Unpaid accountancy fees? Get a binding decision in 10 business days
For accountants and bookkeepers whose company or business clients have stopped paying, or are disputing the bill.
How can an accountant recover unpaid fees from a company client without going to court?
Refer the fee dispute to Dispute Neutral. If the client agrees, or your engagement letter includes our clause, an independent lawyer decides what is owed on the documents and issues a binding decision within 10 business days of the matter being ready, for a fixed fee from £650 + VAT.
Disputes we decide
Common reasons payment stops in your sector.
Scope creep
"That wasn’t in the fixed fee." Extra work at year end, catch-up bookkeeping or extra filings the client says it never agreed to pay for.
HMRC enquiries and extra work
Time spent on an enquiry, a late filing or a restructuring, billed on top of the usual fee.
Quality complaints
A client who is unhappy with the work and withholds the whole fee rather than raising a specific problem.
Clients changing accountant
Fees left unpaid when a client moves to another firm.
Clients in financial difficulty
A company under pressure that stops paying its advisers first.
Fee notes run up over time
Monthly or quarterly fees that have built up into a significant sum.
Why use Dispute Neutral
- Your engagement letter is already the evidence: it sets out the scope and the fee.
- Fixed fee from £650 + VAT, so chasing a £6,000 bill does not cost half of it in legal fees.
- Private: no public court case with a client, and no reputational risk for your practice.
- Decided on the documents by an independent lawyer, with no hearing and no need for a solicitor.
- Statutory late payment interest still runs on what turns out to be owed.
Both businesses must agree to use Dispute Neutral, either through a clause in your terms or once the dispute has arisen. How to ask them.
If the client company is in financial difficulty
Once a company enters administration or liquidation, we cannot help: the insolvency process takes over. But if the dispute is referred to Dispute Neutral before that happens, you are likely to get a decision much more quickly than by any other route.
That gives you an independently decided, binding figure for what you are owed. It puts you in a stronger position if the client later goes into administration or liquidation, because your claim (proof of debt) is already established rather than still in dispute.
- Example
- A company client disputes £8,500 of year-end and HMRC enquiry fees. The Dispute Neutral fee is £900 + VAT, fixed, and the decision is due within 10 business days of both sides’ documents being in.
- Amount in dispute
- £8,500
- Dispute Neutral fee
- £900 + VATfixed; can be split 50:50
- Decision
- 10 business daysfrom when both sides’ documents are in
Settle future disputes before they start
Add our clause to your engagement letter and terms of business. Then, if a fee is ever disputed, the client has already agreed how it will be decided.
Refer your clients’ disputes too
You often hear about your clients’ business disputes first. Become a Dispute Neutral referral partner and earn a fixed commission for every referred case that goes ahead and is paid. Your clients can also receive a discount through your referral code.
Email resolutions@disputeneutral.com to set up a referral code.
Questions
Can I use Dispute Neutral for fees owed by a sole trader client?
Yes, if the sole trader engaged you for their business. Dispute Neutral decides disputes between businesses, including sole traders acting in the course of business. Personal tax work for an individual acting in a private capacity is a consumer matter, which we do not currently accept.
What if the client says the work was poor?
Both sides set out their case in writing with the documents: the engagement letter, the work done, correspondence and invoices. The neutral decides what is owed. Matters that need detailed expert evidence beyond straightforward documents are not suitable.
The client company looks like it may fail. Is it worth it?
Act before any administration or liquidation begins. A quick binding decision gives you an established figure for what you are owed, which puts you in a better position if insolvency follows.
How much does it cost?
One fixed fee set by the amount in dispute: £650 + VAT up to £4,000, £900 up to £10,000, £1,200 up to £25,000 and £1,500 up to £150,000. For example, a £8,500 dispute costs £900 + VAT. The fee can be split 50:50.
Does the other business have to agree?
Yes. Both businesses must agree, either through a Dispute Neutral clause in your terms or once the dispute has arisen. We provide a ready-made invitation you can send, and free clauses you can add to your terms so future disputes come to us automatically.
Is the decision binding?
Yes. Both businesses sign an agreement to accept the decision before the case starts. It is final and binding except for fraud or manifest error. If it is not followed, it can be enforced; depending on the matter, by applying straight for summary judgment or serving a statutory demand.
How long does it take?
The decision is issued within 10 business days of the matter being ready, meaning both businesses have signed and uploaded their documents. There is no hearing.
Useful guides
- Recovering unpaid professional feesFor accountants, architects, engineers, agencies, consultants and freelancers.Article
- Statutory interest and compensation on unpaid invoicesWhat you can add to an overdue invoice automatically, with no court order.Article
- Letter before action for unpaid invoicesWhat to include, how to send it and what to do if it is ignored.Guide
- Add Dispute Neutral to your contractsFree clauses for your business terms, so any dispute comes straight to an independent decision.Clauses
Get a binding decision in 10 business days
Fixed fees from £650 + VAT. Both businesses agree, send their documents, and an independent lawyer decides.
Prevent the next one: add our free clause to your terms of business.