Beating The Debt Recovery Storm

David Green, Managing Partner at MTA Solicitors gives advice to small businesses on cash flow and keeping the debts at bay in these tough economic times:

If you’re a small business whose survival is dependent on regular cash flow, the urgency of recovering overdue bills is critical.

Recovering debt as quickly and as smoothly as possible is one of the key aspects to staying afloat in a difficult market. Taking the right steps from the outset will allow you to maximise the monies which are rightly owed to you without damaging your business relationships.

Many businesses find it hard to chase a customer for debts as there is a risk that attempts to recover them will be seen as aggressive.  

But it is important not to lose sight of the fact that the customer has failed to pay you the money they owe, and you simply can’t afford this issue to jeopardise the financial stability of your own business.

A solution for recovering overdue monies needs to be one that can be put into action swiftly to give you every chance of getting your money back at the lowest cost to you.

The first step towards recouping outstanding debts is to ensure that your terms and conditions are clear regarding payment. If you are going to use an external company to collect overdue payments make your intentions clear to your customer so there can be no misunderstandings.

As the payment terms near their end a ‘friendly’ phone call can often result in payment, and if not you have the option to follow this up in writing to instigate a gentle reminder of the outstanding payment due and, to re-emphasise your payment terms.

What has to be avoided is continual phone calls and letters chasing debt as this wastes your time and stops you from concentrating on new business.

Enlisting the help of a recovery agent or a professional solicitor at the early stages could be beneficial in terms of saving you time and money in the long term. These debt recovery companies or specialist solicitors will act on your behalf to recover the debt and although often effective some of the charging models require such firms to be aggressive, which can damage relationships.

In my view, the most efficient debt recovery model is to use a combination of all the various options but not be afraid to allow those representing you to take the action that is necessary to recover the debt.

It is always advantageous to recover a debt without resorting to litigation as costs are often not recoverable unless the unpaid amounts exceed £5000, and you will be expected to cover such costs.

A law firm with the right experience will know how to manage a case in the long run, saving you money and recovering your debts more efficiently. It is important to choose a firm which has efficient case management systems and an impressive recovery record.

Debt Recovery can become very complicated and expensive and choosing the wrong company to represent you may result in processes that sour relationships, costs you don’t expect and recoveries not meeting your expectations.

David Green is Managing Partner MTA Solicitors LLP

www.mtasolicitors.com

See Positive Collections: http://www.positivecollections.co.uk/ for a cost effective online debt recovery process.

New Family Law Solicitor Service at The LawStore

Emma Peart is a Solicitor who specialises in Family Law and Litigation. She runs a 'drop-in' Family Legal Clinic everyday at The Law Store, in The Glades in Bromley. As well as divorce Emma can also help with co-habitation agreements and pre-nuptial agreements along with a range of other family law issues. No appointment is needed. The LawStore is run by MTA Solicitors LLP, and is a new way to receive legal advice and services.



Emma Peart - Solicitor Law Store

Issues of a family nature can be extremely stressful. LawStore aim to assist in many areas and to make the process of resolving family issues as straightforward and pressure free to clients as possible.

Family Law Solicitor, Emma Peart explains how she can offer assistance in the following:

• Cohabitation and Pre-Nuptial Agreements: Advice as to how you may best protect your assets prior to cohabiting or entering into a marriage or civil partnership in case the relationship breaks down. We can fully advise on and draft cohabitation and pre-nuptial agreements which can assist preventing a former partner’s entitlement to your assets should the relationship break down.
• Ending a marriage or civil partnership: We can assist in formally ending a marriage through completing the relevant application for a divorce/civil marriage dissolution to the relevant court, or assisting you to complete the relevant documentation to agree to or contest an application to end the marriage by your partner. In the case of a divorce, we therefore could assist you in completing the relevant documentation from the initial divorce petition to decree nisi and decree absolute.
• Residence/contact issues for children: During the breakdown of a marriage/civil partnership contact and residence of any children will have to be dealt with. We can assist in completing the relevant documentation to resolve such issues. Should you and your ex-spouse be in agreement in relation to residence and contact of the children, this can be a simple case of completing a statement of arrangements for the children form and filing this in the divorce proceedings. Should you not be in agreement with the arrangements for the children, we can assist in helping you to mediate and reach an agreement that you and your ex are happy with. Should the issue be one of dispute at this stage, we can then assist with any necessary court proceedings to determine residence and contact.
• Financial Issues after a separation: When couples separate, whether ending a marriage, civil partnership or simply a co-habitation, there are normally property and financial issues to consider. We are able to advise in all aspects in this area. We can assist in negotiating a settlement and making the agreement binding by way of a consent order. Failing this, we can assist in financial settlement proceedings at Court. This will include complying with the courts timetable in relation to the exchange and examination of each party’s assets by way of Form E and questionnaires and representation and the First Appointment and Final Directions Hearing to secure a court order regarding the distribution of finances should you and your ex-partner not be able to reach an agreement.

Changing of your name or your child’s name

We can assist in the procedure for changing you or your child’s name legally. This will involve creating a legal document to officially change the name, and normally separate documentation for the passport agency. We can also help advise in whether the other parent will need to give consent.

Non-molestation orders

We can assist in gaining protection for a person who is facing the threat of violence. We can assess if there is enough justification to make an application to the court for an order that a person is not allowed to be within a certain distance of you or your home if you are in fear that they will be violent to you or they will threaten or intimidate you. Normally this will be in relation to an ex-partner or family member. Should you be successful, you will obtain an order directing that a person is not entitled to be within a certain distance of you your residence, and must not threaten violence or intimidate or harass you for a specific time period of normally about 2 years, after which time you would have to seek to renew the order.

Protection against a forced marriage

In some religions it is seen as customary for an arranged marriage to take place. Should a child or adult be in a position that they are being forced into a marriage, and it is against their will or they are not seen as having the legal age of consent, then we can assist in gaining protection for them by way of a court order to prevent the marriage and them being removed from the country for the marriage to take place if necessary.

The Law Store Bromley

Visit The MTA Solicitors LawStore

MTA LawStore is the brand new way to receive legal advice and services from Solicitors in Kent. There is no need to make an appointment, visit us today for a warm welcome and legal advice you can trust. You can pick up free legal advice leaflets. Run by MTA Solicitors LLP, The LawStore in Bromley, Kent provides the opportunity for anyone to have access to plain speaking, approachable Solicitors and promises:

• Same day advice
• Direct Lawyer contact
• No Hidden Costs

Visit one of our Daily Law Clinics for a Free 15 minute consultation. The LawStore is located in Regent Arcade,  The Glades. Bromley. Call 020 8466 5764 and find out how MTA LawStore can help you.