Frequently asked questions

If we don't recover anything, you pay nothing. No placement fees, no upfront costs, no hourly billing: our commission is a percentage of what we bring in, so our incentive matches yours from day one. If you decide to take a case to court, STA Legal agrees its costs with you in writing before anything is issued.

There's no minimum spend or contract term. The online quote takes claims from £500; for smaller debts, call us and we'll tell you straight whether recovery makes sense. A single unpaid invoice is worth placing: you only pay commission if we recover, and on UK business debts statutory interest and compensation are added to the debtor's balance, which often covers our fee. Several small debts can be placed together.

On UK business debts, usually the debtor. Late payment legislation lets us add our commission, as a reasonable cost of recovery, and statutory interest to the balance. For consumer debts and debtors outside the UK, it depends on whether your own terms with the customer make them liable for collection costs.

A flat monthly fee based on the number of live accounts on your ledger, from £500 a month. We review your ledger before giving a full quote. If an account does need to go to recovery, you pay 8% commission on UK debts instead of our standard 10%.

Commission on what we recover: 10% for UK business debtors, 15% for debtors outside the UK and 15% for consumer debts. Nothing to set up, and nothing to pay if we don't collect. For large or regular portfolios, tell us the volumes and we'll quote.

Commission on what we collect, agreed with you in advance. Ask us for terms, or for our framework pricing.

For business accounts, 10% commission on what we recover from UK debtors. Large consumer portfolios are priced per portfolio, so talk to us.

Usually the same working day. Placing a debt through Your Debts Online takes a few minutes, and first contact with the debtor goes out within 24 hours of the file being validated. Speed matters: recovery odds drop sharply after 90 days.

Straight to your bank account. Your customers pay you directly, and we never hold the money.

Your Debts Online shows the credit control activity on every account on your ledger, and we report on KPIs monthly.

No. We work across a wide range of industries, from SMEs to large enterprises. What matters more than sector is the shape of your ledger.

Days sales outstanding — the standard measure of how long, on average, it takes to get paid after a sale.

Yes. Short engagements are a normal part of what we do: year-end clean-ups and post-acquisition work, cover for absences, and long-term outsourcing.

On your instruction, it moves to recovery within the same business, and as a credit control client you pay 8% commission on UK debts rather than our standard 10%.

Recovered money is sent to you weekly by BACS, and you can track every case live in Your Debts Online.

No. Contact is by phone, email, SMS, portal and letter, with written correspondence where law or CSA guidance requires it. We have no field agents and don't visit addresses.

Yes. High-volume placement is standard for us — small-balance consumer and self-serve ledgers are worked differently from enterprise invoices, but both reconcile through the same reporting.

Yes. Consumer accounts are handled by our consumer contact centre under Consumer Duty and the CSA Code of Practice; business accounts by our commercial team.

Yes. That's the shape of most utilities ledgers. Accounts can be placed in bulk and reported however you need.

Yes. Bulk placement is straightforward and often more economic than placing accounts one by one, and larger portfolios can qualify for lower commission once we've reviewed the paperwork.

Three to four weeks on average. Every case is different, so yours may be quicker or take longer.

Not long. Recovery odds fall sharply after 90 days, so the sooner a debt is placed the better, and we are most effective when an invoice is around 30 days overdue. If a final reminder, a call to accounts payable and a letter citing late payment interest have not worked, place it with us.

It shouldn't. We contact your customer as your representative, firmly and professionally, and we follow the Credit Services Association Code of Practice. Tell us if you want to keep trading with them and we'll adjust our approach. Most cases settle without a cross word, and you're kept informed at every stage.

No. Every call, email and letter goes out in your name. We work discreetly under your brand, and in most engagements the customer never knows there is a third party involved.

Consistent, professional credit control usually improves them. Customers who know they will be contacted on a predictable schedule pay to that schedule. The work is designed to keep your customers trading with you.

No. Our approach is firm, fair and documented. Complaints are rare, and when they happen they're handled under our complaints procedure.

Yes. We introduce ourselves as acting on your behalf from the first letter. For in-year credit control, we can call in your name instead.

It shouldn't. We contact clients as your representative, professionally and on the engagement terms. Tone matters more here than in almost any other sector, and we work accordingly.

It shouldn't. We contact clients as your representative, professionally and on your terms of business. Most cases settle without escalation, and the commercial relationship survives.

It shouldn't. We contact customers as your representative, professionally and on your trading terms. Most cases settle without a cross word, and the account stays open.

We review the file with you at 30 days and set out the options. If you decide to escalate, the case goes to our solicitors at STA Legal with its full history. They issue proceedings, obtain judgment and enforce it, with costs agreed with you before anything is issued. Escalation is always your decision, never an automatic step.

We still act, but we assess the dispute properly first. A genuine dispute needs resolving on the contract and the evidence, and we'll tell you if that's what you're facing. A dispute raised late to buy time is a different matter, and we deal with those every week.

Yes, through STA Legal, but only with your approval, after the Pre-Action Protocol for Debt Claims has been followed, and only where it's proportionate.

We still act, and we assess the dispute properly first. A genuine dispute needs resolving on the contract, and we will tell you if that is what you are facing. A dispute raised to buy time is a different matter, and we deal with those every week.

Normal recovery action usually stops. You'll generally need to register your claim with the insolvency practitioner and wait: assets are paid out by creditor ranking, secured before unsecured, so there's often little left after costs. We check solvency when you place a debt, and if an insolvency process is already underway we'll tell you what's realistically recoverable rather than run up costs on a lost cause.

Only as a last resort, only for home students who have not engaged at the amicable stage, and only with your prior approval. Most legal costs, plus court interest, are recoverable from the student.

We still act, and we assess the dispute properly first. A genuine spec or batch claim needs resolving on the contract and the evidence, and we will tell you if that is what you are facing. A claim raised late to buy time is a different matter, and we deal with those every week.

Yes, and speed decides the outcome. Whether a retention-of-title clause holds depends on your terms, how the goods were identified and what the administrator finds on site — which is why we assess solvency at the outset rather than after the event.

We still act, and we assess the dispute properly first. A genuine dispute over deliverables, licensing or a cancellation clause needs resolving on the contract, and we will tell you if that is what you are facing. A dispute raised to buy time is a different matter, and we deal with those every week.

We deal with the complaint and the debt separately. A genuine service complaint belongs in your own complaints process and we won't cut across it. A complaint raised only once the invoice fell due is a different thing, and we deal with those regularly.

Often, yes. Instructions, emails, accepted proposals and the work itself all evidence a contract. A missing engagement letter weakens your position but rarely ends it — we'll tell you honestly how strong the file is before we act.

We still act, and we assess the dispute properly first. A genuine rate dispute needs resolving on the confirmation and the conditions, and we'll tell you if that's what you're facing. A rate queried after the job to buy time is a different matter.

Yes, if you and your customer are both businesses. Under the Late Payment of Commercial Debts (Interest) Act 1998 you can claim interest at 8% above the Bank of England base rate (11.75% on debts that fall overdue from 1 July to 31 December 2026), plus fixed compensation of £40, £70 or £100 depending on the size of the invoice, unless your contract sets its own substantial remedy. We add both to the debtor's balance when we chase. Work out the figure with our late payment interest calculator, or get a quote to see the interest, our fee and what you'd receive.

In England, Wales and Northern Ireland you generally have six years from when payment fell due to start court action. In Scotland most commercial debts prescribe after five years, which extinguishes the debt altogether. A written acknowledgement or part payment before then restarts the clock. The older a debt gets, the fewer the options, so place it early and we'll tell you honestly whether it's worth pursuing.

We recover from debtors worldwide, and over the last year we collected in 154 countries. Most international cases are handled from our UK office and settle without proceedings, which matters, because litigating abroad often costs more than the debt. Commission is 15%. If a case needs to transfer to a local agent, the rate increases, but only with your approval.

It depends on the debtor's country and on your terms. In most countries, interest and collection costs can only be claimed if your contract with the customer allows it. It's worth adding that clause for future sales.

Very likely. Our international team works in 12 languages: English, Arabic, French, German, Italian, Dutch, Spanish, Portuguese, Polish, Lithuanian, Mandarin and Nepalese. For other languages, our local partners recover in the language of their own country.

Yes, through lawyers in the debtor's country, only with your approval and with costs agreed first. We'll tell you plainly whether it's likely to be worth it.

Yes. Most international collections are recovered directly from the UK. See International students.

That is where our network earns its keep. We recover internationally with local-language contact and local legal escalation where needed, and remit what we collect back to you in sterling.

Yes. STA International is authorised by the Financial Conduct Authority (FRN 705183) for debt collection, and is a member of the Credit Services Association.

We identify, record and act on vulnerability. That means pausing contact, adjusting how we communicate, or referring the customer to free debt advice. You can see what happened on every account.

Vulnerability is identified and recorded, and contact is adjusted to suit. Every process is designed around Consumer Duty and Treating Customers Fairly, and the student hub lets students manage things without a call if they prefer.

We stop pressing and start listening. Cases are screened for vulnerability before contact and again as circumstances emerge, and affordable arrangements are agreed rather than imposed. Where recovery isn't appropriate, we say so and return the file.

Yes. Overseas businesses use us to recover from UK customers at our standard UK rate of 10%. See UK debt collection.

We don't work in territories under UK sanctions, and we screen every placement against the current sanctions regimes. In a few other places, enforcement isn't practical; if so, we'll tell you when you place the debt, not after.

Yes, and they are among the most common construction cases we take. Retentions held past the release date, or quietly absorbed after practical completion, are recoverable — the paperwork trail usually works in your favour.

Yes, and shortfalls are among the most commonly abandoned balances we see. Where the patient agreed to cover the difference, it's recoverable like any other consumer debt — handled with the same care.

Yes, that is one of the most common reasons agencies come to us. We work the client debt as the priority, because clearing it is what frees you to settle with the freelancers and production partners waiting on you.

Then the delay is usually a policy rather than a cash problem, and it responds to a different approach. We deal with corporate procurement and shared-service payment teams routinely, and statutory interest strengthens your position considerably.

Not automatically. It depends on what your terms of business actually say and whether the rebate conditions were met. We read the terms first and tell you where you stand before any contact goes out.

Frequently, yes. Signature is evidence, not the only evidence — assignment confirmations, rotas, site records and email approvals all carry weight, and most clients pay once the work is properly demonstrated.

Check what your contract permits on suspension before you act, because suspending in breach can hand them a defence. We'll read the terms with you and, in most cases, recovery is faster and less damaging than switching them off.

Yes, and they're among the most common cases we take. These charges are usually recoverable where the trading conditions and the timestamps support them — the evidence trail tends to work in your favour.

Usually, yes. A deduction with no agreed credit note behind it is an unpaid invoice. We reconcile what was actually agreed against what was taken, and recover the difference.