London, September 2021 - LawBite, the leading online legal platform providing expert and accessible legal services to SME businesses, recently commissioned a YouGov poll which revealed that thousands of SMEs are threatened by the repayment of government Covid loans.
The survey found that 59% of SMEs used government loans or the furlough scheme during the pandemic, amounting to around 3.5 million businesses. With at least one in ten – or 354,000 – now unable to make repayments, the subsequent impact on cash flow and supply chains is beginning to become apparent, with almost a quarter of affected SMEs (81,420) reporting disruption in their supply chains due to late payments caused by loan repayments.
Beyond the pandemic, LawBite also wanted to explore how long-term commercial and social change could help SMEs grow and thrive in the future.
Trade is on the minds of SMEs, with one in four stating that the most positive change for them would be ‘seamless trade beyond country borders.
Further underlining the importance of technology for SMEs, 26% believe that ‘streamlined digital engagement with customers and partners will support future business growth.
Clive Rich, the founder of LawBite, commented: “Businesses are struggling and technology is one of the tools that can be used to help them navigate these difficult times and support their growth in the future. At LawBite, we understand the issues that SMEs face everyday. We decided to modernise the UK’s legal sector with the use of advanced technology to make it easy for businesses to access the expert legal advice they need, when they require it, and at affordable prices.”
To find out more about LawBite’s YouGov Poll results, please visit: https://www.lawbite.co.uk/resources/poll-july-2021
All figures, unless otherwise stated, are from YouGov Plc. Total sample size was 511 SME Decision Makers. Fieldwork was undertaken between 5th - 9th July 2021. The survey was carried out online. The figures have been weighted and are representative of British business size.
About LawBite
LawBite is a leading online legal platform, providing expert but accessible legal services to those SME businesses let down by Britain’s overpriced and exclusionary legal system. A new law-tech disruptor, LawBite is shaking up a £20bn a year domestic industry in need of a technological and democratic revolution. LawBite CEO Clive Rich, a qualified barrister, founded the company after witnessing larger law firms actively discourage staff from taking on smaller clients. Since its founding, LawBite has provided a much-needed voice to tens of thousands of the UK’s 6 million SMEs, who spend around £9bn on legal services every year.
LawBite hosts its own law firm on its digital platform – LawBriefs – regulated by the SRA. The platform uses advanced data science and the latest on-line tools to transform the case management process, markedly improving the speed by which legal work is processed, whilst maintaining the highest standards of security.
LawBite is modernising the UK’s legal sector with their use of advanced technology to streamline law for greater efficiency. LawBite has developed its own proprietary cloud-based, data encrypted platform (which includes an app) used by both clients and lawyers. It is a market leader for using data science, machine learning and AI to ensure a perfect client/lawyer match and offer consistent, fixed price quotes.
