From polite nudge to county court judgment — the exact sequence, letters and fees for getting a UK client to pay. Without a solicitor.
- £49
- 12 templates
- Updated at every Budget
- 30-day refund
- Read Module 1 free
You are owed money and the client has gone quiet. The two most common next moves are to give up and to send something emotional that a judge later reads aloud. There is a third option, and it is boring, legal and effective: a sequence of dated letters that escalates on schedule, claims the interest and compensation the law already gives you, and ends in payment or a judgment.
Every letter in that sequence is written for you here, from the first polite nudge to a Letter Before Action that complies with the Pre-Action Protocol, in both company and individual versions. The interest calculator adds what you are entitled to, which most freelancers never claim, and the Money Claim Online walkthrough uses real fees rather than a vague reference to “court”.
What’s inside
- Four contract clauses that make late payment expensive (the IP-on-payment clause is your real use)
- The ladder: day-by-day, T+1 to T+75, with the check before every stage
- Statutory interest and per-invoice compensation, calculated — most freelancers never claim it
- The Letter Before Action that complies with the Pre-Action Protocol (company AND individual versions)
- MCOL step by step · enforcement options ranked · disputes, insolvency, overseas debtors · and the scorecard that fires 71-day payers
The 12 templates
Reminder letters stages 1–4 · auto-calculating interest & compensation statement · both LBAs · payment plan with default clause · particulars of claim wording · hearing bundle index · client payment scorecard · the four-clause contract pack.
In practice
If a client is late today, start at the stage that matches how late they are and send that letter with the interest statement attached. If nobody is late, start with the four contract clauses, because they make the next late payer expensive and the IP-on-payment clause is the use you did not know you had. The scorecard at the end is for deciding which clients to keep.
Read Module 1 free. “Prevention: the four contract clauses” — the opening module in full, nothing cut, plus the contents page. No email, no signup. Download the free sample (PDF, 4 pages)
Buying more than one? The Complete Freelancer System, all five original courses, is £97 against £215 at full price. See the full course list.
Not for you if: the claim exceeds £10,000 or solicitors are already involved — get advice, bring the bundle.
Before you buy
Do I need a solicitor for any of this?
Not below the small claims limit. The sequence, the Letter Before Action and the Money Claim Online route are designed for people acting for themselves. Above £10,000, or once solicitors are involved on the other side, take advice and bring the bundle.
Can I really charge interest and a fixed fee?
Yes, under the Late Payment of Commercial Debts (Interest) Act, on business-to-business debts. Base rate plus 8% and a fixed sum of £40 to £100 per invoice. The calculator does the arithmetic.
What if the client is an individual, not a company?
The letters come in both versions, and the Pre-Action Protocol for debt claims applies to individuals specifically. The differences are covered.
What if the client goes bust?
The course covers insolvency, what a creditor can realistically recover and when to stop spending time on it.
General information, not tax or legal advice. Figures checked against HMRC and other primary sources at publication — see our editorial policy.