Yes, most paid invoicing software sends automatic payment reminders on the dates you set, and the reminder timing matters as much as the sending: an invoice chased the day it goes overdue is paid weeks faster than one chased at week three. This guide covers how automatic reminders work, how to schedule them, and what to do when the software’s nudge is not enough.
- Yes, paid invoicing tools send reminders automatically at dates you set.
- Standard sequence: nudge on due date, follow-up at day 7, formal at day 14.
- Escalate to statutory interest and compensation on business debts.
- Free tiers often lack reminders, the main getting-paid gap in free software.
- Keep the tone of the first reminder friendly; most late payers just forgot.
How automatic reminders work
The mechanism is simple: you set a reminder rule against your payment terms, and the software emails the customer when an invoice passes the threshold unpaid.
| Trigger | What gets sent | Tone |
|---|---|---|
| 1–3 days before due date | Friendly heads-up that payment is due | Optional, softens the due date |
| On the due date | Payment-due-today notice | Neutral |
| 1 day overdue | First reminder: assume oversight | Polite |
| 7 days overdue | Firmer follow-up, restating amount and due date | Direct |
| 14 days overdue | Formal notice: terms, interest entitlement | Factual |
| 14+ days overdue | Statement of account, interest and compensation applied | Final |
The software sends these without you touching anything. Most unpaid invoices are oversights, so the day-one reminder alone collects a large share of late invoices, and it arrives without the awkwardness of you chasing personally.
What a good reminder sequence looks like
Write each step once; the software repeats it forever:
- The nudge. “Just a reminder that invoice #0142 for £1,240 was due yesterday.” One line, no drama. Copyable reminder emails cover the wording for each stage.
- The follow-up. Restate the amount, the due date and the original invoice reference, and ask for a payment date.
- The formal notice. Cite your payment terms, state that statutory interest and compensation now accrue, and give a final date.
- The statement. When more than one invoice is open, a customer statement showing the full position outperforms another single-invoice email.
Tone rule: the first two are written as if the customer simply forgot, because most did. Escalation starts when the record shows they did not.
What to check before relying on reminders
Reminders only work if the setup underneath them is right:
- Due dates must be stated on the invoice. A reminder cannot run from a due date the invoice never showed: payment terms wording covers how to state it.
- Correct contact. Reminders sent to a generic info@ inbox vanish. Store the accounts-payable address per client.
- Payments marked promptly. The reminder only knows an invoice is unpaid because your records say so, reconcile payments as they land.
- Escalation you will honour. If the sequence promises interest at day 14, be ready to add late payment interest, a sequence that never escalates trains customers to ignore it.
Can the software charge interest automatically?
Reminder emails can reference your late-payment rights, but the interest itself is claimed by you: it is added as a new invoice line, calculated from the days overdue and the base rate. Some tools let you schedule an interest line automatically once an invoice passes its due date; others leave it manual. Either way, the entitlement is yours under the Late Payment of Commercial Debts (Interest) Act 1998 (8% above the Bank of England base rate plus a fixed £40, £70 or £100 compensation sum on business-to-business debts) and the software’s job is making sure the claim is never forgotten. See late payment compensation by debt size for the fixed sums.
Free tools and reminders
The reminder feature is the usual divide between free and paid:
- Most free tiers send no automatic reminders. The chase is manual, and manual chases are the ones that stop happening in busy weeks.
- If you use a free tool, replicate the sequence with calendar reminders: due date plus one, plus seven, plus fourteen.
- If reminders are the feature you would actually pay for, a focused paid tool is the cheapest route: see what invoicing software costs and whether free software is enough.
Etiquette that keeps customers
Automation does not mean hostility. The settings that keep relationships intact:
- Pause reminders on disputed invoices. A reminder arguing with a customer about a disputed invoice escalates it; resolve the dispute first.
- Keep the first reminder soft even when you could be firm, the day-one email is read by humans who forgot.
- Exclude customers you are mid-negotiation with, and re-enable once the arrangement is agreed.
- Thank fast payers. A one-line thank-you on payment keeps the next invoice equally prompt.
FAQ
Can invoicing software send automatic due date reminders?
Yes, most paid invoicing tools send reminder emails automatically at triggers you set: on the due date, a few days overdue, and at escalation intervals. You write each template once and the software sends it for every overdue invoice.
When should a first reminder be sent?
One to three days after the due date. Earlier feels nagging for an honest oversight; later lets the debt drift. The day-after-due-date nudge collects most late invoices on its own.
Do free invoicing tools send reminders?
Most do not, automatic reminders are one of the features that usually sits behind paid tiers. With a free tool, set your own calendar reminders at due date plus one, seven and fourteen days.
What should a payment reminder email say?
The invoice number, the amount, the original due date, how to pay, and (at later stages) a factual note that statutory interest is accruing. Firm and polite, never apologetic and never threatening.
Can I add late payment interest automatically?
The interest claim itself is a new invoice line you add when the debt persists, some tools automate the calculation. The right to charge statutory interest (8% above base rate plus a fixed compensation sum) exists from the day after the due date on business debts.
How do I stop reminders annoying good customers?
Keep the first reminder soft, pause sequences on disputed invoices, and mark payments promptly. A customer who pays on day 5 after a day-1 reminder is not annoyed. They are informed.
One last thing
The reminder sequence works because it removes you from the awkward part: the software chases on day one, in a neutral tone, every time, and the chase never depends on you remembering, or on the awkwardness of texting a client about money. Set the sequence once; it collects for you every month after.