Getting help recovering unpaid invoices from a business debt collection agency can be a seen a last-ditch attempt.

However, it is always best to act quickly if you are owed commercial debt. Leaving debt outstanding for too long increases the risk that you lose your money for good and you may have to write it off as bad debt.

Your first point of call as a business owner or credit controller will always be to try and recover outstanding invoices yourself for two big reasons; you won’t pay a fee to recover the debt and it could be more time-effective if your customer pays you quickly.

But what you should not do is keep banging your head against a closed door. What we mean is as soon as you realise you are not getting anywhere recovering business debt yourself, do not hesitate to get some extra help from a business debt collection agency.

Here are some things to look out for that will tell you it is time to get some help to recover your overdue invoices.

Triggers for when to contact a business debt collection agency

1. The customer goes “off-grid” and is avoiding you

This is classic debtor behaviour. We see this time and time again and is usually the very first warning sign that it is going to be difficult collecting what you are owed.

Typical behaviour to look out for include emails and letters being ignored, phone calls either running out or going straight to voicemail or in the most extreme cases they do not answer the door to their premises.

Getting a business debt collection agency involved to initiate contact is often all that is needed to prompt a late payer into paying an overdue invoice. This is because they then understand the severity of the situation and the consequences if they continue to ignore you.

2. Customer is being difficult

When your customer starts acting difficult you should act sooner rather than later, because often things will only get worse.

When late payers feel the pressure when businesses chase overdue invoices, we see many try to make excuses for non-payment and say it will be paid soon. Of course, there may be a valid reason if this is a one-off with a regular customer, but you should also stay vigilant, so you are not taken advantage of.

When you customer keeps coming back to you with excuse after excuse or you feel as though they are running from you this is a sign that it is time to get a helping hand to recover what you are owed before it is too late.

Likewise, if your customer comes back disputing the debt or invoice when you know that there is nothing to dispute, this is another warning sign that it could be time to call in support to ensure you recover the full amount that you are owed.

3. Invoices extremely overdue

The longer you leave unpaid invoices, the higher the risk that you won’t be able to recover the debt at all. It also becomes much harder to recover commercial debt.

If you have unpaid invoices that are more than a few months old, more times than not, using your internal resources to try and recover what you are owed will be a waste of time. For extremely overdue invoices your best shot at recovering the debt is through help from a professional business debt collection agency.

4. Not enough internal resources to collect unpaid debt

The average business spends 90 minutes every day chasing overdue invoices. Over the course of weeks and months this is a huge amount of lost productivity that many SMEs just cannot afford to lose out on.

But businesses like yours also cannot afford to go without the money you are rightfully owed.

Your best option is to get support from a commercial debt recovery partner. This will greatly improve your chances of recovering the overdue debt and save you precious time, time that can be better spent growing and tending to other parts of your business.  

5. Internal attempts to recover the debt have been unsuccessful.

Do you feel as though you have exhausted all your resources trying to recover your debt? The sensation of getting nowhere despite doing all you can is so draining it impacts other areas of your business and even the morale of your team.

If time goes on and you fail to make any progress recovering your debt it is time to start thinking seriously about what other options to you must collect what you are owed. After you try all you can internally the only viable option that will ensure quick payment is enlisting help from a business debt collection agency.

Otherwise, you will continue to waste more time going in circles, and the longer your debts are overdue the higher the chance that you will not be able to recover them at all.

Darcey Quigley’s debt recovery process

Here at Darcey Quigley & Co, we have the firm belief that commercial debt recovery can be delivered differently and be a viable, stress free addition to any businesses credit control process.

We’ve been recovering commercial debt for clients all over the world for 14 years and no debt is too large for us to recover, and our track record speaks for itself.

Excellent communication is paramount of successful debt recovery, and our approach is built around this. As a pre-litigation debt recovery partner we seek to negotiate with your customer on your behalf efficiently to recover what you are owed as quickly as possible.

Learn more about our commercial debt recovery process in our recent blog post!

Choosing Darcey Quigley as your business debt collection agency is a risk-free approach for your business. We operate on a no-win-no-fee basis and all of our fees are agreed upfront before we take action to recover your debt. Our clear charging structure makes the whole process transparent for you and we will always keep you updated every step of the way.

Add interest, compensation and reasonable costs to what you are owed

Did you know you are legally entitled to claim interest, compensation and reasonable costs for debt recovery on your overdue invoices?

Find out exactly how much you are eligible to claim with our free calculator!

It takes no more than 30 seconds, simply answer some quick questions about your invoices such as the amount and how long they’re overdue. We’ll calculate how much you can claim, and if you are happy to proceed you can even upload your invoices and begin your commercial debt recovery case immediately!

Find out what you claim here!

We understand that you have more important matters to attend to running your business or credit control function so let Darcey Quigley collect outstanding commercial debt and deal with your late-payers. If you have problematic late paying customers and outstanding commercial debts speak to a specialist for some free advice today. Call us on 01698 821 468 or schedule a call at a time that suits you here.