One of the most important considerations for a business to survive the credit crunch is to be able to manage their cash flow. Eric Holt, a specialist in the field of debt recovery at Coles Miller Solicitors offers some advice.

Today’s economic climate is somewhat uncertain as banks continue to tighten their reign on finances, therefore creditors must ensure that they can count on their own cash flow, primarily through the prompt payment of their invoices.

Eric Holt who manages the Debt Recovery Department at Coles Miller Solicitors says “There is always a risk of non payment of invoices in any situation, however business can often reduce the risk of their invoices not being paid with simple, but effective procedures”. Many businesses often do not pay proper attention to their credit control until they have a string of debtors over 90 – 120 days old, and by then it can often be too late. It is vital to ensure effective credit control and debt recovery procedures are in place to combat ‘Late payers and fraudulent transactions’. “Gathering relevant information at the outset of dealing with customers is a must and knowing what can be done legally to recover a debt as well as what works practically in different situations, can make the difference between ‘being paid’ or ‘having to write a debt off’. Adopting a course of action without first properly understanding the process can often mean failure, but worse still can be failing to take action promptly”.

Firms of solicitors, with their considerable knowledge and expertise, should not be viewed as last resort for business to seek help as they are often able to deal with this type of work at a nominal cost and can be a very effective tool. Eric says that he “would normally recommend that businesses follow swift and proactive procedures when faced with unpaid accounts. A majority of debts can often be recovered within just 7 days of a firm of solicitors being instructed. This has a real benefit to a business as not only do they recover the money that is owed to a client quickly, the service provided is cost effective and releases staff from its own business to keep more of a grip on debts that are less at risk of not being paid”.

What many businesses have still not realised is that an Act was passed a number of years ago that enables many businesses to recover substantial interest and compensation towards their costs of having to chase late payers, as well as the debt. Eric continues, “Knowing how and when to use the law to recover a debt, makes common sense. Working closely with Coles Miller’s own clients and providing them with a personal service, is an integral part of why we have gained a very positive reputation in this area for dealing with this type of work. During the course of undertaking debt recovery work, it became very obvious to me that many professional businesses have not kept up with the times and their clients may not be realising their full potential as a result.”

The good new is that firms like Coles Miller, are able to recover debts from businesses but unlike most other legal work, the costs are not charged for the time taken to carry out the work. Eric concludes, “Businesses do not need to be a victim of someone else’s poor finances however unless they realise that they need to be a head of the game and other creditors, their own business is likely to suffer. Not only do our team of dedicated and experienced people obtain outstanding results for our clients we often exceed their expectations and that of many debtors who have been surprised by our effectiveness.”