Dunning System

Outstanding receivables are the silent killer of any self-employment. The work is done, the invoice is out, but the money does not come, and at some point you lose track of who is overdue and by how long and what the next step would be. The Dunning System ends the guessing game: it gathers your overdue invoices in one place and walks you through the dunning stages with discipline, without you having to calculate or draft anything yourself.

The big advantage is the integration with the invoicing suite. The Dunning System pulls your open and overdue invoices straight from the invoicing suite, shows per claim the open amount, the days in default, the current dunning stage and the accrued interest, and suggests the next step. So you work through your receivables list like a to-do list instead of digging through folders.

It becomes legally sound through the German Civil Code. Under Section 286 BGB your debtor falls into default, and from Section 288 BGB you are entitled to default interest: for transactions with consumers, five percentage points above the base rate, and for pure B2B transactions, nine percentage points above it. The Dunning System knows this distinction, calculates the interest to the exact day, and uses the current base rate series from the Bundesbank for it.

Against businesses the EUR 40 flat fee under Section 288(5) BGB applies, a flat-rate compensation for the default damage that you may charge on B2B claims. In addition you can add a dunning fee for your actual effort such as postage and processing. The Dunning System calculates all of this transparently and itemises every entry in the cost breakdown.

The tone sets the mood, and it grows more official with each stage. Stage 1 is the friendly payment reminder with a 14-day deadline and no fees, stage 2 the firm first dunning notice with default interest and a dunning fee, stage 3 the final out-of-court notice threatening the judicial dunning procedure. After the last stage the tool shows you how it continues with an enforcement order and execution, instead of leaving you out in the rain.

For invoices that do not come from the invoicing suite there is the free-text dunning letter. You enter invoice number, date, amount, sender and recipient, choose the dunning stage and B2B or B2C, and the Dunning System generates a ready letter with a correct cost breakdown that you can copy, save as a text file or print. From within the invoicing suite the dunning notices are also recorded as linked documents.