As a debt collector with a good few years’ experience commercial working at the coal face in business to business, Insolvency and Invoice Finance before moving fully into credit management and debt recovery and dispute resolutions: the one constant is the need for good compliant and up to date terms and conditions.
I cannot say it any clearer than this – Terms and Conditions could save your business and your livelihood one day, so why do so many micro and small businesses not have them?
Could it be that you see them as only being needed for, or used by big businesses? Perhaps they are seen as being the annoying little pop-ups when purchasing or signing up to something online and not something used for lower value transactions and one-off deals.
Or it could be that you believe it to be cost inhibitive and the time spent having them drafted and then updating them as certain regulations change and the costs or service delivery change. Terms and conditions do not have to be expensive but the consequences of not having them can very expensive. It is true to say that some terms and conditions can be very long and have some complex terminology, but these are more often that not seen as service level agreements or contracts – a simplified version can offer the comfort to both the supplier and debtor.
A significant number will believe that “trust” is the important factor that gets them the business, and there is some truth in that but trust to deliver a good service and do what you say you will do is the trust that matters.
Having good terms and conditions in place can help you get the right customers; they add a layer of professionalism and are there to protect both you and your customer.
The half way house of not having any terms and conditions is a dangerous place, for those that coy off another business or attempt to pull some off the internet or more recently from CHATGPT or similar they run the danger of not getting them right for the country they are in or to cover off the specific issues that arise from the business line they are in. How would you know unless someone tells you or until you must rely on them when you are claimed against or stuck in a heavy dispute.
There are some very important things that your terms and conditions cover, and I am not just talking when you should be paid:
Refunds
Cancellation and or termination charges
Expenses and disbursements – additional costs
Data Privacy
Disputes – how to notify them, the time limit to notify them and where to notify them to
Price increases
Delivery costs
Guarantees and Warranties
Late payment terms which should incorporate the late Payment of Commercial Debts Act (amended) 2013 which stipulates 8% interest above the current Bank of England base rate plus compensation and reasonable third-party recovery costs. It is always a good idea to stress clearly that you will pass any third-party costs incurred recovering the debt onto your customer.
Court jurisdiction if any legal dispute arises.
It is also now important to establish whether you are dealing with a Limited Company or PLC as Sole Traders and Partnerships have similar rights to consumers when it comes to making final demands for payment and there are slightly different terms you need in place.
You should also think about where you need to put your terms and conditions which MUST be agreed before you deliver any goods, set foot on site or deliver a service. It is great having them on your website but not if all your orders some in over the phone or some by email, some perhaps via an app. Putting a payment reminder on an invoice is exactly that a reminder it is not binding, and putting your terms on the back of an invoice is also just a reminder not binding.
Contracts which terms and conditions are, can of course be verbal, but who believes who? Who remembers what? Ever played “HE said she said”. They can also be implied by conduct, but it makes everything much harder. We can also pull the basics of an agreement from whats app messages, text and emails even voice notes.
The simple truth is that having terms and conditions that you understand, and use makes things much easier for everyone all the way around, they strengthen your case if you must take something to court, they help debt collectors like me help you better.
Invest in your business by getting good terms and conditions put in place or having exiting ones reviewed and remember that when a Solicitor drafts them you have the comfort of their professional indemnity insurance if something goes wrong – we can review your terms and conditions and we can arrange to have a set drafted for you all you have to do is ask.
www.steeryourbusiness.com/magazine/may-jun-2026
