A payment reminder is an email or a letter you send to your client when they haven’t paid an invoice by the due date.
It’s common—and good practice—to send a payment reminder when an invoice becomes overdue. It’s the first step you should take if the client doesn’t pay on time.
What should I write in the payment reminder?
The payment reminder should refer back to the invoice. It’s important to include the invoice number, the due date, and the invoice amount. Ideally, you should attach the invoice in the payment reminder email or letter.
You can also include more details about the sale, including the different ways they can pay you—called payment methods—and the different ways they can contact you regarding this payment.
You can also include information about late fees or interest, which you can add if the client still doesn’t pay.
It’s important to keep a polite tone throughout to maintain a good relationship with your clients.
It’s best to send the payment reminder via email so that it reaches your client quickly, and so that they can easily respond to you in case they have any questions or concerns.
Pro-tip: Send payment reminders immediately
It’s important to send payment reminders as quickly as possible. It bumps your invoice to the top of the pile, and helps you get paid faster. With invoicing software like Conta, you’ll get notified as soon as an invoice becomes overdue.
What to do if the client still doesn’t pay
If the client doesn’t pay after you’ve sent one or two payment reminders, you can look into other options. The first option is to add late fees and interest to the invoice total, which can prompt the client to pay you as quickly as possible.
As a final step, you can consider debt collection. Debt collection involves taking legal action to get the money you are due—or paying another company to take legal action for you. In extreme cases this can involve enforcing the sale of assets or demanding that the client be declared bankrupt.
You generally have to send both a debt collection notice and a payment reminder before you can start debt collection, and there are strict rules for how debt collection can be carried out.