GOV.UK
MARKS AND SPENCER P.L.C.
Company number: 00214436
Reporting period:
4 April 2021
to 2 October 2021
This report was filed on 2 November 2021
and approved by Eoin Tonge
Payment statistics
Average time taken to pay invoices: 30 days
Invoices paid:
- within 30 days: 64%
- in 31 to 60 days: 27%
- in 61 days or more: 9%
Invoices due but not paid within agreed terms: 1 %
Payment terms
Shortest standard payment period
19 days
Longest standard payment period
120 days
Standard payment terms
M&S standard payment terms are;
• Food vendors: 19 days
• Clothing & Home vendors: 120 days
• Goods Not for Resale vendors: 75 days
Payments that fall due on a weekend or bank holiday are paid and cleared by the prior working day.
In certain circumstances, M&S may agree to shorter payment terms with suppliers as part of an overall commercial agreement.
Were there any changes to the standard payment terms in the reporting period?
No
Maximum contractual payment period agreed
120 days
No term longer than our standard payment terms was used in this reporting period.
Any other information about payment terms
Whilst our previous standard payment terms of 75 days for Clothing & Home vendors have been extended to 120 days previously, in response to Covid-19, we are continuing to offer vendor finance and letters of credit meaning suppliers can get early access to cash regardless of payment terms.
UK Suppliers considered to be small where annual spend is under £1m were unaffected by these changes and remain on terms of 60 days or less (Food vendors remain on standard terms of 19 days). These vendors also have access to vendor financing schemes.
• M&S offer a Supply Chain Finance solution that enables suppliers to obtain funds in advance of agreed payment terms.
• M&S are entitled to offset any of the supplier’s invoices any amounts owing to M&S by the supplier.
Dispute resolution process
• Specialist supplier help desks are available to manage all supplier queries. This includes Goods Receipt, PO, EDI, Invoicing and Payment queries.
• The query support teams offer suppliers the benefit of having a central contact available to help resolve their issue:
o The teams will be the single point of contact for all delivery, invoice and payment queries
o They track queries and seek resolution
• A supplier portal is available for Food and Goods Not for Resale suppliers to view the payment status of invoices.
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 Prompt Payment Code must commit to paying 95% of their invoices within 60 days.Yes – The Groceries Supply Code of Practice and the Prompt Payment Code
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.
Yes
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