England and Wales B2B Debt Recovery: Compare Agencies, Solicitors and Fees

For a UK business chasing an undisputed invoice from another business, Advocate may be an option; Thomas Higgins offers solicitor-led progression with client approval at each stage; and Forbes Collect handles pre-litigation collection but sends defended claims for separate solicitor review.[3][4][5]

None of the three provider pages gives all the monetary and contractual information needed to compare total cost, so obtain written quotations and terms before choosing.[3][4][5]

Compare eligibility, control and charging

Advocate

• Eligibility and disputes: Advocate excludes contractual disputes, debtors in liquidation or administration, cases already issued in court with a CCJ obtained, commercial loans, commercial rent, non-UK parties and several other categories.[3]
• Creditor control: Its page does not publish stage-by-stage approval rights, cancellation terms or the creditor’s control over court escalation.[3]
• Charging: Advocate says its service is free to the creditor because the debtor pays its fee under late-payment legislation.[3] That legislation sets fixed recovery sums and allows reasonable recovery costs, so ask what happens to Advocate’s fee if the debtor does not pay it.[1]

Thomas Higgins

• Eligibility and disputes: Thomas Higgins describes its service as recovering legal debts owed by one business to another.[4]
• Creditor control: The client decides whether to proceed at each successive stage.[4]
• Charging: It advertises fixed fees rather than commission-based charging; ask for the fee schedule.[4]
• Enforcement: Thomas Higgins describes its own route using County Court bailiffs for debts of £600 or under and High Court enforcement above £600. This is its published service policy, not the full legal rule on court choice.[4]

Forbes Collect

• Eligibility and disputes: Forbes Collect undertakes pre-litigation collection but transfers defended claims outside the service for solicitor review; its insolvency route requires there to be no known dispute.[5]
• Creditor control: Forbes describes separate pre-litigation, County Court, judgment and enforcement stages.[5]
• Charging: Forbes says it adds claimed interest and compensation, but its collection fees, VAT treatment, stage-approval rights and cancellation terms are not published.[5]

Other service differences include:

• Thomas Higgins provides a portal and iOS app for instructions, status monitoring and case updates.[4]
• Forbes uses Companies House or insolvency searches, a pre-litigation letter and chasing by telephone, email and text.[5]
• Advocate will not act where the creditor or debtor is registered outside the UK, while Forbes limits its described insolvency route to debtors in England or Wales.[3][5]

Separate statutory recovery costs from service fees

The amount sought from the debtor is not automatically the same as the collector’s or solicitor’s fee. GOV.UK says a business may charge a fixed sum for recovering a late commercial payment on top of interest, once for each payment: £40 for a debt up to £999.99, £70 for £1,000 to £9,999.99, and £100 for £10,000 or more.[1] A supplier may also claim reasonable costs each time it tries to recover the debt.[1]

Statutory interest on a business-to-business debt is 8% plus the Bank of England base rate, but it cannot be claimed if the contract sets a different rate.[6] Check the contract before assuming the statutory rate applies.

These are amounts claimed from the debtor. They are not the same as the collector’s or solicitor’s fee, so compare each provider’s fee with what the law lets you add to the debt.[1][3]

GOV.UK refers to one fixed charge for each payment, while Forbes describes compensation per invoice.[1][5] If a contract involves several invoices or instalments, ask the provider how it will calculate the fixed sums it claims.

Keep control of escalation and enforcement

Agree written approval points before work moves beyond pre-litigation collection. Thomas Higgins expressly says the client decides whether to proceed at each stage, while equivalent stage-approval provisions do not appear on the Advocate or Forbes pages.[3][4][5]

Escalation may not produce payment. Forbes warns that a court claim may remain unpaid, the debtor may defend it, and enforcement may fail because of the debtor’s assets or finances.[5] Forbes also says insolvency action can be costly, damage a commercial relationship or be set aside where the debtor has an arguable defence.[5]

Before approving a paid stage, confirm its cost, whether express approval is required, who handles a defence and what evidence suggests enforcement could produce payment.

Do not use FCA status as a shortcut

FCA status alone does not settle whether a provider suits an ordinary company-to-company invoice. In the CONC 7 rules on arrears, default and recovery, “customer” means an individual from whom payment is sought, including someone pursued mistakenly or wrongly.[2]

For firms within scope, CONC requires appropriate arrears and default procedures, fair treatment of vulnerable customers, forbearance and due consideration for customers in or approaching arrears, and reasonable steps to make repayment arrangements sustainable.[2] Because those rules are framed around individuals, ask a provider which of its services fall under its FCA permissions and which do not.

What to confirm with each provider

Request a written quotation and full engagement terms before instruction, covering:

• For every provider: Confirm the total fee in pounds, VAT treatment, the amount payable if recovery fails, the sum to be claimed from the debtor and the basis for claiming it.
• Advocate: Confirm stage approvals, control over court escalation, cancellation rights, VAT treatment, the exact debtor-paid fee calculation and evidence supporting any performance claim.[3]
• Thomas Higgins: Confirm whether the particular dispute is eligible, the monetary fee schedule, VAT treatment, minimum debt, geographic limits, contract duration, cancellation terms and any recovery-rate evidence.[4]
• Forbes Collect: Confirm collection fees, VAT treatment, the minimum debt for ordinary collection, stage approvals, cancellation terms, contract duration and any recovery-rate evidence.[5]
• If a defence is possible: Confirm who reviews it, whether the matter moves to another service and what further charges could arise. Forbes says defended claims leave Forbes Collect for solicitor review.[5]

Check the enforcement route before instruction

For England and Wales, GOV.UK says that for a judgment debt between £600 and £5,000, a creditor can use either a County Court or High Court route. The guidance identifies restrictions for Consumer Credit Act debts. Confirm the debt type, judgment amount, transfer procedure, court charges and enforcement fees with the solicitor before authorising action.[7]

Agree who checks whether the proposed route is permitted and suitable, and who approves each additional fee. A provider’s operational threshold should not be presented as a rule requiring every debt above £600 to go to the High Court.

References

1. Late commercial payments: charging interest and debt recovery: Claim debt recovery costs on late payments – GOV.UK (gov.uk)
2. FCA Handbook – CONC 7 Arrears, default and recovery (including repossessions) (fca.org.uk)
3. Free Commercial Debt Recovery | Debt Collection Agency UK | Advocate (debtadvocate.co.uk)
4. Commercial Debt Recovery Solicitors | Thomas Higgins (thomashiggins.com)
5. Small Business Debt Collection – Small Business Debt Recovery | Forbes Solicitors (forbessolicitors.co.uk)
6. Interest on late commercial payments – GOV.UK (gov.uk)
7. Enforce a judgment — GOV.UK (gov.uk)