A key supplier threatening to cut you off is a serious threat, because without their goods you may not be able to earn at all. It calls for direct negotiation, not avoidance.
Talk before they act
Contact the supplier before the deadline. Explain the position honestly, and propose something specific — a part-payment now and the rest on a date you can genuinely hit. Suppliers generally prefer a paying customer on a plan to a lost account.
Protect the cash that keeps you trading
If this supplier is essential to earning, the cash to keep them supplying may need to rank above less critical outgoings. That can mean asking us for short-term room on the loan so you can keep the wheels turning.
Get it in writing
Confirm any agreement with the supplier by email straight away, so there is no dispute later about what was agreed.
If keeping the supplier means easing the loan for a while, tell us via the contact page.
We lend only to UK limited companies and LLPs, and the loan is to the company with no director personal guarantee. As business finance outside the consumer-credit regime, it is not covered by the Financial Ombudsman Service or FSCS.
See also: What to do when you cannot pay a supplier, Talking to suppliers about payment terms, Which debts should a struggling company pay first?.