Marsh publishes 2026 trade credit report
Marsh has published its Trade Credit Report 2026, Perception versus Reality: Is high risk becoming normalised in a volatile environment?
Drawing on a cross‑sector study of 1,000 UK chief executives and finance directors, the report, which will be of interest to risk managers and others who consider captives as an insurance option, highlights a clear disconnect: confidence in resilience remains exceptionally high, while exposure indicators and loss experience point to sustained, broad-based financial strain.
Around seven in 10 respondents report that financial exposure has increased over the last 12 months across major risk areas, including supply chain disruption (69%), digital disruption (67%), late payments (68%), AI-related risk (67%) and economic conditions (70%). Similar proportions expect exposure to increase again over the next 12 months.
“In many organisations, the real risk is complacency,” said Ian Leslie, head of trade credit, credit specialties, Marsh Risk. “When late payments, supplier instability, and digital disruption become familiar, the risk is that businesses stop treating them as signals to reassess protection. Confidence is strongest when it is backed by visibility, disciplined credit management, and actively maintained financial resilience.”
According to the report payment pressure is no longer a minor concern. 85% of organisations report dealing with more late payments in the last 12 months, and 75% report more bad debt write-offs. This is translating into direct financial impact: 76% have experienced losses due to late payments and 75% have experienced losses due to bad debt write-offs. Average annual collections costs are estimated at £421,800, up from £368,400 in 2025, a 14.5% increase.
The report identifies customer and supplier dependency as a material vulnerability. On average, respondents estimate 39% of revenue would be at risk if one of their top five customers failed to pay; 25% say more than half of revenue would be at risk in that scenario.
Marsh added that supplier concentration is similarly pronounced: 99% say they are more reliant on a small number of key suppliers than 12 months ago, while 50% cite supplier insolvency or financial instability as the leading supply chain disruption risk contributing to increased financial exposure.
Digital and AI-related disruption is now strongly linked to loss experience. 76% report losses due to digital disruption, and 76% report losses linked to AI-related risks. Almost all respondents (99%) say cyber threats and digital fraud are growing credit risk concerns for their organisation, underlining the convergence of operational disruption and financial exposure.
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