Late payment is the worst part of running a trades business. Mucka's job is to make chasing easy enough that you actually do it, instead of leaving it for a day that never comes.
When an invoice goes overdue
The status changes from sent to overdue the day after the due date passes. The invoice gets a red badge on the list and shows up in Mucka's daily summary so you know to act.
Ask Mucka
The fastest path:
"Chase the Walker invoice."
"Send a reminder to everyone with overdue invoices."
For one client, Mucka drafts the reminder email and shows it for your approve. For multiple, Mucka asks you to confirm each one before sending, so you can skip any clients you've already spoken to in person.
Or use the chase button
From the Invoices page, any overdue invoice has a Chase button. On a phone, tap the invoice card to open it and Chase it is in the panel at the bottom. Either way Mucka opens the email window with:
- Subject: prefixed with "Reminder" so the client sees it's a chase
- Body: firm but friendly template with the amount, the original due date and how to pay
- Attachment: the original PDF, so they don't need to dig through their inbox
Edit the wording if you want a softer or firmer tone, then send.
How often to chase
There's no rule, but a sensible rhythm:
- First chase: a few days after the due date passes.
- Second chase: a week later, with "please get in touch if there's an issue".
- Third chase: two weeks after the first, with a clear next step ("I'll need to escalate this to a debt collector if it isn't settled by Friday").
Mucka tracks how many times you've chased each invoice. Worth checking before sending another one, so the same client doesn't get three reminders in two days.
When Mucka stops chasing on its own
There are two situations where chasing someone isn't just awkward, it's against the rules. Mucka takes those off you rather than leaving it to memory.
- The customer disputed the invoice. If they tell Mucka on a call that they don't accept the bill, that invoice drops out of chasing from that moment. No more cards, no more reminders. Chasing a debt somebody has formally disputed is the kind of thing that turns a disagreement into a legal problem, so Mucka stops and leaves it with you.
- The customer is under Breathing Space. That's the government's Debt Respite Scheme: when someone in serious debt gets a debt adviser involved, creditors have to leave them alone for a set period, usually 60 days. Not just phone calls, the whole thing, including taking money. Mucka won't raise a chase for them at all while the cover lasts, and it starts again by itself the day after it ends.
Telling Mucka about Breathing Space
Usually you'll hear about it on the phone, so the quickest way is to say so:
"Sarah Patel's got a debt adviser involved, breathing space until the 12th of October."
Mucka puts it on her record, drops any chase for her, and tells you what it's done. Give it the case reference too if the adviser gave you one, though it's fine without.
You can also do it from the customer's record. Open the client, and under Notes & flags there's a Record Breathing Space button — it only appears for customers who actually have something overdue, since that's the only time it's any use to you. Put in the date the adviser gave you and save.
Once it's on, their record shows how long is left and what it's stopping. If it gets withdrawn or you put it on the wrong customer, End early takes it straight off.
You're not writing the debt off. The invoice still stands, and chasing picks up again the day after the cover ends without you having to remember.
Both are checked twice, deliberately: once when the card would be raised, and again the second you tap to send. A card raised on Monday can sit until Friday, and things change in between. If a chase is blocked at that point, Mucka tells you who and why instead of quietly sending less than you asked for.
Someone asking not to be rung is different, and doesn't stop a chase. The reminder goes by email, which is also the only way to send them a link to pay.
When a client says "I've paid"
Don't take their word and mark it paid immediately. Check the bank, then Record the payment when it's actually landed. If they're sure they've paid but it hasn't arrived, ask for the date and reference so you can investigate.
What Mucka doesn't do (yet)
Some things on the roadmap that aren't here yet:
- Auto-chase. Mucka doesn't fire reminders on its own. Every chase needs your tap-to-approve. Coming as an opt-in setting.
- Tiered templates. First/second/final-notice templates with different tones. For now the standard template works for all stages, edit the wording per send.
- Debt-collection handoff. Manual today. Some owners use a third-party service for stubborn cases.
Common gotchas
- Client disputes the invoice. Don't chase further until it's resolved — and if they told Mucka that on a call, it has already stopped chasing that one for you. Have the conversation, then sort the invoice out either way.
- Wrong email. If reminders keep bouncing, the email on file is stale. Update it in Clients and tag the client as "needs new contact".
- Client always pays late. Tag them as slow payer on their client profile. Mucka uses the tag to chase earlier next time.