Company won't pay the invoice. Accounts is 'looking into it'.
Work delivered, invoice sent, then the runaround: wrong PO, needs approval, the person who ordered it has left. Between businesses the law adds statutory interest and compensation to every overdue invoice — and a letter before action is what finance departments actually respond to. Written free, today.
Alongside the money itself, courts may award simple interest on money you have been kept out of — commonly 8% a year under the County Courts Act 1984 — and the court fee is typically added to a successful claim. Interest is discretionary. The letter sets this out so the other side can see what ignoring it costs.
How people describe it when they reach us
The sorts of things people tell us. Illustrative, based on patterns in the cases that reach us.
Your legal rights when an invoice goes unpaid
In England and Wales an invoice for work done or goods delivered under an agreement is a debt. Between businesses the Late Payment of Commercial Debts (Interest) Act 1998 adds statutory interest and fixed compensation; a formal letter before action is the step the court's pre-action rules expect before a claim.
ActLate Payment of Commercial Debts (Interest) Act 1998, ss.1–2Between businesses, unpaid invoices usually carry statutory interest.
Section 1 generally implies into a contract to which the Act applies a term that a qualifying debt carries simple interest; section 2 typically defines those contracts as ones for the supply of goods or services where both parties act in the course of a business. The rate is set by order — currently 8% above the Bank of England base rate — and a fixed compensation sum per invoice may be added. It does not apply to consumers.
Read it on legislation.gov.uk ↗Case lawContract law — breach of contractFailing to do what was paid for may amount to breach of contract.
A job, a purchase or a loan is typically analysed as a contract. If one side does not perform a central promise — work not done, money not repaid, goods not handed over — a court may find a breach and will then consider what loss flowed from it. The measure is normally the money you are out of pocket, proved with evidence.
This is general information about the law in England and Wales, not advice about your case. Which provisions apply, and how, depends on the facts.
Four things you'll hear. None of them end it.
Then the letter fixes which one. 14 days, with interest running. A dated demand tends to move an invoice up the queue.
A PO is their process, not the contract. The order was placed, the work was accepted, the invoice is due. The letter says so.
Raised after the invoice was chased? The letter sets out the sign-off and the acceptance. Genuine disputes are settled on the evidence.
The letter is the step before that, and most finance teams know it. It also starts the interest clock formally.
Five things worth gathering now
The letter first. Court only if they ignore it.
Your side, your words
What happened, what was agreed, what you are out of pocket. We ask what a court would ask, so the letter says what a court would need to hear.
Written for you, free
A formal letter before action with a 14-day deadline, setting out what is owed and why. You see it at no charge. Posting it by tracked mail and watching the deadline is £15.
Court claim, prepared
If the deadline passes: one tap turns the letter into a small claim, drafted, checked and filed. The £15 comes off our fee. The decision is the court's.
What JustClaim is: we prepare and file the paperwork for your claim, for a fixed price shown before you pay. We're not a law firm, this isn't legal advice, and no outcome is ever guaranteed — what you get is the strongest honest version of your case, properly made.
Questions people in this exact spot ask
Do I have to send a letter before action before claiming?
In practice, yes. The pre-action rules expect a written demand with a reasonable time to respond, usually 14 days, before a claim is issued. It is also the step that gets most invoices paid.
Which company do I name?
The exact registered name and registered office from Companies House — not the trading name on the email signature. The letter goes there; a claim would too.
Can I add interest?
Between businesses, statutory interest at 8% above base rate plus a fixed compensation sum per invoice usually applies automatically. Otherwise a court may award simple interest, commonly 8% a year. The letter sets it out either way.
They dispute the work, not just the payment.
Then the letter answers the dispute: what was agreed, what was delivered, the sign-off. A genuine dispute is settled on the evidence; a dispute raised only when the invoice is chased usually isn't much of one.
How much does it cost if it goes further?
If the letter is ignored, a court claim has a court fee set by the amount: £35 up to £300, £50 up to £500, £70 up to £1,000, £115 up to £3,000. If you win, the fee is normally added to what the other side is ordered to pay. Our fixed price is shown before you pay anything.
Is the letter really free?
Yes. Tell us what happened and the letter before action is written and shown to you at no charge. If you want us to post it by tracked mail and watch the 14-day deadline, that is £15, shown before you pay — and it comes off our fee if it later becomes a court claim.
Invoice still unpaid?
Tell us what happened. The letter before action is written free and shown to you today; posting it and watching the deadline is £15.
Write the letter — free →