QuotedPartAnswers · Updated 2026-10-30
A customer won't pay for parts I shipped: what can a small shop do?
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Start with a call and a written statement the day the invoice is late, stop shipping new work, and move step by step to a written demand, then collections or small claims. What you're fighting for is bigger than the invoice: on a 100-piece bracket order that cost $1,898.00 to make and sold for $2,467.00, writing the invoice off means you need $8,229.11 of new work at the same 23.1% margin just to get back to where you were. This is general information, not legal advice; a lawyer should read anything you send for a large amount.
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The steps, in order
1. Find out why. Call the person who ordered and the accounts payable contact. A disputed part, a missing PO number, a wrong invoice address and a company that is simply slow to pay are four different problems with four different fixes. Ask for a payment date and write it down.
2. Send a statement and a short written follow-up with the invoice, the PO number, the delivery receipt and the due date. Keep the tone plain and the dates exact. Email is fine; keep the record.
3. Stop shipping. Put the customer's open orders on hold and tell them why: "We'll resume as soon as the account is current." This is the strongest lever you have, and it costs the customer something right away.
4. Send a formal written demand with a deadline, 10 business days for instance, stating the amount, any interest or fee your terms allow and what you will do next. If your terms allow late fees or interest, apply them as written. Don't invent a rate you haven't published.
5. Escalate. Options include a collection agency (which takes a share of what it recovers), a letter from an attorney, small claims court for smaller amounts or a civil suit for larger ones. Small claims limits are set by each state, so check yours at your state court's site before deciding.
Leverage you may have
If you still hold the parts, you have the most leverage there is. Many states let a shop that has worked on goods keep them until paid, under a possessory lien for services on personal property. The details differ by state, so don't rely on this without checking the rule for your state. Once you've shipped, the parts are theirs and your claim is a debt.
Under the Uniform Commercial Code, which most states have adopted, a seller who discovers that a buyer is insolvent may stop delivery of goods in transit and, in some cases, reclaim goods delivered within a short window. Both are narrow and deadlines are short: call a lawyer the day you hear a customer has filed or closed.
If the customer is a business with a purchasing department, the person who gave you the PO often has no control over accounts payable. Ask them to push, and give them the invoice, the PO and the receipt so they can do it.
What it costs, and how to prevent it
Unpaid work is expensive in a way the invoice doesn't show. The order above has a cost of $1,898.00 and a 23.1% margin on the price. Lose the whole invoice and you need $1,898.00 ÷ 0.231 = $8,229.11 in new sales to replace the money, before collection costs and your own time.
Prevention is cheaper. Check a new customer before the first order (references, a credit application, a deposit on the first job), put payment terms, late fees and your right to stop work on the quote and acknowledgement, invoice the day you ship, and watch the aging report weekly. Don't let a customer's balance run past a limit you set in advance, and treat the first late payment as an alarm.
Sources and limits
Claims are dated where they can change. Product calculations are examples from the stated inputs, not a promise about a customer's quote. Competitor wording is attributed to the source shown.
- Order cost and price are from QuotedPart's pricing engine (US starting catalog, 30% markup, 100 brackets). Legal points are general descriptions, not legal advice; state laws on liens and small claims limits vary and were not verified here.
Questions
Can I charge interest?
Only on terms you stated before the sale, within what your state allows. Put the rate on the quote and invoice.
Should I sue for a small amount?
Small claims is built for it, usually cheap and without a lawyer. Weigh the amount against your time and whether the customer can pay.
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