Every entrepreneur has to deal with it sooner or later: unpaid invoices. If you have to wait a long time for payment of an invoice, this can cause a lot of stress and extra work. In such a case, handing over the claim will relieve you of this worry and allow you to focus on what you do best. But when can you actually outsource a claim, and what steps can you take before then?
Determining the payment period
As an entrepreneur, do you supply products or services for which you then send an invoice? Then it is important for both parties to have a clear idea of the payment term and, if necessary, make agreements about it. In principle, a statutory payment term applies to every invoice you send. It depends on a number of factors. Firstly, the type of company you did business with plays a role. Different payment terms apply to small businesses and the self-employed than to large companies. But this is not the only thing. You may also have made certain agreements with the customer or company you sent the invoice to. For example, do you want to shorten the payment term in order to get the invoice paid faster? This is allowed, provided it is reasonable and clearly communicated.
What if your invoice is not paid?
It is often very annoying if a sent invoice is paid too late, or in some cases not at all by the customer. At that point, there are a number of steps you can take as a business owner. Has the payment term of the invoice expired? Then it is usual to send a reminder initially. Often, the invoice is unintentionally overlooked and is paid after sending the reminder. However, is this not the case? Then it is time to contact the customer by phone and start the conversation this way. If this does not help either, it is time to send a final payment reminder. You can send this reminder by e-mail, but you can also choose to send an official reminder by post.
Handing over the claim
Have you already taken several steps, but is payment of the invoice still delayed? Then this is the time to hand over the claim. The great advantage of this is that you as an entrepreneur no longer have to concern yourself with collecting the invoice and can focus on what you are made for: doing business. Handing over the receivable is a real solution to improve your working capital. Because you have transferred the invoice, you as an entrepreneur no longer have to deal with defaulters. However, there is one but: accountants can also face defaulters just like you. This means that you still have no guarantee that all invoices will be paid, because even a collection process and legal proceedings do not offer 100% certainty in this. Unless you outsource the claim through factoring.
Factoring your claim
Have you had enough of waiting a long time for payment of sent invoices, and are you done with all the hassle involved? Then it is also possible to hand over the claim in advance. Factris factoring allows you to sell your invoice and receive the value of the invoice in question in your account within 24 hours. You no longer have to deal with payment deadlines, reminders and dunning letters, and you are always assured of sufficient working capital. Factris not only takes over the invoice from you; by selling the invoice, you also outsource your debtor management to us. This means that we ensure that the invoice in question is eventually collected from the customer, so that you no longer have to worry about it. Ideal, right?
Do you want to know more about what factoring really is and how it works? Feel free to contact us, we are happy to help you.