What to do when a client doesn’t pay

First, separate refusal from silence

A client who disputes the work needs a different response from one who has simply stopped replying. Ask directly, in writing, whether the invoice is disputed and on what grounds. A dispute you can name is a dispute you can settle; silence usually means a cash-flow problem or an approval stuck inside their process.

Check your own side before escalating: the correct legal entity, a valid purchase order reference if their process requires one, the right submission inbox and arithmetic that matches the agreement. Recovering an invoice with a defect in it is much harder.

Send a final written notice

When ordinary reminders have failed, send one clearly labelled final notice rather than a fifth reminder. It should state the invoice number, amount, original due date, the fact that it remains unpaid, a specific payment deadline, and what you will do if that deadline passes.

Keep it factual and unemotional. This letter is the document you would later show a mediator, a court or a collection agency, so it should read as reasonable on its own.

• Send it by email and, for larger amounts, by post as well.
• Give a real deadline—seven or fourteen days—not “immediately”.
• Only threaten a step you are genuinely prepared to take.

Pause work and further credit

If the engagement is ongoing, stopping further work is usually more effective than another email—provided your agreement allows it. Say plainly that work resumes when the outstanding invoice is settled, and hold delivery of anything not yet handed over where your contract permits.

Withholding finished work or files you have contracted to deliver can itself breach your agreement, so check the wording before you act.

Interest, fees and legal rights vary

Many countries give suppliers statutory rights to charge interest or recovery costs on late commercial payments, and many contracts set their own late fee. What you may charge depends on where you and the client operate and what your agreement says. Confirm your own position with the relevant authority or an adviser rather than copying a figure from another business.

This guide is general information, not legal or debt-recovery advice.

Escalation options once the deadline passes

The practical routes are broadly the same in most places, and you should weigh each against the amount owed and the cost of pursuing it.

• A phone call to the finance contact and, separately, to the person who commissioned the work.
• Mediation or an industry dispute service, where one exists for your sector.
• A small claims or low-value court process, which is designed to be used without a lawyer for modest sums.
• A debt collection agency, which typically takes a percentage and effectively ends the client relationship.
• A solicitor’s letter, which can be worth the cost on a large invoice and rarely is on a small one.

Know when to write it off

If the client is insolvent, uncontactable or the recovery cost exceeds the debt, a deliberate write-off is a legitimate business decision rather than a failure. Record it properly in your accounts, keep the paperwork, and check whether any bad-debt relief applies in your jurisdiction.

Make the next one less likely

Almost every unpaid invoice is easier to prevent than to recover: take a deposit, bill in stages, confirm who approves payment before you start, and stop extending credit to a client with a pattern of non-payment.