When a client in Florida drags their feet on a progress payment, you act as an unsecured lender for their project. Every day that invoice sits unpaid past its net terms, your cash bleeds out as carrying costs. Understanding the state's prompt-payment statutes and allowable interest rates is fundamental for protecting your operating margins.
Florida Statutes (715.12) dictate that private owners must pay prime contractors within 14 days of an approved pay application. Prime contractors then have 30 days to pay subcontractors.
Maximum Allowable Interest (Private): Statutory rate set by the CFO (often around 9-11% annually) or as specified in contract
For public projects (Local Gov Prompt Payment Act), local governments pay within 25 days, and state agencies within 20 days. Prime contractors must pay subs within 10 days.
Maximum Allowable Interest (Public): 1% per month (12% annually)
Consider a scenario where you are owed $40000 on a completed milestone, and the payment is 45 days past the statutory deadline or your contract terms. Based on common statutory limits, the carrying cost you might legally be entitled to recover can accumulate quickly. For example, if you applied an appropriate rate under Florida law, the delay could cost the client an additional $600.00 in interest.
You aren't just slapping an arbitrary fee on the invoice; you are recovering the actual financial damage caused by the delay, backed by state legislation.
To protect yourself, your master service agreement must include a clear, unambiguous clause regarding late payments. A recommended practice is to cite the maximum allowable rate under Florida law as a cap, defaulting to the statutory rate if your contract rate is deemed usurious.
Interest terms must be consistently communicated. They should be printed on every single invoice you send, typically near the total due. Using a clear internal standard operating procedure (SOP) ensures these rules are applied objectively, removing emotion from the collections process.
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