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Have you ever been in a situation where a client has not paid your invoice? In the business world, this is a situation that unfortunately everyone encounters sooner or later. So let's talk about how exactly you should proceed to avoid such a situation, and what to do if you are already in this predicament. The key is to know the right preventive steps, but at the same time to be able to choose a consistent procedure for recovering an unpaid invoice. Here's a detailed guide on what to do to

1. Prevention

The best defence is prevention. The better prepared you are at the start, the less risk of problems.

• Check the client

It is advisable to check out the company or trader before agreeing on cooperation. You can also find out basic information for yourself, for example the experience of other companies or tradesmen through reviews. If you want to be sure whether the entity is solvent, has no insurance debts, tax arrears, whether it is not in reconstruction or bankruptcy or any information you would like to know before the start of cooperation, our law firm will check the entity for you.

• Keep everything on paper

Do not rely on verbal agreements. You don't want to put yourself in a situation of allegation against allegation. Even a simple written contract or confirmed order protects you. It should include:

• Exact scope of work: exactly what you have to deliver or perform.
• Price. Whether an hourly rate, a fixed fee for the work, and the like.
• Deadlines: the delivery date from your side and especially the length of the invoice due date. Standard 15 to 30 days. You should have the invoice due date agreed directly in the contract, as the due date on the invoice is legally irrelevant.
• Penalties for delay: include in the contract any claim for default interest. You are entitled to these by law, but if you specify them directly in the contract, together with the contractual penalty, the client will think twice about not paying the invoice.
• The method of delivery of an item, service or work: Keep clearly defined how and when the thing, service or work will be handed over and accepted.

2. Backup

• Ask for a deposit

For new clients or larger projects, it is quite common and professional to ask for an advance invoice, for example for 30-50% of the total amount, before work begins. This will establish the client's ability to pay as well as their willingness to pay. This will also reduce your risk and cover at least the initial costs.

• Invoice continuously

For larger or more time-consuming projects, invoice your work on an ongoing basis, such as monthly or when agreed targets have been reached. This will reduce the risk of losing a large sum at once in the event of non-payment.

3. Correct issue and dispatch of the invoice

Make sure your invoice is error-free and delivered correctly.

• All details: the invoice must contain all the statutory details, properly identify yourself, the client, the invoice number, the date of issue, a description of the invoiced items, the amount and your IBAN.
• Invoice immediately: Don't wait and send the invoice as soon as the work is completed and submitted.
• Correct recipient: send it to the correct email or department. Check in advance where to send the invoice. If you're not sure and the client has given you multiple ways to contact them, use all of them.
• Acknowledgement of receipt: in the email you can ask for a short acknowledgement that the invoice has been received and entered into the accounting system. If you are sending the invoice by post, ask for a delivery note or hand deliver the letter.

4. What to do if payment is late?

If the money does not arrive on the due date, proceed systematically and professionally.

• Step 1: Friendly Reminder

Politely remind the debtor via email or phone call to pay the invoice. It is worth assuming, or at least communicating with the distinct assumption, that the debtor has simply forgotten. This does not have to be any complicated wording; an email such as this will suffice:

Hello, Mr. Debtor, I would just like to remind you of invoice No 23.02042025, which was due on XY. Could you please check its payment status? Thank you and have a nice day. Yours sincerely, Your Creditor.

• Step 2: Direct comment

You can repeat this step again, ideally with a sharper tone:

Hello, Mr. Debtor, I refer again to outstanding invoice No 23.02042025 due on XY. Please pay it without delay. If you have already paid it, please consider this email to be of no effect. Yours sincerely, Your Creditor.

• Step 3: Challenge

If your debtor is systematically ignoring you, it's time to take the first hard step towards recovering your debt. At this point, we recommend that you reach out to an experienced attorney or law firm to prepare such a challenge.

We send the official summons by registered mail and with a receipt, so we will have proof of service in case of legal proceedings. The demand notice normally contains a precise identification of the debt, a notice that the creditor has a continuous record of the debt, a quantification of interest on late payment or other accessories to the debt, a deadline for payment of the invoice, and a warning of the consequences of non-payment, which is a court action. recovery of the debtwhich shall amount to additional costs for the debtor.

5. Extreme solutions when nothing helps

If even your appeal does not work, we will prepare and send your debtor a pre-suit notice at the law firm. Unlike a Creditor's Summons, which the debtor almost never responds to, a Pre-Action Summons drafted by a law firm is a fact of life that the debtor can no longer just ignore. However, if the debtor does not respond to this either, we at the law firm will prepare a petition for an order for payment, the aim of which is for the court to order the debtor to pay the amount owed, together with any additional charges such as interest for late payment. If the debtor does not comply with the order for payment either, a petition for enforcement proceedings is filed, in which your debt will be enforced by a bailiff.

Let's recap:

• We recommend that you always have a written contract.
• Ask for a deposit, especially with new clients.
• When payment is late, act quickly and systematically.
• Communicate professionally and consistently with the debtor through the law firm.
• Don't be afraid to use legal means to protect your rights.

Sometimes you just need advice, other times you need action.

At our law firm, we do both. We provide not only expert advice but also professional representation in litigation. The experience we have makes us one of the top litigation attorneys. We combine honest legal craft with a modern approach and consistently set the best strategy. We also like to use artificial intelligence for basic solutions, but we will never expose you to the risk of an AI algorithm's erroneous result. That's why every step, action, or major decision will pass through the hands of an experienced lawyer who, unlike AI, understands not only the law, but also people. Rely on us and exchange your problem for a solution and legal certainty.