Amy & Jamie customers who don’t pay for the services.
Amy: Female customer who refuses to pay. Jamie: Male customer who refuses to pay.
If you’re a small business owner, it’s likely your customers don’t pay their bills on time. Whether it’s a client who continually submits late payments or a one-timer who completely ghosts you, dealing with non-paying customers can be stressful. But there are various options to pursue when dealing with customers who don’t pay their bills on time. We detail common reasons why they miss a payment, provide different options to pursue, and list helpful tips to prevent non-pays in the future.
Customers have many reasons why they do not pay their invoices. Here are three common excuses:
Low priority: Your customers might have more important bills or debts to cover than yours. If it’s a matter of paying rent or keeping the lights on, they’ll ensure those payment deadlines are met before yours.
No repercussions: Some customers take advantage of your kindness when dealing with late payments in the past.
Tough times: Some customers are simply enduring difficult financial times and cannot meet a payment deadline as originally anticipated.
What to do if a customer doesn’t pay?
If you have sent payment reminders, follow-up emails, and phone calls, and the client still hasn’t paid their invoice, consider these options before moving forward:
- If you’re struggling to get customers to pay, you can document how much each missed payment is costing you and determine if further action is worth it. If the missed payment is relatively small, you might not want to waste time or resources on further action. However, if the payment is a major chunk of your yearly income, it’s worth getting help from an attorney or collection agency.
- If you can’t collect your due payments, talk to a lawyer. Lawyers know how to handle the paperwork and deal with any relevant laws, allowing them to help you figure out what are your options moving forward. Also you can check this Fair Debt Collection Practices Act.
- Customers who don’t pay their debts can be difficult to collect on. If you have a debt collection agency, they can help you get your money back. They will handle the paperwork and make sure payments are made. You’ll also have someone monitoring their payment history so that they don’t fall behind with future payments.
Want to know how to deal with a Karen Customer? you can click here
