Small and medium-sized enterprises

My company received a collection letter from a collection agency. Has an entry been made in my company's credit report?
An entry is not yet made for a collection letter. In order to avoid a payment default entry or late payment entry being recorded in the company’s credit report, pay the balances right away or contact the collection agency that sent the collection letter.
What is the collection process for companies?

Outstanding receivables can be collected from companies by using either a public collection procedure or the regular letter collection method. The method of the collection depends on the credit policies of the company or association collecting the debt. Below, the different potential phases are discussed in detail:

Public collection

Public collection requires that the business receivable is undisputed and past due. Pubic collection phases:

  1. First demand for payment letter. Includes the information of a potential delayed payment entry in the credit report. If the receivable is not paid or disputed as being erroneous, a second demand for payment letter is sent in 12 days.
  2. Second demand for payment letter. The company is told to pay the receivable with interest and collection costs to avoid having the payment default being recorded in the credit report registry. From there, the payment default can be further delivered for publication in journals. Sending the second demand for payment letter automatically results in a delayed payment entry in the company’s payment history in the Suomen Asiakastieto Oy’s register. If the receivable is not paid or disputed within 10 days of sending the letter, the receivable is protested.
  3. Protesting the receivable either publicly or discreetly (not published in journals). Protesting is recorded for a company in Suomen Asiakastieto Oy‘s credit registry (kept on file for 3 years). Asiakastieto will notify a company of the public protesting of a second demand for payment. If the company does not pay the balance of the receivables within 8 days, a public protest is published in journals.
  4. The protest information is published in Kauppalehti, Taloussanomat and Luottolista. Even if a company does prevent the publication of the protest information in the journals by paying the outstanding receivable, the entry in the credit registry will remain.

Regular voluntary collection

The method of the collection for companies depends on the credit policies of the company or association collecting the debt. Below is one example:

  1. First demand for payment letter. If the receivable is not paid, a payment plan is not agreed on, and the receivable is not disputed within 7 days of sending the letter, the second demand for payment letter is sent.
  2. Second demand for payment letter. The company is told to pay the receivable with collection costs within 7 days to avoid collection through court proceedings.

Collection through court

If public collection or regular collection letters do not generate results, the process advances into the legal collection phase, which is the same as with private individuals. Learn more about the legal collection phases in the Did you receive mail section.

With larger debt problems with companies, bankruptcy and restructuring procedures also apply.

What is a public protest?

A public protest is a public demand for payment, which advises others of the matter. If a company does not pay the debt after the second demand for payment, the receivable is delivered to Suomen Asiakastieto Oy for public protest.

A public protest is recorded in the company’s credit report and is published in Kauppalehti, Taloussanomat, and Luottolista. A discreet protest is not published in journals, but it is recorded in the company’s credit report. A protest will remain as a payment default entry in the company’s credit report for 3 years.

What is a delayed payment entry?
Sending the second demand for payment letter automatically results in a delayed payment entry in the company’s payment history in the Suomen Asiakastieto Oy’s register. Prior to this, the balance has been collected on using at least one demand for payment letter. A delayed payment entry is kept on file in a company’s payment history for 6 months from the entry.
Can my company agree on instalments with the collection agency? What size instalments can the debt be divided into?

Instalments can be agreed on. Contact the collection agency to agree on a payment plan. The length of the extension of the payment time and the size of the instalments depends on the credit policies of the creditor company or association.

If you have received a letter from Lindorff, please contact our customer service department.

My customers are late with their payments. Can I transfer my outstanding invoices to Lindorff for handling?

Yes, you can lighten your workload by transferring your collection of receivables to Lindorff. We also offer credit report, invoicing, and payment reminder services to support your CRM and cash flow management activities.

We have a separate sales and customer service team that serves small and medium-sized enterprises. Contact us and ask for a SME sales contact person, tel. 010 2700 00 (Charges fixed line phone 8,28 snt/puh + 5,95 snt/min and mobile phone 8,28 snt/call + 17,04 snt/min).

You can learn more about our services and us on our website at www.lindorff.fi