| | Customers - Credit Control |
| Description | Credit control is an essential part of any business and helps you to effectively manage your cash flow and avoid late payments and bad debts. The customer credit control options make it easy to manage your outstanding debtors by: - Viewing transaction histories and aged balances for your accounts
- Recording contacts for customers
- Making payments
- Disputing items
- Handling bad debts
- Writing off invoices
The credit control options also link closely with the Cash flow option, updating your cash flow forecast with any promised payments and amounts paid. Let's take a closer look at the options available.  TIP: You can also manage payments due to your suppliers using the Manage Payments option.
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| Resolution | To find out more, select the options below:  NOTE: This option is available in Sage 50 Accounts Standard and Professional. If you'd like to speak to someone about upgrading, you can contact our sales team on 0191 479 5955 (UK) or 014 470 806 (Republic of Ireland). Alternatively, if you'd prefer us to call you back about upgrading, submit your details >>
- Click Customers then select the Chase debt view.
The Chase debt option is an alternative view to the customers list and displays a list of customer accounts with a summary of their current credit position as follows:
| A/C | The customer's account reference. | | Name | The customer's name. | | Inactive | Indicates which accounts are marked as inactive. | | Contact Name | The customer's contact name. | | Telephone | The customer's telephone number. | | Overdue | The value of any invoices that have become overdue. NOTE: This value includes any transactions that will become due within the period specified. Sage 50 Accounts v28.0 and below - If the Payment Due Days on the customer record is set to zero, the default period for invoices becoming overdue is 30 days.
Sage 50 Accounts v28.1 and above - If the Payment Due Days on the customer record is set to zero, you can choose whether invoices become overdue after 0 days or 30 days. | | Balance | The balance currently outstanding, including the value of any invoices that are due in the number of days specified in the due in XX day(s) box. | | Payment Method | The customer's normal payment method as stated in the Bank tab of the customer record. | | Promised Payment | If a promised payment is recorded for the customer in the Communications area, a Y appears in this column. | | Follow up | The date of any follow-up action that you need to take. |
You can configure the columns that appear in this window to suit your requirements. To add or remove columns, right-click a column heading and select or clear the columns as required. - If required, to amend the period showing in the credit control list, enter the relevant figure into the due in XX day(s) box.
- Click Close.
NOTE: This option is available in Sage 50 Accounts Standard and Professional. If you'd like to speak to someone about upgrading, you can contact our sales team on 0191 479 5955 (UK) or 014 470 806 (Republic of Ireland). Alternatively, if you'd prefer us to call you back about upgrading, submit your details >> - Click Customers then click Chase debt and select the required customer account then click Communications.
- To add a new communication click Add entry, or to to amend an existing communication, select the communication you want to change then click Edit entry and complete the Customer Communications History window as follows:
| Communication Details | Enter general information about the contact, such as the type of contact, the date and a contact name. You can record the contact type as Telephone, Letter / Fax / e-Mail or Meeting. NOTE: If you're amending an existing contact, you can't change the overall type of the contact, for example, you can't change a telephone contact into a letter. | | Contact Details | When recording a telephone call, the telephone number from the customer record updates the Telephone box. If you use the Windows Phone Dialler, to dial the number click the finder button  to the right of the telephone number. TIP: By default, Telephone is selected for all new contacts. | | Telephone Timer | Use this area to record the duration of a telephone call. When the call begins click Start and the timer counts until you click Stop at the end of the call. - Start displays the start time of the conversation
- Stop displays the end time of the conversation
- Duration shows the length of the call in hours, minutes and seconds
| | Communication Result | Use this area to record the outcome of the contact. From the Outcome drop-down list choose the required outcome for the contact.
If you choose Payment Promised, in Promised Amount, enter the amount promised then enter the due date. If promised payments already exist, the Follow up column in the Chase debt view is updated with the date of the most recent contact with an attached promised payment.
When you record promised payment details the promised payment appears in the Bank accounts - Cash flow window.
If required, you can also specify a follow-up date, choose the required account status and the required credit position. | - To generate an invoice for the contact click Invoice and enter the required details for the invoice.
- For telephone contacts, Sage 50 Accounts calculates the chargeable time using the information in the Telephone Timer area of the window. For other contact types or if you did not use the timer to record the duration of a call, you must enter the chargeable time manually.
- Click Save then click Close.
- Click Customers then select the Chase debt view and select the account you want to view the transaction history for then click Activity.
- To enter a transaction range click the Show drop-down list and choose the appropriate range or, to enter your own dates, choose Custom Range.
- Click Close.
- Click Customers then select the Chase debt view and select the account for which you want to view aged balances then click Aged debt.
- Enter the required dates then click OK.
- To determine the ageing periods, click Settings then click Customer Defaults and click the Ageing tab.
- Use the following options as required:
| Detailed | Shows the account's detailed aged balances. | | Print List | Prints the list of aged balances. | | To Excel | Sends the list of aged balances to excel. | | Graph tab | Shows the aged balances in a graphical format. | - Click Close.
NOTE: This option is available in Sage 50 Accounts and Professional. If you'd like to speak to someone about upgrading, you can contact our sales team on 0191 479 5955 (UK) or 014 470 806 (Republic of Ireland). Alternatively, if you'd prefer us to call you back about upgrading, submit your details >> Set up and amend the dispute reason codes - Click Settings then click Configuration and click the Dispute Reasons tab
Flag a transaction in dispute - Click Customers then click Chase debt and click Disputes.
- Click the A/C drop-down then click the required customer and click OK.
- Select the transaction you want to mark as disputed then click Dispute.
- Click the Reason code drop-down and choose the reason for the dispute then click OK.
- To remove the disputed status from a transaction, select the transaction then click Dispute.
- Click Save then click Close.
Set up finance rates Before you can apply credit charges to your customers, to set up the finance rates. - Click Settings then click Configuration and click Terms tab.
- In the Customer Finance Rates section click Add.
- Enter the start Date applying for the finance rate.
- Enter the Base rate percentage and any Additional percentage rate,
- Click OK then click Apply.
You must also flag the customer record to be able to apply credit charges: - Open the required Customer record then click the Credit Control tab.
- Select the Can charge credit check box then click Save.
Apply credit charges - Click Customers then click Chase debt and click Credit charges.
- A message may appear advising that you can't use this option for customers with a foreign currency, to proceed click Yes or, to return to the Credit Control window, click No.
- Click Backup and complete the backup as required then click Next.
- Enter the Date and department for the credit charge transactions.
- If required, to include disputed items in the credit charge calculation select Include Disputed Items check box then click Next.
- Select the customer accounts to be charged then click Next.
- Select the transactions to be included in the credit charge calculation then click Next and click Post.
- To print a summary of the charges select Print Summary.
- To post the charges without printing a summary select Exit without printing summary.
- Click Exit.
NOTE: You can only use this wizard to write off bad debts if your use the Standard VAT scheme. If you use the VAT Cash Accounting scheme, you must write off debts manually. For more information about this, please refer to the following guide. For further information about the Write Off, Refund and Returns wizard, please refer to the following guide. - Click Customers then click Chase debt and click Write offs & returns.
- Select the write off type then click the Select Account drop-down and click the required customer account and click OK.
- Click Next and click the transactions that you want to write off and click Next. If you select Customer Invoice Refunds, Refund Credit Notes or Payment on Account Refund you must also choose a bank account from the Select Bank Account drop-down list.
- Enter the Date and Additional Reference then click Next.
- Check the details are correct then click Post.
NOTE: This option is available in Sage 50 Accounts Standard and Professional. If you'd like to speak to someone about upgrading, you can contact our sales team on 0191 479 5955 (UK) or 014 470 806 (Republic of Ireland). Alternatively, if you'd prefer us to call you back about upgrading, submit your details >>
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