What Is a Business Claim? A Simple Guide

You may have noticed this with administrative procedures: it’s best not to forget them, because they’re not likely to disappear on their own! The same goes for receivables: by being well informed on the subject, you can set up adequate monitoring and prevent them from turning into unpaid bills. Here’s a complete guide to receivables!

What is a business claim?

A business claim is an amount owed to a company as payment for a service provided to a customer. It is an amount that the company is entitled to demand. If you use invoicing software, you can easily view and track your company’s receivables, i.e., amounts awaiting payment.

As long as the payment deadline you set and communicated to your customer (one month, three months or 30 days end of month most often) has not been exceeded, the money owed to you is a receivable. If this amount has still not been paid after the payment deadline, the receivable becomes a late payment or an unpaid invoice.

The quotes and general conditions of sale make it possible to establish a precise framework regarding: 

• of the due date of a debt; 
• protection of the company against non-payment;
• of the recovery procedure.

Some examples of receivables

Let’s imagine that you are a micro-business photographer and that you are carrying out a session on behalf of a client (a legal entity or individual). 

Once the photos are sent and the invoice is issued, you will have a claim on this customer.

Another example of a sale of goods: if you deliver pastries that you make to a canteen every week, this establishment has a receivable from you at the end of the month. In the same way, your supplier of chocolate, flour, and yeast has a receivable from your company after having procured these products for you!

What are the conditions for recovering a debt?

To proceed with recovery in the event of non-payment, three conditions must be met:

• the claim must be certain, that is to say it is possible for the creditor to prove its existence, for example using an accounting document stored on the accounting tool integrated into Agiled;
• the debt must be liquid (it must be a specific amount);
• the debt must be due (the settlement date must have passed).

Difference between a business claim and a debt

Accounts receivable is the money a business is owed by a customer. This amount is exchanged for a service or sale.

The debt, on the other hand, is an amount that the client must pay to the company that provided the service. 

So it’s all a matter of perspective. The creditor wants payment from the debtor, which is the claim. The debtor must make a payment to the creditor. This is the debt!

Frequently Asked Questions

What is a claim?

A receivable is an amount that is owed in exchange for the provision of a service or a sale.

How to avoid late payments?

You can prevent late payments by detailing the terms and conditions (payment deadline, late payment penalties, etc.) as much as possible in your quote or general terms and conditions. Billed can also help you manage unpaid bills by automatically following up with your customers.

Is it mandatory to provide quotes?

Self-employed workers are not legally required to provide a quote. However, writing a quote helps establish a clear framework for settling debts. This can be useful if you need to initiate debt collection proceedings.