BUSINESSES in East Lancashire are ‘too nice to customers’ when chasing outstanding bills.

That is the message from debt recovery solicitors Woodcocks, Haworth and Nuttall, who said firms in the area are hampering their growth prospects.

Associate solicitor Sara Beaumont said: “It’s a difficult balance for those in charge of collecting debt between keeping the customer happy, and rightly collecting money for products, or services.

“More often than not, the business will be too lenient and nice when, in fact, they are legally entitled to get paid according to the terms of their agreement.

“It’s not uncommon to see businesses across East Lancashire wait months to get paid, and this places huge pressure on the day-to- day operations of the business, especially as wages need paying every month, and bank borrowing is hard to come by.”

The firm has launched a new service which aims to boost the cashflow of businesses by helping them to get paid more quickly.

The new service offers clients a free credit control audit by specialist solicitors, and a fixed fee menu of services for non-disputed debt.