With the coronavirus outbreak causing strain in the high street it’s even more important than ever to manage your cash flow.
In the last few days, we have seen an increase in the number of enquiries from clients and potential clients asking how they can chase their outstanding invoices. No one wants to cause additional hardship, but if you have done the work or supplied the goods, you should be paid.
Our message remains the same in whatever business conditions we face:
- Ensure that your terms and conditions are up to date and that your customers are aware of them
- Make sure that when you take on a new business customer you make the necessary checks to ensure they are a legitimate business and that they are not trying to draw you into a scam
- As soon as your invoices become overdue get on the phone and ask for payment in accordance with your terms and conditions
- Don’t be taken in by customers who keep putting off payment, unless you have very good reason to believe them - you obviously need to consider the relationship you have with the client when deciding how hard to chase
- If you are still not getting results – take professional advice sooner rather than later on your next steps – if often costs less than you think to chase your debts and a letter from a solicitor shows you are serious and carries more weight.
If you would like to talk to our team about your bad debts please contact our Debt Recovery team, they will be happy to help.