Petition · past parliament

Increase penalties for late payments to freelancers

Closed 311 signatures

What the petition asks

The Government should increase the legal penalties that freelancers can charge to clients who pay late (past 30 days of project completion). These penalties should be equal to the initially agreed fee.
We need payment laws to be revised with more support for freelancers. The existing legislation, the Late Payment of Commercial Debts (Interest) Act 1998, falls short in its effectiveness due to relatively minor penalties. At times we can be waiting to be paid for two months or longer. Even though Late payments are pursued through the small claims court that include the late payment fees, clients still refuse to pay the penalty charge. We believe that if the penalty charge for late payment is increased there will be more incentive for clients to pay on time.

Timeline

9 Oct 2023 Petition opened for signatures
9 Apr 2024 Closed to new signatures

Key facts

Signatures 311
Status Closed
Opened 9 Oct 2023
Closed 9 Apr 2024

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Source: the official petition page. Last checked 15 Jul 2026.