Customer refuses to pay:

Recruitment debt collection is an area in which we specialise. In this update we look at the collection of a debt for one of our clients an international recruitment company whose head office is in the UK. They had correctly formed a contract with their customer and went on to successfully introduce a candidate. Having performed their duty under the contract our client went on to invoice for their work. On receipt of the invoice their customer refused payment claiming that they were not the effective cause of the introduction and stopped communicating.

Our client made a few attempts to resolve the matter sending letters and emails and trying to discuss the matter with their customer. They could not change their customers mind. When the invoice was overdue, and having used our no upfront fee recovery service in the past, they recognised that it was time to engage us again. Our aim is to resolve these matters professionally on behalf of our clients, cost effectively and as quickly as possible allowing them to remain focused on the positives of running their business.

With most of the debts we deal with we are able to apply for additional amounts to be paid by your debtor which you can effectively use to cover our No Win – No Fee commission only fee. Read more on our fees page about how this works. Your debtor pays our fee.

Communicating with the debtor

Even though debtors reasons for non-payment fall into typical categories – very broadly speaking; ‘can’t pay ‘ or ‘won’t pay’, every debt we deal with is unique and challenging. This is especially true when it comes to recruitment debt collection, as in this sector customers often try to take advantage of certain loopholes.

The first obstacle to collect this debt for our client was getting the debtor to listen. Opening them to having a reasonable conversation about the situation instead of blanket denial of it, and allowing us the opportunity to clearly explain their obligations under the contract was key. To do this requires a high level of skill and many years of experience. You are negotiating with a person who first of all doesn’t want to speak with you, is not willing to have a discussion when you do get to confront them about it and who refuses to accept anything you put forward in your attempts to reason with them.

Dealing with debtors yourself

Dealing with debtors often leads to emotions which can distract you from the goal of getting money paid; you can refer to our ‘Tips and templates for debt disputes’ page to learn more about what to avoid and how to be more effective when communicating with debtors.

Debt collection outcome

We resolved this dispute over the course of several weeks. Establishing contact was challenging however using a series of tried and tested methods our agent made contact. Once contact had been established the discussion was managed carefully according to the debtors responses, keeping the debtor willing to have further discussions and allowing our agent time in doing so to make the debtor aware of their obligations under the contract, and make them understand that the fee was rightfully due to our client and in fact overdue and should be paid now. From the outset we were dealing with a hostile and awkward debtor right through to conclusion of the matter. In the end we recovered over €5000 for our client, who putting it lightly was amazed.

Early involvement of a professional debt recovery firm to negotiate on behalf of your business will give you the best chance of a speedy resolution and positive cash outcome from a failing business relationship. You can have a no obligation discussion with our team to understand our services better, and be ready to contact us should a need ever arise. Contact us.

You can also read more about Recruitment Debt Collection here.