Slow Slow paying Customers

[John Noell]

We live in the land of resorts. They are infamous for slow payment. They pay everyone slowly. Even if you call the "accountant" and keep after it, four to five months late is not unusual. They almost always pay, eventually. Cash up front? They will just do without if it comes to that. But they do pay, eventually. Sigh.

[Mike Null]

My standard terms are net 30 for commercial accounts and I have quite a number. I have only one that's consistently slow but he always pays. He's offered to pay by cc but I've declined.

I have one account that I do 6 to 20 orders a week. Our agreement is monthly billing and payment on receipt of invoice. That is working well.

[Dan Hintz]

My quotes specify 30 days, as well as a hefty percentage for every 30 days after (starting on day 31)... haven't had to use it yet. I get enough up front to cover materials and a little of my time (amount specified on the quote, usually a percentage), with final payment due on terms. Large orders are split up into multiple payments.

[Larry Edgerton]

I got stuck for #57K five years ago. I am still trying to recover from that one, that is a big number for me. I went to court, but the banks got their money first, and my lein meant diddley. I'm not a big volume contractor, more of a high end low volume, so it is very hard to recover.

Do everything you can to protect yourself, and if you get a bad feeling walk away. I had a bad feeling about this guy, but wanted to keep my crews working. I should have laid them off as it turns out. Now I work alone. Trying to make my life simpler..........

My new policy if I am not comfortable with the customer is figure the job, add 20%, double it and get 50% down. If the job works out well then they get a breakat final payment, if not I am covered.

[Tom Sieczkarek]

I normally due 50% down and balance at time of pickup for most of my larger orders. If a customer needs it in a hurry from me,then I think asking for full payment at completion is not out of the question.

[Rodne Gold]

If they monthly customers , you really only have a slow payment once , we have plenty regulars who take 60-90 days on monthly orders - once it starts rolling , makes very little difference. Occasional customers who are tardy pay a lot more for their jobs , far more than the cost of giving em credit. After 120 days , we go legal and list em on credit bureaus as slow payers

[Ron Hartl]

We do mostly custom work and try to get paid before doing the work. One thing I have noticed, the bigger the rush to get the job done fast, the more likely they will pay slow or not at all.

[Jim Beachler]

With all of my wholesale accounts, I start them off with a CC on file. I do not send the order off unless the card has been ran for the order. After a year of business, they can switch to 30 days, but I still keep the card on file. I have found this solves a lot of problems.

Some people have not been happy but I tell them that it protects them as well. If they are not happy with my work, they can dispute the charge and not pay the CC company. This way the Cc company acts a middleman for me as they will have to have a good reason for disputing the charge.

All of my retail pay up front before I even get started.

[Dean Fowell]

Well I got some inside info I thinkk i will cut them some slack I heard the had trouble paying all there bills miss management , I hope they pull through but if people would contact me im fine
just dont leave me in the dark,

[Bill Jermyn]

Factoring is also an option.

It works like this: A company buys your receivables, the customer pays them directly, and you can draw on the funds before payment is made. If you shop around you can get reasonable rates.

[Belinda Barfield]

Dean,

To answer your question, if they drag their feet I wouldn't keep doing work for them. Place the account on hold until they pay. One thing you will have to understand in Georgia is the "good ol' boy" network. You call to inquire about when you might expect payment and suddenly you and the customer are best buddies. The customer tells you all about how slow business has been, and "hey, you understand, I'll get caught up with you as soon as I can. Let's do lunch next week." The main problem with the good ol' boy network is that good ol' boys get together and they like to talk. That could hurt your business. On the other hand, do you want to keep providing product to someone who potentially can't pay, or is really slow to pay.

I require individuals to pay up front for custom work. Basically, everything we do is custom so for corporate accounts I require a 50% deposit, 50% at the time of delivery. I have one customer who buys raw materials from me, a large corporation, and that account is net 10. They also buy finished product with a 50% deposit, balance net 10.

[Wil Lambert]

You can always whack them with a late fee. The utility companies have no problems doing that, why can't a small business do it?

Easiest thing to do is fire the customer. It's usually not worth the hassle to wait for your money. I have fired a few customers in the past. Actually got rid of one last week. They didn't want to meet my net 30 terms. They decided 60+ was better. I told them either payment up from or I will not do business with them. We are not banks nor should our customers think we are. Wil

[Belinda Barfield]

Well I got some inside info I thinkk i will cut them some slack I heard the had trouble paying all there bills miss management , I hope they pull through but if people would contact me im fine
just dont leave me in the dark,

You are a nicer person than me, Dean. Trouble paying ALL their bills would say to me that the company is having financial difficulty. Having been there, I appreciate your willingness to work with them. Ask if they can make a partial payment.

[Robert Walters]

They may not like it, but I don't think that net 7, 10, or 14 is out of the question these days where BK's are abundant.

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[Rodne Gold]

Factoring is real bad , if I get factored , I stop doing business with that person immediately , I firstly think they are in financial trouble and 2ndly I object to my "contract" being changed , I contracted with the supplier and not some financial institution , my details and credit application will also have been given to to the factoring co , I did not agree to that at all!!!