DEBT RECOVERY elselaw.co.uk LEGAL SOLUTIONS FOR YOU AND YOUR BUSINESS

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1 Does getting paid for the work you do, on time with the minimum of fuss, sound attractive? elselaw.co.uk LEGAL SOLUTIONS FOR YOU AND YOUR BUSINESS REF: /14 SERVICES FOR BUSINESS DEBT RECOVERY

2 I HAVE USED ELSE S DEBT COLLECTION SERVICES SEVERAL TIMES. I HAVE FOUND THE EXPERIENCE TO BE GREAT AND WOULD HIGHLY RECOMMEND THEM.

3 DEBT RECOVERY MAKING DEBT RECOVERY QUICK AND EASY IS A VITAL CONSIDERATION With over 50 years experience in credit management and legal debt recovery Else Solicitors can rapidly and thoroughly get to grips with how your business works. This helps us to be more proactive on your behalf resulting in better cash flow and reduced debtor days. WHY DO I NEED DEBT RECOVERY Even a business with a thorough and robust system for monitoring cash flow and chasing overdue invoices may still need to resort to legal action to recover debts. Our knowledge and experience means that we understand the needs of finance directors and credit managers in companies of all sizes and across all sectors of business and industry. We are happy to look at potential cases without obligation or cost to you and give you an honest assessment of the likely outcome. HOW WE MAKE IT EASY A great strength of our debt recovery service is a secure online facility that allows you to have complete transparency to the work we carry out on your behalf. Our online system is available at any time of the day or night and you can see all letters sent and received by us and your customers, as well as records of all telephone calls made and received. There is the facility for you to instruct us online and raise any queries and you can also download a report giving a comprehensive breakdown of your outstanding balance, including original debt, interest, compensation, costs and disbursements elselaw.co.uk

4 PRE-LEGAL COLLECTIONS & LEGAL DEBT RECOVERY COMPANIES CAN SPEND THEIR VALUABLE TIME CHASING DEBTORS ONLY TO FIND THAT ONE LETTER ON THEIR BEHALF FROM A SOLICITOR WILL PROMPT PAYMENT WHAT IS AN LBA Known as a Letter Before Action, it can be sent out once your invoices are due. It can become an extension to your credit control department and may be enough of a nudge to encourage your late payers to settle your invoices, or at least make contact with you, without you needing to resort to legal action. This pre-legal collections service is ideal for businesses looking to convert outstanding debtors to cash relatively quickly. HOW WE CAN HELP If you refer your case to Else Solicitors, we will send out a Letter Before Action within 24 hours adding either statutory or late payment interest, including compensation costs where we are dealing with a commercial debtor. When the debtor responds we have the facilities to take payment immediately, including any statutory late payment charges and penalties. We will devise a debt collection strategy that meets your individual needs, including the tone of the letters and our telephone manner with your customers. HOW WE WORK Our team has vast experience in debt recovery and is focused on avoiding costly litigation wherever possible. We work sensitively but robustly with our clients customers and are often told that our approach is in stark contrast to that of debt collection agencies. We aim to be the experienced and responsive partner you need to look after your business interests whilst protecting your reputation.

5 DID YOU KNOW? 95% OF DEBTS ARE RECOVERED BY LETTERS BEFORE ACTION. IT S EASY TO LET OVERDUE INVOICES MOUNT UP UNTIL THEY CAUSE A REAL CASH FLOW PROBLEM. IT S ALSO EASY TO NOT LET THEM MOUNT UP! elselaw.co.uk

6 DID YOU KNOW? ON AVERAGE SMALL BUSINESS OWNERS OWE OVER 30,000. DON T LET IT BE YOU IT S OWED TO! SMALLER BUSINESSES OFTEN FIND IT AN ADVANTAGE TO HAVE SOMEONE ELSE CHASING UP THEIR NON-PAYER, LETTING THEM CONCENTRATE ON THE BUSINESS.

7 DISPUTE RESOLUTION & CLAIMS MANAGEMENT KEEP YOUR BUSINESS ON TRACK AND YOUR REPUTATION INTACT BY CREATING A PLAN TO COMBAT LATE PAYMENTS WHERE TO START Issuing a claim against a debtor has impact and affirms your intention of getting paid. You are entitled to add interest, legal costs and late payment compensation if applicable. If your debtor does not respond, a court judgment can be obtained and subsequently enforced. You will find that issuing a claim often invokes payment from the client. If the debtor wants to dispute your claim there is a strict timetable to follow which prevents the issue dragging on indefinitely. HOW WE HELP In order to help you recover the money you are owed, Else Solicitors can help with tracing debtors, issuing letters before further action, negotiating payment arrangements with debtors, issuing claims and enforcing judgments along with insolvency proceedings such as winding up limited companies and bankruptcy. We understand that we are acting on your behalf and so we are happy to take instructions from you on how you want us to work with individual clients. We can adopt a firm stance or work in a more feasible and friendly way as the situation requires elselaw.co.uk

8 ENFORCEMENT ONCE YOU HAVE ISSUED A CLAIM AND OBTAINED JUDGMENT THERE ARE A NUMBER OF WAYS OF ENFORCING THAT JUDGMENT AND RECOVERING THE MONEY YOU ARE OWED Looking at the circumstances of the debtor will help inform your decision about which method to use. If you are unsure about your debtor s circumstances, an application can be made for them to attend court and be questioned about their financial situation. This can be used to ascertain whether the debtor is a homeowner, in employment and to establish what their income and expenditure is. THIRD PARTY DEBT ORDER This can be used to have the debtor s bank account frozen and the money owed withdrawn to settle the debt. It can also be used where a third party owes the debtor money. The court can stop the debtor having access to this money until it is decided whether it should be paid directly to the creditor. CHARGE AGAINST PROPERTY If the debtor owns property, an application can be made to the court for a charge to be obtained against that property. This may result in a court order forcing the sale of the property so the creditor can receive the money owed from the proceeds. HIGH COURT ENFORCEMENT OFFICER For judgments with a balance above 600, the High Court Enforcement Officer can be instructed to attend the debtor s premises in order to extract payment or to remove goods that can be sold to raise funds towards the debt. Alternatively you can instruct the County Court Bailiff to do the same for any debt value. ATTACHMENT OF EARNINGS ORDER An Attachment of Earnings Order is a way of having money deducted automatically from the debtor s wage and paid directly to the creditor. This is normally used when the debt is a personal debt not a business debt.

9 I RECEIVED EXPERT ADVICE FROM THE TEAM AT ELSE, WHICH WAS BOTH CLEAR AND HELPFUL AT ALL TIMES elselaw.co.uk

10 I HAVE A GREAT AMOUNT OF TRUST IN ELSE S RECOMMENDATIONS AND THEIR NO NONSENSE WAY OF WORKING.

11 COMMERCIAL & RESIDENTIAL POSSESSION PROCEEDINGS WHEN A TENANT FAILS TO PAY THEIR RENT ON TIME, AND ARREARS BEGIN TO OCCUR, LANDLORDS MAY WISH TO SEEK POSSESSION OF THE PROPERTY CROSS THE T S AND DOT THE I S Proceedings are slightly different depending on whether the property is residential or commercial. In the case of a residential property there are relevant notices that need to be served on the tenant. Being aware of your obligations is key as even a minor technical mistake with procedure or paperwork can lead to the claim being struck out. The possession process would have to begin again, which can delay the matter by months. Possession proceedings for commercial properties can often be carried out without notice of the intent to repossess but it is essential that the correct procedure is followed. HOW WE CAN HELP We have vast experience of handling both commercial and residential possession proceedings. We know how vital it is that a landlord takes quality, professional legal advice before attempting to take possession of a property. We are experts in dealing with this very technical area of law and we can advise you about the relevant notices that are required to be served on residential tenants and the length of time each stage may take. We also advise tenants on commercial premises and support them on their rights of occupation elselaw.co.uk

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