When the debtor has paid your client directly and the client does not settle your commission invoice, you can convert the unpaid payment into a new collection case against the client. This guide shows the exact steps.
The video walks through invoicing your commission when the debtor paid the client directly. From 3:21 it covers what happens when the client still does not pay.
Goal
Recover an unpaid commission by starting a debt collection case against your client, directly from the payment record on the case page.
When this applies
The debtor paid your client directly, and you registered the payment with the recipient set to the client. See How to handle direct payments to the client.
You invoiced the client for your success fee, and the invoice remains unpaid despite reminders. What happens before escalation becomes relevant depends on how you invoiced:
Let Debitura send it: Debitura emails the invoice to the client in your name, with replies coming to you, and then reminds the client three times: the first reminder about 5 days after the client's payment deadline, then two more at 10-day intervals, the last one a final notice. If the invoice is still unpaid after the final reminder, you receive the task Chase payment & start collection, with a 30-day deadline.
I'll send it myself, or a commission from before the Debitura invoice flow: Debitura reminds you, not the client. About 30 days after the payment was recorded you receive a first reminder email, and about 40 days after you receive a second reminder email and the task Chase payment & start collection.
For background on the two payment flows, see Flow of funds: debtor pays you vs debtor pays the client.
Prerequisites
The payment is recorded on the case with "Who received the payment?" set to "The debtor paid the client directly".
"Has the client paid your share?" is set to No (Unpaid).
The unpaid commission is at least USD 100. Below that amount you cannot open a collection case, and the task Chase payment & start collection is not created.
Steps
Open the case. Go to Cases Received and select the case with the unpaid commission.
Open the payment. In the Financial overview card, under Debtor payments, click the payment date. The Edit payment window opens.
Click "learn more". Because "Has the client paid your share?" is set to No (Unpaid), a red notice is shown for a commission you follow up yourself: "Kindly make sure to chase this payment. We can assist you with local debt recovery". Click learn more in that notice. If you received the task Chase payment & start collection, the task leads into the same flow for opening a collection case against your client.
Review the recovery summary. The "Recover Your Unpaid Commission" window opens. It shows the total unpaid commission for this client and the case(s) it is based on.
Click "Create case". This starts a new collection case against your client for the unpaid commission, based on the payment data already recorded.
Result
Your claim is handled by a local Debitura partner operating in your client's jurisdiction, under the standard No Cure, No Pay Debt Collection Agreement. You see who the local partner is and their rates before you submit the case.
Edge cases
The client pays after all
If the client settles your invoice, do not escalate. Instead, mark the commission as paid: use Record payment on the client invoice if you invoiced through Debitura, otherwise update the commission status on the original case to Paid. The steps are in How to handle direct payments to the client.
You do not want to pursue the amount
If collection is not worth pursuing and you invoiced the client yourself, or the commission is from before the Debitura invoice flow, contact Debitura support and ask to have the commission written off (marked as Credited). A write-off stops the reminder workflows while keeping your records accurate. A commission invoiced through Debitura (Let Debitura send it) cannot be written off: to stop Debitura's reminders to the client, turn the reminders off or pause them on the invoice.
The client disputes your invoice
A dispute is different from non-payment. Refer to the fee terms in your agreement and resolve the dispute with the client through the case chat before considering escalation.
Related
How to use Tasks to meet your deadlines - unpaid commission reminders appear as tasks