There are several reasons why an invoice doesn't get paid, but some excuses are more common than others. There are 9 of the top excuses used and how to combat them as a business.
Graphic created by Jade Waddy for CCC Finance:
https://ccc-finance.com/unpaid-invoices-infographic/
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9 Inexcusable Excuses For Unpaid Invoices
1. INEXCUSABLE EXCUSES
FOR IGNORED INVOICES9
F I N A N C E
“I can’t pay until
my clients pay”
“The cheque is in
the post”
“I’m not paying,
there’s a dispute”
“We’ve not received
the invoice”
“We returned the
invoice to you”
“The director/owner
has passed away”
“The company is
no longer trading”
“We have to pay
other people first”
“We’re currently
changing banks”
Making sure invoices are paid on time is
essesntial to running a business. If this is the
truth, then you should ask for an immediate
partial payment until they can afford the rest.
Many businesses will post cheques, knowing that it
can take a few days to arrive - then 3-5 days to
process at the bank, buying them more time. Insist that
all cheques are posted in advance of the deadline.
Of course, if there is a dispute, you need to
investigate it further. However, in some
cases, there may be no dispute at all! Make
sure that you’re not missing anything.
Relying on the post can be hard, especially when
you’re waiting for invoices to come through. Many
would use this as the perfect excuse not to pay - so
make sure important invoices are recorded delivery.
Some people may decide to send the invoice
back to you or your company. This is usually
because of a small error on the invoice itself.
Make sure all invoices are double checked.
Nobody wishes to have to declare the passing of an
important member of the team, especially those in
charge - but if the business lives on then there is still
no excuse to not pay the invoice.
Claims like this should not be taken lightly, as
lying about the trading status of the company
can take up a lot of time and resources
(finding out the truth of the matter).
Sure, they may have others to pay as well as yourself -
however no debt owed is more important than the
other. Make yourself heard, remind them of the terms
of your agreement and keep them on their toes.
Although it’s not impossible for your client to
be switching banks, it does not normally affect
their business financially - there should still be
funds available to pay the invoice, regardless.
Sources:
https://www.123rf.com/
https://pixabay.com/
https://www.contractoruk.com/
