COVID-19 made payment delays to contractors much worse

The COVID-19 pandemic appears to have made payment delays to contractors much worse, according to a report from construction software firm Levelset.

Just 9% of companies always get paid on time, a decline of 60% from last year, says Levelset’s 2021 Construction Cash Flow & Payment Report. Just one construction contractor in 10 always gets paid in full, a 75% drop from before the pandemic.

GCs typically fare better than subs. General contractors are four times more likely than subcontractors to get paid within 30 days, and 50% more likely to get paid in full. One in five subcontractors and suppliers often have to wait more than 60 days for payment.

A full 56% of subcontractors wait more than 60 days to collect retained funds, compared to just 16% of general contractors.