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The five-stage chasing ladder
The trick to recovering invoices without burning the relationship is escalating tone gradually and predictably. Each stage assumes the previous one was ignored, and each one raises the stakes a little.
How to use the ladder
- Stage 1 — Gentle nudge (3 days after due date). Friendly tone. Many late invoices are simply lost in someone's inbox or stuck waiting for an internal approval. A polite "just checking" usually surfaces the blocker and gets the invoice paid within the week.
- Stage 2 — Firmer reminder (7 days late). Slightly more formal. Restate the invoice details. Ask for a specific date by which payment will arrive.
- Stage 3 — Concern (14 days late). Name the silence. Make it clear you've now followed up twice without a response. Mention that statutory interest is starting to accrue.
- Stage 4 — Statutory-interest notice (21 days late). Formally invoke the Late Payment of Commercial Debts (Interest) Act 1998. Include the new total with interest + fixed compensation. Use our late payment interest calculator to compute the figures.
- Stage 5 — Letter Before Action (28+ days late). The formal pre-court letter. Sets a final deadline (typically 14 days) and warns of court action via Money Claim Online if not paid. This stage is taken seriously by clients because it shows you understand the legal process. Most freelance invoices are paid within a week of receiving this.
Tone that works
Calm beats angry. Polite beats apologetic. Specific beats vague. Every template here uses the same structure: brief opening, the invoice details, a clear ask, a deadline. No threats, no exclamation marks, no over-explaining. Stage 4 and 5 are deliberately drier than Stage 1 — that contrast itself signals escalation.
Three to five working days after the due date for the gentle nudge. Sending a reminder before the invoice is actually overdue undermines you. Sending it three weeks late looks like you weren't tracking — which weakens your position.
From Stage 2 onwards, yes — if you have the address. Many late payments are caused by accounts receiving the invoice but not the approval. Looping accounts in often shortcuts the chase entirely.
You can claim it from the day after the due date for any UK B2B commercial debt — the right is automatic under the 1998 Act, even if your contract doesn't mention it. In practice, the Stage 4 template is the first time you formally invoke and itemise it. Calculate the figures with our late payment interest calculator.
A blanket exclusion is unenforceable under the Act unless the contract provides a "substantial alternative remedy" for late payment. A clause that just says "no interest will be charged" doesn't qualify — you can still claim statutory interest. If a contract sets a different rate that's clearly inadequate, the statutory rate still applies.
After Stage 4 has been ignored for at least 7 days, and ideally with at least 28 days having passed since the invoice was due. The LBA is the pre-court step required by the Civil Procedure Rules' Practice Direction on Pre-Action Conduct. Most claims are settled at this stage because the client realises a court claim will add costs and reputational risk.
No. Use judgement. For long-standing clients with strong track records, Stage 1 plus a phone call usually does it. Escalation matters most for new clients and one-off engagements where you have less relational leverage.
Yes — and you should at Stage 2 or 3. But always follow up the call with a written email summarising what was agreed. Verbal commitments are easy to forget; written records are what you'll rely on if it escalates to court.
These are example templates for UK B2B commercial debts under the Late Payment of Commercial Debts (Interest) Act 1998. They are not legal advice. For substantial amounts or court action, take professional advice and consider the Pre-Action Conduct rules at justice.gov.uk.