Help with client not paying invoice

Give them a "Fair" deadline - tell them you think it's fair then mention your next step is online complaints and then legal action.

Join Pre-Paid for business - get demand letter sent out free of charge for this very reason - $35/mo

Used them dozens of times - help me sue a huge directory company in the past.

I have never actually had to do this but you could always send it to a collection agency.

We have a relationship with a debt collection agency and I was ways fearful of contacting or using a service like that, but using someone professional to collect your debts is a real stress reliever.

The one I use has a great online portal where you have access to plenty of pre-formatted legal documents you can resource when setting up accounts with customers.

They have a BPAY service and direct debit options with good rates where you can process client payments through those in the first instance.

If you have a bad debt and in your situation the debt has not really turned bad quite yet as most businesses might pay in 30 - 60 days.

However, the longer any debt runs the harder it is to collect.

If the person is not paying and has become unresponsive it is amazing what engaging a professional collection agency can achieve.

In many instances I can lodge a debt in their online portal and within 48 hours there is usually some payment made and an agreement entered into with the debtor.

Sure there is the fees associated with collecting those debts but if you have worded your contract with the client correctly those fees can be added to the debt and so you don't really lose any money.

The situation may be different where you are located but I had experiences where we have collected the additional recovery fees and times when those additional fees have been rejected but in every case I handed to the agency they have collected successfully.

Once you have a relationship with a company who collects debts professionally you get a much better sense of confidence and I've found in over 50% of the cases the relationship with the debtor is still intact because if they enjoy your service they then understand you don't mess around and in turn they can become far more loyal and far better payers moving forward.

Best regards,

Ozi

Too little info. For example:

Is the client a corporation or individual?
Did you have a written contract before beginning the work?
What are your standard terms of business, and is the client aware of them?
Approximately how much are you owed?
Did the client pay any part in advance?
Do you actually have anything in writing between you and the client, including any correspondence about the outstanding payment?

Answers to these will help decide your next step, such as hiring legal help.
.

I guess he is gone now and you just charged it to experienced.

Is this client in the same country as you? If not, you're on a hiding to nothing, I'm afraid.

If they are in the same country as you, then there are legal procedures you can follow - these will vary depending on where you are, but they usually involve hiring a lawyer. This can be expensive, so it all depends on how much you are owed. Your local better business bureau, trading standards, or similar would be the best people to advise you.

I let them go aka fire them, then more paying clients and customers show up. Power of surrender. Most though are terrified to lose money, so never take this simple approach.

Speak to a debt collection agency (may law firms usually have it)
Try and crack a deal with them. Something like if they recover the payment, they get to keep 15 to 20% of the recovery. Negotiate hard

Good luck