Invoice disputes: common causes and how to resolve them faster
Invoice disputes can bring an otherwise straightforward payment to a complete standstill. A customer queries an invoice, the accounts team puts it on hold, and suddenly a payment you were expecting this month has no confirmed payment date. Sometimes there’s a genuine disagreement about the work, price or terms. Sometimes there’s a missing purchase order, […]
How to chase an overdue invoice: a step-by-step UK guide
How to chase an overdue invoice comes down to having a clear sequence and knowing what you need from each conversation. You don’t need seventeen versions of a payment reminder. You need to establish why the invoice hasn’t been paid, who can get it paid and exactly what happens next. That sounds simple. Yet UK […]
What is credit management? Essential guide for UK SMEs
What is credit management? For an SME, it is the process used to decide who receives credit, what payment terms apply and how the business makes sure invoices are paid when they become due. It covers the full journey from assessing a customer before offering credit through to invoicing, monitoring payment, resolving disputes and escalating […]
Accounts receivable management: how to get invoices paid on time
Accounts receivable management is the process of managing the money customers owe your business, from agreeing payment terms and issuing invoices through to monitoring payment, resolving queries and following up overdue accounts. For an SME, getting this right has a direct effect on cash flow. The sale may have happened. The work may have been […]
How to reduce late payments: 10 practical steps for UK SMEs
Reduce late payments by looking at the whole payment process, starting before the invoice is sent. Businesses often focus on chasing once an invoice becomes overdue. By that point, the cause of the delay may already be several weeks old. Payment terms may have been unclear. The purchase order may be missing. The invoice may […]
Credit control process: 8 steps to get invoices paid on time
A credit control process is the repeatable system a business uses to decide who receives credit, issue invoices, monitor payment, follow up outstanding accounts and escalate overdue debt. For UK SMEs, the aim is simple: make sure every invoice has an owner, a status and a clear next action. That structure matters because late payment […]
Credit control strategy: get paid and keep customers
A good credit control strategy answers a fairly simple question: how are you going to make sure customers pay you when they agreed to? The answer affects far more than the aged debtor report. Payment terms, invoicing, reminders, customer conversations, disputes and escalation all influence how quickly money reaches your bank. They also shape the […]
How to reduce aged debt: 7 practical steps
How to reduce aged debt starts with understanding where the money is concentrated. When we review an aged debtor ledger, the quickest opportunity is often obvious once the accounts are sorted by value. A relatively small number of customers can account for a large proportion of the total debt. That is why we often start […]
Late payment interest in the UK: compensation and what to do next
Late payment interest is something many UK businesses are legally entitled to charge, yet plenty never use it. Some don’t know what they’re entitled to. Others worry about upsetting a customer or aren’t sure when an overdue invoice should be escalated. I understand the hesitation. Nobody particularly wants an argument with a customer over an […]