Payment Arrears in the Transport Industry: VRS Report
We checked the finances of 83 transport companies from the Mazovia region in the last quarter of 2024. The data clearly shows that the waiting time for payment from counterparties has extended by an average of 14 days. This is a real threat to small fleets that have to pay leases and fuel on an ongoing basis, without having a financial cushion for two months ahead.
Where Did the Extra Two Weeks of Delays Come From?
We analyzed invoices issued between September and December 2024 by carriers from Warsaw, Pruszków, and Grodzisk Mazowiecki. Previously, the average payment term declared on documents was 44 days, but realistically money arrived after 58 days. The biggest problems were reported by company owners serving the construction and furniture industries. These bottlenecks often result from the new policy of large logistics centers, which intentionally keep cash in their accounts to improve their own quarterly indicators at the expense of subcontractors.
In the transport industry, every day of delay is a concrete opportunity cost. With current interest rates, freezing the amount of 150,000 PLN for an additional 14 days costs an entrepreneur about 480 PLN in capital interest alone, not counting stress and the risk of losing liquidity. At Vistula Risk Solutions, we noticed that companies that do not monitor repayment terms daily lose an average of 2.8% of annual turnover on the costs of servicing debt with insurers and banks alone.
We act fast because time is capital. In transport, 14 days of delay is often the line between profit and loss.
Fuel and Leasing Don't Wait for the Transfer
The average transport company participating in our study owns 11 truck sets. The monthly cost of maintaining one car, including the lease installment, OCP insurance, and fuel, is an average of 28,340 PLN. With the aforementioned delay in payments, the owner must suddenly find an additional 136,000 PLN to cover the current costs of the entire fleet in the middle of the month. In November 2024, as many as 19 of the surveyed companies had to use expensive working capital credit to pay driver salaries on time.
The situation is worsened by rising road tolls in Germany and Austria, which carriers must pay almost immediately, while the reimbursement of these costs from the client often occurs after 60 days. One of our clients, running a base near Piaseczno, calculated that in October 2024 alone, they paid 42,700 PLN out of their own pocket for tolls alone, for which they waited until the end of December for repayment. This is a business model that, without strict risk control, leads straight to restructuring.
Counterparty Verification is the Basis of Survival
Instead of relying on luck, we implemented an early counterparty verification system in 47 entities before accepting an order. We analyze not only the history in databases such as KRD or BIG, but check current mortgage encumbrances and capital links of companies commissioning the transport. In December 2024, we helped one of our partners avoid a contract worth 212,000 PLN with a company that filed for bankruptcy just three weeks later. Facts, not forecasts – that is our rule.
Many transport company owners are afraid to refuse orders, even if the payer has a bad reputation on transport exchanges. This is a mistake. Our data shows that it is better to leave the car at the base for two days than to perform a run for which payment will never arrive. The average cost of court collection for one invoice worth 8,500 PLN often exceeds 2,400 PLN and lasts nearly 9 months. We save liquidity, not paper, which is why we advise selecting clients already at the route planning stage.
Facts, not forecasts. Better an empty run than an invoice that no one will ever pay.
How to Prepare for Changes in 2025?
Our analyses indicate that in the first quarter of 2025, margins in road transport may drop by another 3.2%. The main reason is labor costs and new EU requirements for carbon footprint reporting. We recommend all transport companies shorten payment terms on invoices to a maximum of 30 days and introduce a 1.5% discount for payment within 7 days. This simple tool allowed 12 of our clients to regain access to cash 18 days faster than last year.
Vistula Risk Solutions has a team of 5 analysts in the Warsaw office who monitor the inflow of receivables for our regular partners daily. In 2024, we managed to save liquidity in 31 companies that stood on the verge of losing operational capability. If your invoices wait for payment for more than 50 days, it is a sign that the risk management system in your company requires immediate correction. Don't wait until the phone from the bank rings first.
