Debt Recovery Solicitors

Speak to a specialist solicitor at our law firm in North Yorkshire.
Learn how debt recovery works here.

Get in touch

Why choose Crombie Wilkinson for commercial debt recovery?

Our team of expert solicitors provide cost effective, commercial debt recovery and legal advice for your business.

When you have provided goods or services to your clients, why should you wait to be paid? Bad debtors or slow payers have a negative impact on your business and reduced cash flow can itself lead to business failure.

We provide a professional and cost-effective service, tailored to your business’s specific needs, in order to recover your outstanding debts.

Contact our Team regarding Debt Collection

Recover outstanding debt for your business

Late payments or non-payment of debts can cause huge damage to any business, large or small. In some circumstances the failure to collect a number of small but significant debts in itself, may cause a business to fail. Furthermore, a failure to collect in debts quickly can lead to unnecessary cash flow difficulties. An effective method of commercial debt recovery is therefore a fundamental cornerstone of any commercial enterprise.

The 3 Steps of Debt Recovery

Our 3-step process to recovering your debts helps save time and money by trying to avoid court proceedings. These steps are:

1. Pre-Litigation: A Letter Before Action

A strongly worded letter from a Solicitor and the threat of Court proceedings often prompts payment from a bad debtor. If we can recover your debt with a letter, you can avoid having to take action through the Court, which can be costly and time consuming. We offer a fixed fee for this service which you can learn about here.

2. A County Court Claim*

If the debtor does not respond to the letter before action, we can prepare your claim and obtain a County Court judgment against your debtor. We will always consider the value of your claim and ensure that the costs of recovery are proportionate to the amount you are seeking to recover. We offer a fixed fee for this service.

3. Enforcement

Once you have a judgment, this unfortunately does not guarantee that the debtor will pay. There are various ways we can enforce your judgment so that your business receives what it is owed.

If you would like more information about how we can help your business bring in bad debts, please contact Neil Largan.

Contact Crombie Wilkinson Solicitors

* in addition to our fees, Court fees are payable upon issue of Court proceedings.

How do you deal with customers who won’t pay?

If a customer has failed to make payment of an invoice, there are several ways to try and recover commercial debt. The appropriate action to take will depend on the size of the debt and your ability to prove that you are owed the money.

The need for business debt collection in the first place can be reduced by invoicing effectively. Businesses should make sure invoices are accurate and ensure the payment terms are clearly set out, showing the date by which payment is due.

If an invoice has not been paid, the first and most basic step is to contact the debtor by telephone or by writing to remind them that payment is overdue. Do not delay making this contact!

In any business debt collection letter it’s important to include the following information:

  • Provide the date by which you expect to receive payment (e.g. give the debtor seven days only to pay)
  • Advise the debtor that interest will become payable on the outstanding debt
  • Request the debtor to state what issues, if any, the debtor has with the invoice/goods or services provided that might explain their non-payment
  • Provide details of what action you will take next if payment isn’t received by the specified date.

How our debt recovery letters work

If the debtor ignores your correspondence you may wish to consider obtaining a solicitor’s letter before action.

A basic debt recovery letter from a solicitor can be a very cost effective and quick way of recovering outstanding debts. It is reported that as many as 71% of debtors make payment upon receipt of a solicitor’s letter. Usually for a fixed fee, a solicitor will write to the debtor on your behalf. You can learn more about our pricing here.

Contact us about Letters Before Action

Collecting business debt through Court

If the debtor fails to settle the debt after you have written to them and/or they have received a solicitor’s letter; or if they dispute the debt, there are still options available to you before considering taking action through the Courts.

Our debt recovery solicitors will try to help you avoid court if possible. This is because court proceedings to recover debts can be time consuming and expensive, especially when compared to the value of the debt you are trying to recover. Other alternatives to court action include independent arbitration, mediation and ombudsman schemes - known collectively as ‘alternative dispute resolution’ (ADR).

If despite all your efforts, the debtor still refuses to make payment or seeks to avoid payment on spurious grounds, consideration should be given to taking action through the Courts. You can claim interest at 8% per annum on the debt amount from the date payment became due.

Ensuring debts are quickly and effectively followed up as soon as they become overdue can avoid the need for more time consuming and costly action for you and your business further down the line. There is overwhelming evidence that the longer the invoice remains unpaid the less likelihood there is of recovery!

If you would like to know more about what you can do to recover outstanding debts, please do not hesitate to contact debt recovery solicitor Neil Largan, solicitor in our Dispute Resolution at Crombie Wilkinson Solicitors.

Get In touch with our Litigation Solicitors today

 

  • Neil Largan
      • Neil Largan
      • Director, Head of Dispute Resolution Team
      • 01904 624185
      • View profile
  • Aoife Hennessy
      • 01904 624185
      • View profile
  • Leanne Kitson
      • 01904 624185
      • View profile
  • Michael Thornton
      • 01904 624185
      • View profile
  • Raza Khan
      • View profile