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Debt Collection

Stop chasing unpaid invoices manually. PayRequest’s Debt Collection feature gives you a professional, structured approach to recovering overdue payments — from friendly reminders all the way to formal notices and postal letters.
Debt Collection works alongside your existing invoicing system. When an invoice goes unpaid past its due date, you can open a collection case to start the recovery process.

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Key Features

  • 5-Stage Escalation Pipeline — Start with a soft pre-collection reminder, then progress through four formal stages
  • Pre-Incasso (Stage 0) — Free, informal reminder before starting formal collection
  • Automated Escalation — Cases automatically progress through stages based on your schedule
  • Pause & Resume — Temporarily suspend a case while negotiating, then pick up where you left off
  • Partial Payments — Register payments received via bank transfer, cash, or other channels
  • Waive Balance (Kwijtschelding) — Write off the remaining balance when you’ve agreed on a settlement
  • Collection Fees — Add collection fees at later stages to cover recovery costs
  • Payment Plans — Let customers pay in installments when they can’t pay the full amount at once
  • Postal Letters — Send physical collection letters via Pingen for formal notices
  • Customer Portal — Customers can view their case, pay directly, or request a payment plan
  • External Debts — Create collection cases for debts not tied to existing invoices
  • Activity Timeline — Unified audit trail of every action, email, letter, payment, and status change

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When to Use Debt Collection

Debt Collection is designed for invoices that remain unpaid after your regular payment reminders haven’t worked. Typical workflow:
  1. Invoice is sent to customer
  2. Payment reminders are sent automatically (3 days before, 7 days after due date)
  3. Customer still hasn’t paid after 14+ days
  4. Open a collection case to start formal recovery
Don’t start collection too early. Give customers at least 14 days past the due date before opening a case. Most late payments are resolved with regular reminders.

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How It Works

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1. Create a Case

Open a collection case from an overdue invoice or create one for an external debt. The case tracks everything: the original amount, any collection fees, payment attempts, and communication history.

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2. Escalate Through Stages

Each case can progress through up to five stages, each with increasingly urgent communication:
StageNameTone
0Pre-Collection (optional)Gentle, informal reminder
1Friendly ReminderPolite, assumes oversight
2Formal NoticeProfessional, sets deadline
3Collection FeesFirm, fees added to balance
4Final WarningUrgent, last chance before further action

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3. Communicate with Customers

At each stage, you can send email reminders or physical postal letters. Customers also see their case in the Customer Portal where they can pay directly or request a payment plan.

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4. Track Payments

Register partial payments received via bank transfer or cash. The amount breakdown updates in real-time, and when the full balance is covered, the case closes automatically. You can also waive the remaining balance for settlements.

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5. Resolve the Case

Cases are resolved when the customer pays the full amount (including any collection fees), when you waive the remaining balance, or when all payment plan installments are completed.

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Dashboard Overview

Your Debt Collection dashboard shows all active cases at a glance:
  • Case number and linked invoice
  • Customer name and contact details
  • Current stage with visual progress indicator
  • Total amount due (original + collection fees) and remaining balance
  • Days overdue count
  • Quick actions — send reminder, escalate, pause, view details

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What Customers See

When you open a collection case, your customer can view it in the Customer Portal:
  • A clear warning banner explaining the situation
  • Case details (case number, invoice, due date, days overdue)
  • Amount breakdown (original amount + any collection fees)
  • Stage progress indicator
  • Pay Now button to settle immediately
  • Option to request a payment plan (if you’ve enabled this)
Collection cases are visible to customers in their portal. Make sure you’re ready to proceed before creating a case.

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Getting Started

Creating Cases

Learn how to create collection cases from invoices or external debts

Escalation Pipeline

Understand the 4-stage escalation process and automation

Payment Plans

Set up installment plans for customers who can’t pay at once

Managing Cases

Pause, resume, register payments, and waive balances

Postal Letters

Send physical collection letters via Pingen

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FAQs

Yes. Postal letters are optional. You can run the full collection pipeline using only email communication and the customer portal.
Creating a case does not automatically notify the customer. You choose when to send the first reminder — either by email or postal letter.
Yes. At Stage 3 (Collection Fees) and Stage 4 (Final Warning), you can add a fee to the outstanding balance. The fee is shown separately in the customer portal and on payment pages.
When the linked invoice is paid (including any collection fees), the case is automatically marked as paid and closed. You can also register manual payments for bank transfers or cash received outside PayRequest.
Yes. You can close a case manually, waive the remaining balance (kwijtschelding), or cancel the case from the detail page.
Yes. Pausing suspends automated escalation while keeping the payment link active. This is useful when negotiating with the customer. Resume the case at any time to continue the collection process.