A collect call for region's businesses
Fast-growing businesses should always make sure the money is coming in promptly, says Pauline Appleyard, associate and head of the debt recovery team at Ward Hadaway.
WHEN your business is expanding at a rapid rate, it can be difficult to keep track of the actual cash coming in.
However, it is arguably more important than ever in the current climate for companies to ensure they collect what is owed to them.
Maintaining a robust approach to minimising late payments is crucial to cash flow.
Recent surveys indicate that up to 75% of businesses in the North East suffer from late payment.
Clearly this can cause some serious problems and companies cannot afford to take a relaxed attitude to collecting money they are owed.
Businesses are going through tough times at the moment and some may be finding it hard to meet their outgoings.
However, that does not mean that companies can simply afford to accept excuses for late or non-payment from their customers.
This is money which is owed to them and without that cash coming into the business, companies who are owed money will themselves find it harder to make ends meet.
Debt collection can be used to bring in money owed to businesses, but there are a wide range of different methods available.
This is why businesses really need a debt collection strategy – to take the appropriate action for each debt and not assume that the same action will work for all debtors.
There is a plethora of debt recovery solutions on the market and businesses need to look carefully at what is being offered.
The cheapest approach is not always the most effective and can ultimately end up costing more with little or no results.
However, debt collection does not need to cost the earth.
As debts become harder to collect in a difficult economy, using the right methods for debt recovery becomes even more important.
It is also vital that anyone you instruct on debt collection is able to deal with any disputes that arise rather than continue regardless, without dealing with the issues.
For more information about any of the issues raised by this article, please contact Pauline Appleyard on 0191 204 4069 or email pauline.appleyard@wardhadaway.com
