Keep to the facts – they’re not interested in emotional rants. You’ll have to state why money is owed within a certain word count so prepare this in advance. It takes about 30 minutes to fill out the small claims court form – you can call for help about filling in the form but not for advice – and you need to register an account with the UK Government Gateway first. The system is set up to help small businesses and sole traders who are owed a fixed sum under £100,000.
#FORCE PAYMENT OF OUTSTANDING INVOICES PLUS#
Taking legal action online yourself at Money Claim Online can be far cheaper than using a lawyer or debt collecting agency – plus you get back any of the costs incurred in doing so. You’ve issued several late payment warnings, but they’re still ignored The address a client is registered at isn’t necessarily the same as where their office is located.
#FORCE PAYMENT OF OUTSTANDING INVOICES FOR FREE#
Although I successfully had my claim upheld, I couldn’t take further legal action so had to redo the claim again.Ĭheck details for free at Companies House. He was self-employed and I should have given his name followed by the name of the company he was trading as. When I first took a client to the small claims court, I thought he was a registered limited company. Make sure you have the correct invoicing address. Keep these as a record and send follow up letters by recorded delivery (keeping proof of postage). In case you do decide to take legal action, the court will want to see you’ve given the debtor every possible opportunity to repay – such as email reminders. Having a CCJ is like a great big indelible black mark on someone’s credit rating for six years. Court proceedings may result in a CCJ (County Court Judgement) against the company or individual, so the possibility of court action should definitely jolt them into action. But this shouldn’t be an empty threat, so familiarise yourself with what would be involved, to check you would be happy taking this action. You could also state that you may start court proceedings if the invoice is not settled promptly. Also state that the interest will continue to accrue until the whole debt is repaid. Write a letter stating that if the client doesn’t pay within x days (don’t give them too long – five days is fine after all this time), you’ll charge them for late payment interest and compensation.
Their website says:īusinesses are entitled to claim compensation when a debt remains unpaid after the date specified on the contract, or in the absence of a contract, 30 days after the delivery of the goods or service. Pay On Time is a brilliant website to help you calculate late payment interest and get letter templates. Thanks to the Late Payments Act, you’re entitled to claim late payment interest and compensation for debt recovery costs, even if your invoice doesn’t state it. This means you’re entitled to be paid for what you believe to be the reasonable value of your services. I was once given a great tip by a lawyer friend: reply saying work was done ‘quantum meruit’. Unlike journalists who are paid per word, freelance copywriters are paid for the time spent. Quote some LatinĪ client may query your invoice, claiming the work was never used. If you suspect the client may be in financial difficulties, then start thinking about what action you need to take – if they go into liquidation, you’ll lose out on any right to get your invoice paid. If you don’t get a response, send another. If the payment deadline has passed, send a follow up email within a few days. (Why wouldn’t I trust him, as I knew him well? Hmmmm.) What I should have known is that my contract was with him so it was his duty to pay, regardless of whether or not his clients had settled their invoices. I naively believed his promises to pay the seven invoices he owed me as soon as his other clients had coughed up. He left to set up on his own and I worked with him again. Many years ago, I worked with a client while he was MD at a design agency. But even with trusted clients, don’t leave it too long – here’s a cautionary tale from my own experience… It depends on how well you know the client and your relationship with them. What next? When do you start chasing an unpaid invoice? But the payment deadline has passed and there’s no sign of your money. So you submitted your invoice and waited patiently for it to be paid.
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