🎧 Listen to episode 2 of LEXpérience, "Dealing with unpaid bills."

• Video: https://youtu.be/_RDOw4-NoKo
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Dealing with unpaid bills: prevent, follow up, recover

Episode 2 of the LEXpérience podcast

Unpaid bills are one of those realities that many entrepreneurs are familiar with, but no one really talks about.

Often because we hope it will resolve itself.

Often also because we don't know exactly what to do or how far we can go.

And meanwhile, the bill sits there.

For the second episode of LEXpérience, the legal podcast from ALLY Avocats, Jérôme welcomed two experts in the field: Anne-Sophie de Paillerets, judicial officer in Paris, and Jérémie Mocqué, accounting director at Electra Group. Together, they break down unpaid debts in all their forms: from prevention to enforcement.

Unpaid bills in France: an underestimated reality

One figure sets the tone: according to the Coface 2025 study, 86% of French companies have faced late payments over the last 12 months. The average payment period now stands at 49.7 days, far ahead of Germany, where the same average is 32 days.
Unpaid bills are therefore not an exception. They are a structural feature of French business life.
And yet, most managers do not have a clear process for dealing with them.

Why does unpaid debt become so easily established?

In the episode, one observation comes up repeatedly: unpaid bills thrive in silence.
The longer you wait, the less likely you are to get paid. However, chasing up a customer is often the last thing we want to do. It's uncomfortable, time-consuming, and it upsets the business relationship.
The result: we put it off. The invoice gets older. And the debt becomes more fragile.
Jérémie Mocqué puts it clearly: we naturally respond to those who ask, and we forget those who remain silent. This almost cognitive bias works in favor of the bad payer and against the one who waits.

Prevention: the right reflexes before the problem arises

The episode emphasizes a point that is often overlooked: unpaid bills are in the making even before they exist.
Several levers are discussed:

• Know your customer: the famous KYC (Know Your Customer): collect the right information from the outset, check financial stability, identify signs of economic dependence.
• Secure yourself contractually: a written contract, a signed quote, clear terms and conditions of sale—these are all documents that will make a difference when things get complicated.
• Calibrate guarantees according to sector and amount: down payments, security deposits, first demand guarantees for high-stakes projects.
• Anticipate billing: the frequency and sequencing of invoices have a direct impact on cash flow and the chances of getting paid.

These reflexes do not break the commercial relationship. They structure it.

Recovery: a process, not improvisation

When a bill is not paid by the due date, the first response should not be legal, it should be human: a phone call, a message, making contact.
In most cases, non-payment is not a refusal to pay. It is an oversight, a misdirected invoice, or a change in contact person.
What this episode recommends is to set up a structured reminder process:

• Proactive follow-up even before the deadline
• A first reminder by email, then by phone
• A gradual escalation across different channels
• Deadlines defined in advance, not improvised on a case-by-case basis

The earlier and more regular the follow-up, the more effective it is. The longer you wait, the weaker the debt becomes and the more expensive it is to recover.

The payment order: fast, inexpensive, often effective

When amicable collection is no longer sufficient, there is a legal procedure that is often overlooked: the payment order.
Anne-Sophie de Paillerets explains the basics:

• It is a non-adversarial procedure: the judge rules on the basis of the documents, without a hearing and without the debtor being present.
• It can be purchased online for only €57.
• If the case is strong, the decision can be made within a few weeks.
• The debtor then has one month to file an objection. If they do not do so, the creditor obtains an enforceable title and can proceed to the next step.

It is an effective gateway to enforcement, provided that the claim has been properly documented from the outset.

Enforcement: what the judicial officer can really do

Once the enforceable title is in hand, the judicial officer steps in, and his powers are much more extensive than one might imagine.

• Seizure of bank accounts: query of the FICOBA database, identification of all institutions holding funds in the debtor's name, simultaneous seizure in just a few clicks.
• Seizure and sale of movable property: stock, equipment, vehicles—anything with market value can be seized and then sold at auction.
• Precautionary seizure prior to judgment: when it appears that the situation is likely to deteriorate, this measure allows funds to be frozen without notifying the debtor, subject to the judge's authorization.

The episode illustrates these mechanisms with concrete examples: a stockpile of 500,000 books seized near Orleans, a taxi license, jewelry. The reality of enforcement is sometimes more unexpected than one might think.

Knowing when to let go: when is it best to give up?

This is perhaps the most difficult and strategic question.
Because pursuing a debt can cost more than abandoning it. The time spent, the fees incurred, the energy expended: all of this has a real cost, which many managers never quantify.
Jérémie Mocqué 's advice is clear: calculate the cost of the unpaid debt in terms of time, resources, and procedures before deciding to pursue it. And ask yourself, lucidly, whether the debt is worth it.
Sometimes, the right decision is an 80% settlement. Sometimes, it's going all the way. But this choice must be made with full knowledge of the facts, not out of frustration.

Turn unpaid bills into something you control, not something you suffer

The underlying message of this episode is not alarmist. It is pragmatic.
Unpaid debts are part of business life. But they can be anticipated, structured, dealt with methodically, and often resolved well before they reach the courts.
This is precisely the ambition of LEXpérience: to provide concrete, practical advice based on real-world experience, so that the law becomes second nature rather than an unpleasant surprise.