Employer Hasn't Paid You, or Paid You Late? (UK)
Being paid late is not merely annoying — paying you after the agreed date without your written agreement can itself be an unlawful deduction from wages. And the deadline for doing anything about it is shorter than almost anyone expects.
The short answer
Wages must be paid in full and on the agreed date. Paying late, or short, without your written consent can amount to an unlawful deduction from wages under the Employment Rights Act 1996. A tribunal claim must normally be brought within three months less one day from the date you should have been paid — or from the last in a series of deductions.
Contents
The three-month clock, and why it catches people
Three months less one day, from the date you should have been paid. Where there is a series of shortfalls it runs from the last one. People lose claims by waiting to see whether it gets sorted out — the clock does not pause while an employer promises to fix it.
The deadline
- Three months less one day from the date payment was due
- For a series of deductions, from the LAST one
- Early conciliation through ACAS must normally be started before a claim, and it affects the timing
- Chasing informally does not stop the clock
What counts as an unlawful deduction
Not every shortfall is one, and knowing the boundary keeps a good complaint from being dismissed. Deductions required by law, or ones you genuinely agreed to in writing beforehand, are lawful. Almost everything else is not.
The boundary
- Lawful: tax, National Insurance, and anything you agreed to in writing IN ADVANCE
- Usually unlawful: a deduction for a till shortage, breakage or training cost with no prior written agreement
- Usually unlawful: paying after the agreed date without your written agreement
- Unpaid holiday pay and unpaid notice are separate claims worth checking too
Ask for the payslip as well
You have a right to an itemised pay statement showing gross pay, net pay, and each deduction. It is worth asking for it explicitly, because if deductions were made without being notified on a payslip, a tribunal can order the employer to repay those amounts for up to 13 weeks before the claim.
Put it in writing first, briefly
A short factual request naming the amount and the due date resolves a large share of these, particularly where it was a payroll error rather than a decision. It also creates the record you need if it was not an error.
Unpaid or late wages
Edit this template with your facts, dates, and requested outcome before sending.
Subject: Unpaid wages — [your name], pay date [date] Dear [Employer/Payroll], My wages for [period] were due to be paid on [date]. [I have not been paid / I was paid [amount] instead of [amount], a shortfall of [amount] / I was not paid until [date]]. I have not agreed in writing to any deduction from or delay to my wages. I am asking you to pay the outstanding amount of [amount] by [date], and to confirm in writing when payment will be made and what caused the shortfall. Kind regards, [Your Name]
Common mistakes to avoid
- Waiting to see if it gets fixed while the three-month clock runs
- Accepting a deduction you never agreed to in writing beforehand
- Not asking for the itemised payslip, which carries its own remedy
- Only raising it verbally, leaving no record of when you asked
- Overlooking unpaid holiday or notice pay, which are separate entitlements
- Assuming a promise to pay next month resets the deadline — it does not
Next steps
- 1Write down the date payment was due and the exact shortfall
- 2Check whether you ever agreed to any deduction in writing
- 3Write to payroll or HR asking for payment by a set date and an explanation
- 4Ask for the itemised payslip covering the period
- 5Note the three-month deadline and take advice well before it
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