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Stories Tagged ‘Invoice Finance’

‘Bank Forged my signature then told me to pay £1.2m’

This is the headline of an article in the Sunday Times on March 14th, 2021. The article can be read here

 

In summary, a high court judge found that Aldermore Bank had tried to enforce a personal guarantee that was not genuine. The Sunday Times advise that a High Court judge found that Lynch’s signature on the guarantee was not genuine, but “signed by a person at the bank”.

 

Roderick Lynch had entered in to an invoice finance agreement with Aldermore. His business, Ruskin Private Hire, provided transport for disabled children and vulnerable adults in London.

 

Mr Lynch was made bankrupt.

 

Aldermore were ordered to pay Lynch’s court costs estimated to be £430,000. Lynch claims that this was because Aldermore pursued him under the forged personal guarantee.

 

In my opinion, this fits in with many instances of poor behavior from Aldermore and in particular their invoice finance arm. It has been written about previously on this forum and can be viewed here There seems to be a common theme of not supporting businesses, profiteering when they can and rushing in to deals that they don’t understand. In rushing in to deals that they perhaps don’t understand, the consequence for their clients can be severe. This seems to be demonstrated with the failure of Ruskin Private Hire and the bankruptcy of Roderick Lynch. Another example of this lies in the registered charges against Canute Haulage Group Limited. You can see Aldermore made an entrance with an invoice finance facility which they quickly pulled. Sadly, the disruption caused to the business likely contributed to it’s ultimate demise, in my opinion.

 

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Invoice finance is now being offered by Investec Capital Solutions. This is after Investec Bank acquired Amicus Commercial Finance from the Amicus Group. Amicus had failed to secure a banking license as expected. As a result, Amicus undertook a strategic review across the group in order to reduce operational costs and ensure that its core short-term property lending business continued to grow. The sale of the invoice finance side of the business was after this failure. It must have been unsettling for staff and clients alike given that Amicus Commercial Finance was only established in 2015.

Invoice finance is typically provided by way of invoice discounting or factoring. It allows a business to access up to 100% of the gross value of outstanding invoices. It is a great source of working capital and smooths cash flow so you don’t need to worry about when customers pay late.

When considering which invoice finance provider to use you should consider 4 main areas:

1. Structure – if the facility is not structured properly it will not generate the cash you expect it to.

2. Pricing – the difference between the most expensive solution and the cheapest can be dramatic. It is also important to look beyond headline rates and consider total costs.

3. Service levels – they way you are treated by a lender is important. You are paying for a service and you deserve the best. Things such as stability, staff turnover and general attitude of the lender can make a big difference.

4. Security – ensure you understand what your liabilties are in terms of security requirements.

If you are looking for a factoring or invoice discounting facility why not undertake a complete market review using the simple 3 step form above. That way you can secure the most competitive terms in the market. Whatever your situation there is likely to be a lender that will meet your needs better than other invoice finance providers.

By using our expertise you can ensure not only that you get the best rates but also the best structure.

 

The permanent recruitment sector has historically been neglected by the invoice finance industry. There was a time when the industry would not finance perm recruitment companies.

So why was the perm recruitment industry neglected?

It was neglected because of the perceived risk involved in dealing with invoices that related to permanent placements. With temporary recruitment the rates are agreed, work is completed, timesheets are signed and invoices are raised. If the hours are multiplied by the agreed rates correctly there is very little that can be queried. In comparison, an invoice for a perm placement is raised when the candidate starts work and sometime before they have even started. What happens if the candidate does not show up on the first day? What happens if they walk out after their first week? What happens if the company finds they are not suitable and let’s the candidate go? Typically there are various rebates due depending on when they part company. As such there is no guarantee that invoices raised will be settled in full if at all.

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Invoice discounting has often been reserved for larger, well established businesses and smaller businesses have been forced to accept invoice factoring.

The good news is that invoice discounting can be accessed by smaller businesses.

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We often get asked to recommend the best invoice finance company. I thought I would look at what makes a good invoice finance company.

In part it is a case of horses for courses. Some lenders are well suited to small businesses while others are better suited to larger businesses. The same goes for different sectors, different geographic locations and different scenarios.

Common complaints with lenders surround poor service levels. I must admit in some cases it is simply because the lender has said no to a client. Sometimes this is justified and in other instances it just seems like a lazy answer rather than doing some work to solve a problem.

Some lenders genuinely pride themselves on top quality service levels and customer satisfaction. This however can be a double edged sword as the same lenders can be described as expensive in comparison to lenders who cut corners and provide a poor service.

Communication is a key factor. As an invoice finance broker I can fully appreciate this. It seems like the most basic concept in any business relationship but I am often left amazed at how many lenders simply fail to return calls or e-mails both with myself and clients.

They say that service is inseparable from the people that provide it. This means that staff within invoice finance companies need to be engaged and happy. This comes as a result of fair remuneration, good training, clear goals and a good environment to work in. Some lenders clearly provide this while I know that others simply don’t. It may be a bit of a generalisation but the lenders that treat their staff properly also seem to be the 0ones that treat their clients properly.

Invoice finance quotes can differ dramatically.

They can differ in different ways and for different reasons and it is important to compare like with like. We have touched on this elsewhere on this forum and this article is worth a read – http://www.invoicefactoringforum.com/invoice-factoring-quotes-comparison/

However, when considering any invoice finance quote is is important to understand the following:

  • what service is actually being offered. Please remember that a full factoring offer that includes a credit control service and bad debt protection will cost less than a finance only facility.
  • have you considered total costs? different companies charge different fees beyond the headline rates of the service fee and the discounting fee. Some service fees are all inclusive while other companies charge for nearly everything on top of the service fee.
  • What is the quality of the service? Remember you get what you pay for.
  • Is the structure of the facility right for your company? If not then no matter how cheap it is you are wasting your money.

I feel it is important to find the right structure and then properly evaluate total costs to allow a genuine comparison.

 

I see a lot of clients who insist from the outset that they want an invoice discounting facility but most of them don’t actually know why.

Invoice discounting is available and importantly it is more readilily available than it used to be. However, factoring is the easier facility to obtain is it represents lower risk to the lender.

So what can invoice discounting offer?

Confidentiality – yes invoice discounting can be confidential but some companies insist on a disclosed facility. Factoring, however, can also be a confidential facility or a disclosed facility.

Control – some companies prefer to keep the credit control in-house rather than outsourcing to a factoring company. So invoice discounting allows a business to maintain control over the credit control function. However, so does a CHOCS facility which is a type of factoring facility.

Cost – many feel that invoice discounting is cheaper. Certainly for larger businesses I would agree. However, at lower levels of turnover there is probably not a lot in it.

Rather than deciding that invoice discounting is what you want I think it is important to consider the structure of your facility, the characteristics you want and then the costs of such a facility.

When speaking with clients we are often asked to source invoice discounting facilities on their behalf. When I press the prospect on why they want invoice discounting it is often because they feel the facility is confidential and they want to retain control of their credit control.

I think traditionally invoice discounting was confidential but I am seeing more and more lenders insisting upon disclosure and disclosed invoice discounting seems to be more common.

If you are looking to retain control of your credit control then invoice discounting whether confidential or disclosed will meet your needs. You may also consider a CHOCS facility which is essentially factoring but allows you to do your own credit control. CHOCS stands for Client Handles Own Collections and just to confuse matters it can also be disclosed or confidential. Typically a CHOCS facility will be more readily available than an invoice discounting facility because the criteria are less stringent.

If you are looking for a confidential facility then obviously a confidential invoice discounting facility will meet your requirements. However, you may also wish to consider confidential CHOCS which is more readily available and also confidential factoring where credit control is done by the factoring company but in the name of your business.