it is not picked up on the payment run. Once resolved and approved, the dispute flag is removed, allowing the invoice to be paid.
Other payment information
Has this business signed up to a code of conduct or standards on payment practices? If so, which?
For example, signatories to The Fair Payment Code must commit to paying 95% of their invoices within 60 days.
No, this business has not signed up to a code of conduct or standards on payment practices.
Does this business offer e-invoicing in relation to qualifying contracts?
This is where suppliers can electronically submit and track invoices. It's not just allowing suppliers to email them an invoice.
Yes
Does this business offer supply chain finance?
This is where a supplier who has submitted an invoice can be paid by a third-party finance provider earlier than the agreed payment date. The business would then pay the finance provider the invoiced sum.
No
Under its payment practices and policies, can this business deduct sums from payments under qualifying contracts as a charge for remaining on a supplier list?
No
During the reporting period, did the business deduct sums from payments as a charge for remaining on a supplier list?
No