Save content
Have you found this content useful? Use the button above to save it to your profile.

And you thought they weren't struggling?

4th Jul 2011
Save content
Have you found this content useful? Use the button above to save it to your profile.

Independence Day! Best Wishes to all over there from over here and continued good wishes for prosperous business. 

A typical, but slightly less patriotic Monday morning here in the office: Piles of post, plenty of surprises and an urgent request for a meeting with a long established client - and he's coming here.

Having been involved in asset finance / refinance for 20 odd years then rarely do surprises come our way. Most corners that customers find themselves in can be negotiated around with one or two styles of agreement - a bit of unencumbered kit and hey ho! = solution.

Today, however, and totally out of the blue, whilst discussing a finance arrangement, the comment "oh, I only owe about £15K to the PAYE but that's not why I'm here" landed like a hand grenade. Following on from a previous conversation with an independent invoice discounter, who informed me that over 70% of his referred customers are in arrangement with the VAT office, we got to thinking.

Hitherto, I wouldn`t have asked about VAT / PAYE arrears during the financial wellbeing checks but perhaps I'm missing an opportunity? Are we all?

We strive for a service / facility edge but are we too selectively judgemental? Now I'm aware that a third party fund provider of all types of equipment finance / refinance (effectively unsecured, albeit with an asset) and a Fee Finance provider, are only party to public financials (and therefore dated) unless invited in for consideration, whereas a close working practice will be much more up to speed. However, do we all know our clients as well as possible during these pinch points?

Sorry to bang along the theme of lending / fee finance but with avenues of cash constantly being called upon is it time to put the stethoscope to the chests of a few more of our long established and, on the face of it, healthy clients.

Are we denying access to funding through our own selectivity? I think I have been.

www.feesynergyuk.com

Tags:

You might also be interested in

Replies (1)

Please login or register to join the discussion.

PJ
By paulgrca.net
08th Jul 2011 13:22

Financial Wellbeing Check

What is the point if you do not ask about arrears of VAT/Tax etc?

Seems pretty obvious to me one of the fist things you should be checking.

Thanks (0)