{"id":6027,"date":"2018-03-01T10:00:00","date_gmt":"2018-03-01T10:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/localtesting.test\/?p=67"},"modified":"2026-01-09T15:21:52","modified_gmt":"2026-01-09T15:21:52","slug":"late-payments-paid-on-time","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-ie\/blog\/late-payments-paid-on-time\/","title":{"rendered":"Late payments: 18 great tips to get paid on time"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tMoney Matters<\/a>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t
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\n\t\t\t\t\t\tLate payments: 18 great tips to get paid on time\t\t\t\t\t<\/h1>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t

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\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\"Ashley\t\t\t\tAshley Thompson<\/span>\n\t\t\t<\/a>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n\n\n

Is your business struggling to tackle late payments?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Being paid late can take its toll on your team. From losing time on making sales and finding new customers to falling short of cash flow, having to dedicate a lot of time on chasing payments can be detrimental to your business.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And with poor cash flow<\/a> being the single biggest reason that businesses cease trading, making sure you get paid on time should be a task you prioritise.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

To help you, here are a series of top tips for chasing late payments.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

1. Know your customers<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Running credit checks on new customers could save you valuable time and money<\/mark> in the future. It’s now possible to run quick checks online.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This tip isn’t confined to new customers – if you have reason to suspect an existing customer may have problems paying their invoices, checking their situation may be a prudent idea.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

2. Be clear about your payment terms<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Make sure your payment terms are included on every invoice you send and keep them consistent. Additionally, outline the terms verbally to new customers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Be clear about timeframes, costs associated with late payment and acceptable payment methods.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

3. Choose the right people<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Make sure the people on your credit control team are equipped for the task in hand. They should be consistently firm but polite, resilient and organised. It’s also important that they enable, rather than impede, future sales.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

4. Make a courtesy call<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

If you’ve issued a customer with a particularly large invoice, call them up before payment is due to make sure it has been received and there is no query. This is good customer service and pre-empts any possible delay in payment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

5. Start chasing debtors right away<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Don’t delay in chasing a late payment the day after it was due<\/mark>. It’s better not to allow leeway – the longer you leave it before you contact your customer, the further down the queue your invoice will drop.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

6. Claim interest<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

You have a statutory right to claim interest on late payments at 8%<\/a> based on the European Central Bank (ECB) rate. Additionally, you can claim compensation for debt recovery costs. Letting your customers know this as early as possible may encourage payment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

7. Be flexible<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

On large, outstanding amounts, be prepared to offer flexible payment terms. Whether this means regular instalments or simply splitting a bill into two manageable chunks, in some circumstances it may be your best chance of payment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Read more about cash flow and late payments<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n