Customer refusing to pay for work done: what to do

If a customer will not pay for work you have finished, the route is the same whoever they are: a written reminder with the invoice, a firm reminder with a statement, a letter before claim that follows the court's pre-action rules, then a claim through the small claims court. What changes is the detail. A homeowner is a consumer, so there is no statutory interest and the letter gives them 30 days. A business customer owes you 8% over base rate and a fixed sum under the Late Payment Act. The late payment interest calculator works out the interest and writes the letters.

This is guidance, not legal advice. If the amount is large or the customer is disputing the work, speak to a solicitor before you send anything formal.

First, is it a refusal or a dispute?

A customer who simply does not pay is a debt. A customer who says the work is faulty is a dispute, and it needs handling differently.

Under the Consumer Rights Act 2015, a homeowner is entitled to work done with reasonable care and skill. If it was not, they can require you to put it right, and if that is not possible, a price reduction, which can be the full price. So before any letter before claim, offer in writing to come back, inspect and put right anything that is genuinely wrong, and keep a copy. The court's pre-action rules expect both sides to try to settle before a claim, and an open offer to put things right is something a judge can see.

If you think the complaint is a way to avoid paying, say so politely, set out what you did and ask them to say exactly what is wrong. The customer's side is explained well by Citizens Advice, which is worth reading so you know what they will be told.

Homeowner or business customer: why it changes everything

A homeowner is a consumer. The Consumer Rights Act applies to the work, the Late Payment Act does not, and you can charge interest only if your terms said so before the job. Without that term, a court can add interest, usually 8% a year, when it gives judgment; the late payment interest calculator works that figure out too. If you quoted at their home and did not give the cancellation information, they may also have had a right to cancel you did not know about, which the quote template guide explains.

A business customer, including a main contractor you work for, falls under the Late Payment of Commercial Debts (Interest) Act 1998. You can add interest at 8% over the Bank of England reference rate from the day payment was due, and a fixed sum for each invoice: £40 on invoices under £1,000, £70 under £10,000, and £100 above. The calculator works out the reference rate for your dates.

Subcontractors chasing a contractor are in the business column: the debt is between two businesses, whatever CIS was taken off along the way. The CIS tax calculator shows what the payment should have been after the deduction.

Step one, the reminder (day one and day seven)

The day after the due date, send a friendly reminder with the invoice attached: the amount, the date it was due and how to pay.

At seven days, send a firmer reminder with a statement of account: every invoice, every payment and what is still owed. Say when you expect payment and that you will take further steps if it does not arrive. The timing is our suggestion, not a rule, but a clear written record from day one is what a court looks for.

Step two, the letter before claim

Before you make a court claim, the court expects a formal letter that follows the pre-action rules, and which rules depends on who owes you.

• An individual or sole trader, including a homeowner: the Pre-Action Protocol for Debt Claims. The letter goes with a statement of account, the protocol's information sheet and reply form, and a financial statement, and gives them 30 days to reply.
• A company: the Practice Direction on Pre-Action Conduct. A shorter letter, with a reply due in 14 days in a straightforward case.

The late payment interest calculator writes both versions, with the right enclosures for an individual, once you have picked who owes you.

Step three, the small claims court

England and Wales. The small claims track takes claims up to £10,000. You can start online through the court's money claims service; the fee depends on the claim plus interest:

Court fee to start a money claim in England and Wales, checked 19 September 2026 against EX50

Claim, including interest	Fee
Up to £300	£35
£300.01 to £500	£50
£500.01 to £1,000	£70
£1,000.01 to £1,500	£80
£1,500.01 to £3,000	£115
£3,000.01 to £5,000	£205
£5,000.01 to £10,000	£455
£10,000.01 to £200,000	5% of the claim
More than £200,000	£10,000

If the customer defends a claim of £10,000 or less, you will both be told to attend the court's free telephone mediation first.

Scotland uses simple procedure for claims of £5,000 or less, through the Scottish courts. Northern Ireland uses the small claims process for claims up to £5,000, through the county court.

A judgment is not money. If the customer still does not pay, you go back to the court to enforce it, for example by asking for bailiffs to collect or for money to be taken from their wages, and each step has its own fee. If they have nothing, a judgment may not get you paid. That is worth weighing before you start.

Interest on an unpaid invoice

For a business customer the interest is a legal right: 8% over the reference rate plus the fixed sum, claimed in the letter and in the court claim. For a homeowner it is whatever your terms say, or the court's 8% a year on the debt if you go to court. The late payment interest calculator below does either, from the date the invoice was due.

Unpaid invoice recovery: debt collection agencies and when they are worth it

A debt collection agency writes, phones and negotiates for you. It has no powers you do not: Citizens Advice is clear that debt collectors are not bailiffs and cannot come to someone's home to take goods. Only a court judgment leads to enforcement.

Ask what they charge, in writing, before you sign up. For a small homeowner debt, our view is that the letter before claim and a small claim you run yourself usually cost less than an agency, because the court fee for a claim of up to £1,000 is £70 and is added to what the customer owes if you win.

Can I take my materials back or undo the work?

Guidance, not legal advice.

No, and this is the mistake that turns a debt you are owed into a case against you. Once materials are fixed to a property, they become part of it and belong to the owner, whatever your invoice or terms say. A law firm's guide to retention of title in construction puts it plainly: goods fixed to a building "lose their existence as chattels" and title passes to the owner of the land. Going back to rip out a boiler, a kitchen or a run of cable means damaging property that belongs to someone else, which is an offence under the Criminal Damage Act 1971, and you may be trespassing too.

A retention of title clause only helps for goods not yet fixed, such as a boiler still in its box on site. A contract can give you a right to come back and remove goods that come out without damage, but that has to be agreed before the work, and you would still want advice before using it. Which? Trusted Traders gives its members the same advice: never remove materials you have installed.

Unpaid invoice from a sole trader or a company

Who owes you decides the letter and the interest. A sole trader or partnership is an individual for the debt protocol and gets 30 days, but is a business for the Late Payment Act, so statutory interest applies. A limited company gets the 14-day letter and statutory interest. Check the company's exact name and registered office on Companies House before you claim, because a claim against the wrong name is wasted.

How to stop it happening again

• A written quote with your payment terms, including interest on late payment, agreed before you start. The builder quote template sets out deposits, stage payments and terms.
• A deposit that covers the materials, and stage payments for anything longer than a week.
• A signed record of the work when you finish. The job sheet template takes the customer's signature on your phone, with photos and the time on site.
• Card payment on the day for small jobs.
• A terms page on your website, so customers have seen them before they call.

On commercial jobs, a signed method statement and risk assessment and the site induction record also show the job was run properly if the quality is questioned later.

Whatever your trade, the same habits apply. We set out what a site that does this looks like for plumbers, electricians, builders, roofers, landscapers, carpenters and handymen.

What to keep

The quote and the customer's acceptance, any changes agreed in writing, the job sheet and photos, texts and emails about the job, the invoice, and every reminder and letter. Keep them for at least 6 years: that is how long you have to make a claim in England and Wales.