Payapps’ 2026 research into the state of subcontractor payments asked whether the application for payment is a pain point or a competitive advantage. Subcontractors say it’s mostly the former – and contractors are picking up more of the bill than they think
You may have seen Payapps’ survey this Spring, as PBC Today was one of the places it was circulated. Between 24 April and 29 May 2026, we gathered the thoughts of 127 anonymous UK subcontractors on how contractors handle their applications for payment.
The headline finding won’t surprise anyone who has had to chase a valuation. Nearly eight in 10 (79%) subcontractors wait longer than they should to get paid. What struck us more was how much time both sides are losing along the way.
Two sides of the same application
We’ll start with the typical subcontractor. More than half of the firms we polled (55%) spend upwards of 20 hours a month on general admin. That’s the best part of three working days gone, every month, on paperwork alone.
Each application then takes an average of an hour-and-a-half, and for more than one in seven (15%) respondents, a single submission runs past three hours. For 17% of them, the work spills into time outside of office hours, so applications get pushed into the evening.
Now let’s look across the desk. In separate research among contractors’ finance professionals, we found the typical team of five manages 210 subcontractors. They spend 73 hours a month on subcontractor payments, the equivalent of two weeks’ worth of work
every month for a full-time role.
Where the time goes
Much of the waste comes from a lack of clear rules. Two-thirds of subcontractors (67%) still prepare most of their applications on spreadsheets and over a third (37%) are asked to work across multiple systems. Only half (50%) agree contractors run consistent processes. Almost half (49%) say the information contractors give them is only “sometimes” clear, or “rarely” or “not at all”.
So subcontractors relearn the process for each client, and mistakes creep in. Among those still using spreadsheets and similar methods, 22% say contractors ask for corrections or extra information “often” or “for every application”.
Then comes the wait. More than a fifth (21%) “never” receive feedback or payment notices on time. Feedback delays top the list of chief frustrations at 31%, with differing contractor requirements the next cause for friction at 19%.
Disputes and the damage they do
Almost three-quarters (73%) tell us that payment disputes with contractors arise “sometimes” or “often”. Variations that were never agreed are the most common cause (79%), followed by disagreements over the value of completed work (74%). Slow responses or approvals come up for a solid majority (61%).
Subcontractors remember who put them through this kind of hassle. Two in five (42%) say they would turn down future work with a contractor who pays late, and nearly a third (29%) have already avoided one because its payment process was too difficult.
Our research also found 84% say a contractor’s reputation influences whether and how they bid for future work, while 68% have raised their rates or added a risk margin because of slow or unreliable payment.
That last figure should interest anyone setting a budget. A messy payment process may be adding a premium to every package without ever appearing on an invoice. Cashflow is tight enough that some subcontractors would offer reduced rates in exchange for guaranteed early payment.
There’s legal exposure, too. Under the Construction Act 1996, a payer who misses a payment notice or valid pay less notice may have to pay the full “notified sum”. That opens the door to “smash-and-grab”’ claims, even where the amount applied for can be far higher than the true cost of the work delivered.
What subcontractors want
Nearly nine in 10 (85%) agree a clear, consistent payment system gives them confidence in a contractor. When a contractor asks them to use a standard platform, they do.
Over the past year, more than three-quarters (77%) of respondents have used Payapps for at least some submissions on projects where their contractor uses it and asks them to do the same.
Steve Dean, commercial manager at subcontractor Adexsi UK, said: “Submitting an application for payment through Payapps is very simple and has standardised our application process.”
On the contractor side, Peter Vevres, commercial director of utility services at OCU Group, added: “Subcontractors like using Payapps because they can see their agreed value every week. If we disagree with a value, they know which week we disagree with; they can raise that query with the site manager, and it’s quickly resolved.”
Seeing agreed values every week is what stops variations and missed notices turning into disputes. And with skilled labour hard to find, subcontractors will keep choosing those contractors whose payment process lets them plan their cashflow.
To get the whole story, download the full report, Construction Applications for Payment:
Pain Point or Competitive Advantage?, here.
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