Do You Have a Commercial Debt to Recover?

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Poor cashflow management can stop your business from growing and meeting its full potential. As a business, you must get paid what you’re owed by your customer and your clients. Non-paying customers and people trying to avoid paying for goods and services can be costly to your business and have long-lasting and damaging repercussions.

All businesses at some point may come across non-paying clients that have to deal with. Your customers can turn into debtors who’d pick up every opportunity to shirk payment and delay paying your bill. This can produce a dip in your cashflow, which can have an impact on your company’s capacity to pay its bills.

Smart business owners have a knack to tackle non-paying customers. They are outsourcing their B2B debt collection process to debt collection companies to avoid the task of collecting B2B invoices that are beyond terms. As a result, they will be able to focus their resources on more important business responsibilities. Debt collection is an expense to your company, not a source of revenue.

You can depend on Shergroup’s Debt Collection Services to collect the outstanding and keep the cash flowing in. We have been collecting debts on behalf of our clients for years and trust us when we say we love being put in a tough spot of collecting debts and face any challenge that comes our way.

It depends on what stage you’d like us to help you with the collection of your monies. Some of our clients employ the service as the next step in their legal preparation process, intending to issue a Writ of Control at the conclusion of the legal process. We assure you one thing that whatever stage you’re in with your debt collection, NO COLLECT NO FEE service is simple and completely free until the point of collection. We only charge a fixed fee commission of 15% on monies collected.

Our Approach

Shergroup’s dedicated team specialises in providing efficient debt recovery solutions. Whether you’re a large business with thousands of outstanding debts or a small SME with only a handful of debtors, we would go all out to understand your business, cashflow requirements, and recover the debt owed to you, to support your needs.

Our debt recovery service is fast and comprehensive. We do not hesitate to make efforts upfront and keep the process transparent, so that we – and, more importantly, you – understand exactly what is recoverable and how much it will cost to recover it.

If you’re unable to chase your debtors and need help we’d be happy to support you by acting as an extension of your in house team.

Pre-legal debt collections and recovery

Legal action should always be considered the last resort when it comes to debt recovery. There are other options to consider before taking legal action to resolve the problem.

The first step in reclaiming money owing to you is to take a non-legal approach. We take one of two approaches to pre-legal debt collection, employing the following strategies to recoup the funds owed:

1. Pre-legal collections

The debt recovery process begins with connecting with your debtor to pay up by using letters, emails, telephone to chase your debtor on your behalf. We keep you updated at every level, culminating in a final review report. Depending on the outcome, you can opt to pursue the subject further and use court action.

This service allows you to take advantage of the Late Payment Legislation, which permits you to add compensation and interest to your debt. We can also run credit checks on your debtors and advise you on the best way to get your money back.

2. Court action

Court action should never be the first line of defence. In the vast majority of cases, our pre-legal strategy is extremely effective. However, if the pre-legal strategy fails, we can escalate the situation and pursue legal action through the courts.

The first step is to send a ‘Letter Before Action,’ which provides the debtor with a deadline to pay the money owed before you proceed with legal action. In many circumstances, this is sufficient, and the obligation is settled.

If the money is not received by the period outlined in the ‘Letter Before Action,’ you can proceed to a more formal legal claim by instructing a litigation solicitor to file a claim on your behalf. It’s never a good idea to be afraid of pursuing a debt; it’s your money. In most circumstances, it never gets to this point, therefore it’s always a good idea to obtain legal counsel before taking enforcement action.

If the Letter Before Action does not fix your issue and you have yet to be paid, you must file a Claim. We will prepare and file your Claim Form, Evidence Pack, and Particulars of Claim with the court on your behalf. We can issue claims online as a debt collection firm with big numbers of debt claims, which saves time and money.

If payment is not collected within 14 days of the County Court Judgement, we have a number of options for enforcing judgments. Our selection of solutions, which are tailored to the account’s specifications, includes:

Charging order
Order for sale
Warrant of control
Attachment of earnings
High Court Enforcement (for debt over £600 not regulated by Consumer Credit)

3. Insolvency proceedings

You can file for bankruptcy against an individual in specific circumstances. It may also be used as a substitute for County Court proceedings in certain instances.

Serving a statutory demand on the person who owes you money is the first stage in the procedure. The debt must be greater than £5,000, liquidated (for an amount determined without the need for an evaluation), and undisputed.

After receiving the statutory demand, the debtor has 18 days to ask to have it set aside (for example, if he or she contests the debt) or 21 days to settle the obligation, failing which a bankruptcy petition can be filed in court. The Court will schedule a hearing, and the debtor will be declared bankrupt if the petition’s service requirements and the filing requirements of all supplementary papers are completed, and there is no resistance to the petition.

4. Winding up proceedings

If a company owes you more than £750.00 and the debt is not disputable, you may be able to start winding-up procedures against it to force it to liquidate.

When a firm is unable to pay its debts, the Court has the authority to wind it up. A creditor can show this by presenting the company with a statutory demand or a letter of demand, and the company failing to pay the debt within the period (provided that the debt is not disputed).

If a statutory demand is issued, the corporation has 21 days to pay the amount before a winding-up petition can be filed. A demand letter can allow a corporation a short period to pay, such as 72 hours, after which if the debt is not contested, a petition can be filed.

There are service and advertising criteria that must be completed before the hearing after the petition is issued. Because the procedural requirements for starting bankruptcy or winding-up procedures are complicated, we recommend that you consult with one of our experts before beginning.

Defended actions

If your debtor defends a claim in the process, then we will manage this for you and look to minimise the cost of doing so.

1. Debt compromise and mediation

If the debtor disputes the debt, another alternative before going to court is to hire an independent mediator to assist both parties in reaching a deal that benefits both parties. Because these are voluntary agreements, neither party can be forced to follow them, which could lead to legal action in the future. We have in-house mediators who can assist you with this.

2. Arbitration

Independent individuals work with both the creditor and the debtor to find a suitable solution when hiring a debt collection arbitration. Arbitration, unlike mediation, is legally binding, therefore it may be a better option for recovering money owing to you. Please keep in mind that once an arbitrator has reached a ruling, you will not be able to appeal.

Summing-up | Why Outsource Your Debt Collection to Shergroup?

Our debt recovery agents have significant experience in recovering debts for commercial property owners, corporates, insurance institutions, retailers, SMEs and individual traders. Our debt collection team are an expert in the recovery of both commercial and consumer debt, across a range of industry sectors.

We offer a comprehensive debt collection service that focuses on maximising the amount of money that may be recovered from each account. We put ourselves in the shoes of our clients and approach debt recovery as if it were our own money. This is accomplished via the use of advanced technology and well-trained personnel who work to recover the debt while providing outstanding brand protection.

We –

Promote amicable debt collection and good relations between parties
Liaise with debtors across jurisdictions and time zones
Assess the financial situation of the debtor and guarantors (if any)
Recommend whether legal proceedings are necessary

Please get in touch if you want a modern, innovative legal service that focuses on collaboration, communication, and mutual respect to not only protect but also grow your business.