Construction contractors across Canada have perennially
experienced payment delays on projects, unfairly impacting their
cash flow. The reasons for the payment delays are many. However, in
essence, if a payee can get away with keeping money in its own
pocket for longer, it is not likely to forego that opportunity.
For this reason, the industry has pushed for years for
legislation that requires prompt payment on construction projects.
Ontario, Alberta and Saskatchewan have all in recent years enacted
prompt payment legislation, and now British Columbia has introduced
Bill 20, the Construction Prompt Payment Act.
The timing of the introduction of the prompt payment bill is
somewhat unfortunate. For years, the construction industry in B.C.
has boomed, and timely payment on projects was a top of mind issue
for many contractors. However, the industry is now by no means
booming, and prompt payment has fallen far down the list of most
contractor's priorities. While
