When an invoice is 90 days overdue, it's time to change approach: check the invoice and the customer, speak to someone senior enough to release the money, and give a final written deadline. In Adfin's payment data, just over half of invoices still unpaid at 90 days were eventually paid, but only about 12% in the following 30 days. It's also the point to decide how far you'll pursue the debt and when you'd write it off.
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The short version
- In Adfin's payment data, just over half of invoices unpaid at 90 days were eventually paid.
- About 12% were paid in the following 30 days.
- Check the invoice, the customer's Companies House record and the rest of the account first.
- Speak to whoever can release the money and agree what they can pay.
- Set a final written date, then decide whether to pursue the debt or write it off.
What the payment data shows at 90 days
Adfin's payment data follows invoices from their due date to the day they were paid, voided or left outstanding. The share eventually paid falls steadily the longer an invoice stays open.
| Still unpaid at | Share eventually paid |
|---|---|
| The due date | 94% |
| 30 days overdue | 69% |
| 60 days overdue | 61% |
| 90 days overdue | 54% |
| 120 days overdue | 49% |
Of invoices still unpaid at 90 days, about 12% were paid in the next 30 days. Some invoices counted as unpaid will have been settled another way without being marked as paid in Adfin.
So a 90-day invoice is still slightly more likely to be paid than not, and each month it stays open the share falls further. By now your routine reminders have usually run their course, and another one in the same tone is unlikely to change much.
Three checks before you escalate
Check the invoice itself. Make sure it went to the right contact and address, that it quotes a purchase order number if the customer uses them, and that there's no unanswered query on the account. A long silence is sometimes a disputed line or an invoice stuck in someone's inbox, and fixing that is quicker than any chase.
Check the customer. If it's a limited company, look it up on the Companies House register. It's free and shows whether the company is still active, when its next accounts are due and whether they're overdue. A company that has stopped filing calls for a different approach from one that's simply slow.
Check the rest of the account. If the same customer has other invoices open, or is still ordering from you, decide before you call whether new work carries on while this one is outstanding. You'll want that answer ready if they ask.
How to recover a 90-day overdue invoice without losing the customer
At 90 days, the person reading your emails may not be the person who can release the money. Ask for the finance director, the owner or whoever approves supplier payments, and ask them directly what would get the invoice paid. You'll usually hear one of a short list of answers: it's stuck in approval, there's a query, or they can't pay it all at once.
If they can't pay in full, agree what they can do and when. Adfin lets you split the balance into an instalment plan collected automatically, or take a part payment against the invoice, with each payment matched as it arrives. For a customer you'd like to keep, a plan that gets paid is likely to be better for both of you than a demand that doesn't.
Then put the outcome in writing: the amount, what was agreed, a final date, and what happens if that date passes. Keep it factual and short, and include your payment link. A calm letter is easier for a busy finance team to act on than an angry one.
Adfin's collection agents can add statutory interest to overdue business invoices within rules you approve, and the aged debtors view lets you give each overdue account an owner and track the next step, so a 90-day invoice is less likely to drift to 120.
Pursue it or write it off
If your final date passes with no payment and no plan, you're into formal recovery. The options and costs vary with the size of the debt and who owes it, so it's worth taking advice before you choose a route, and checking first that the customer has the means to pay.
Sometimes the better decision is to stop. If recovering the debt would cost more than it's worth, or the customer has no money, writing it off closes the file and frees up your time. Your accountant can tell you how to record a written-off debt.
It's easier to make this call once than case by case. One option is to set a threshold in your credit control policy, such as pursuing debts above a certain size and writing off smaller ones after a final letter, so the decision doesn't depend on how anyone feels about a particular customer that week.
Common questions
Is a 90-day overdue invoice still likely to be paid? In Adfin's payment data, just over half of invoices still unpaid at 90 days were eventually paid, though the share falls each month after that.
Who should I contact about a 90-day overdue invoice? Someone who can approve the payment, such as the finance director or owner, as well as the person who receives your invoices.
What should a final letter on a 90-day overdue invoice include? The invoice number, the amount, how long it's overdue, what you've already agreed or asked for, a final payment date and a payment link.
Should I keep doing work for a customer with a 90-day overdue invoice? That's a commercial decision, but make it before you speak to them, so you can answer clearly if they ask.
When should I use a debt collection agency? Usually after your own final deadline has passed, and often for a customer you don't expect to work with again, since an agency typically takes a share of what it recovers.
When should I write off an overdue invoice? When recovering it would cost more than it's worth, or the customer has no money to pay. Your accountant can advise on how to record it.
Sources
- GOV.UK - Late commercial payments: charging interest and debt recovery (accurate as of November 2026) https://www.gov.uk/late-commercial-payments-interest-debt-recovery
- Companies House - Searching the Companies House register (accurate as of November 2026) https://www.gov.uk/guidance/search-the-companies-house-register
- Adfin - Credit control (accurate as of November 2026) https://www.adfin.com/credit-control
- Adfin Help Centre - Create and manage instalment plans (accurate as of November 2026) https://support.adfin.com/en/articles/15379042-create-and-manage-instalment-plans
