» Despite most teams rolling in cash…

… it would seem the majority of F1 teams pay their suppliers late, according to a recent report in the UK press and on conjunction with major credit reporting agencies.

The Dun & Bradstreet group found that 2010 Drivers’ and Constructors’ Championship winner Red Bull Racing has the best payment record, and is the only team to pay its bills on time or ahead of schedule.

So if you were a supplier awaiting payment from a Formula 1 team, who is least likely to pay on time…?

None other than Team Lotus!

The Daily Mail has said that the Silverstone-based team – owned by low-cost airline mogul Tony Fernandes – pays its bills an average of 180 days past due.

Even the Force India team – owned and run by billionaire airline and liquor baron Vijay Mallya – is an average of 30 days late paying each bill to its suppliers.

“If Vijay sold his yacht, it would keep the team going for a couple of years,” quipped an unnamed supplier.

The average late payment delay is 28 days, according to the report – which compared teams’ payment histories between November 2009 to December 2010 – which also found that even the well-heeled teams like Ferrari and McLaren were typically late in paying their respective suppliers.