A practical playbook: early intervention, payment plans and de-escalation

Focus and scope#

This note is a practical playbook: how to run debt collection in a way that (i) improves recovery, (ii) avoids unnecessary escalation, and (iii) keeps communication fair. It is operational rather than legal.

As context: formal volumes are large (e.g., >3.3m payment orders in 2024). That is a strong signal to build the upstream process professionally. [BFS T 06.02.03.02]

1) Before the first contact: evidence and clarity (otherwise escalation gets expensive)#

Before you start collections work, clarify internally:

• Is the claim clean? service delivered, invoice correct, due date clear, contact person defined.

• Are documents accessible? contract/offer, delivery notes, acceptances, emails, terms and conditions, payment terms.

• Are there plausible objections? quality issues, delays, partial delivery, counterclaims.

If this foundation is missing, you get the classic pattern: lots of messaging, little progress — then formal enforcement — and then disputes about basic facts.

2) Communication sequence: short, respectful, clear#

Three elements work especially well in practice:

• Clear status: “Invoice X is overdue since date Y; amount Z; please respond by date.”

• Simple next step: “Pay / propose a plan / raise an objection with evidence.”

• De-escalating tone: no threats, no moralising — just structure.

A robust sequence is often better than daily nudges:

• Touch 1: friendly reminder + payment details + deadline.

• Touch 2 (shortly after): “Please confirm whether (a) paid, (b) payment plan, (c) objection.”

• Touch 3 (final deadline): announce the next formal step (without drama).

3) Payment plans: realistic, documented, with triggers#

Payment plans fail more often because of design than because of intent:

• Realistic: instalments must match actual liquidity; otherwise you only lose time.

• Documented: amount, dates, payment method, references, consequences on default.

• Triggers: what happens if a payment is missed (e.g., acceleration / next step).

Important: a payment plan is not “giving in” — it is recovery optimisation: better a predictable 80% than a disputed 0%.

4) Escalation logic: when formal enforcement makes sense (and when it does not)#

A clear escalation logic prevents two common mistakes:

• Escalate too early (unnecessary conflict, lost customers, avoidable costs)

• Escalate too late (liquidity gap, limitation/evidence risks, lower recoverability)

Practical criteria:

• No response despite clean communication → escalate.

• Repeated broken promises without plausible explanation → escalate.

• Substantive objection with evidence → clarify/resolve first, not “pressure”.

5) Roles & governance: collections is a team discipline#

Two anti-fragile principles:

• Clear ownership per debtor/case to avoid double communication and inconsistent commitments.

• Standard templates + case log to ensure fairness, quality and auditability.

Takeaway#

Good debt collection is not “hard” — it is precise: clean facts, respectful sequencing, realistic payment plans and a clear escalation logic. That improves recovery and reduces dispute cost. [BFS T 06.02.03.02]

References#

• BFS: Debt enforcement actions by canton (T 06.02.03.02), Excel download: https://dam-api.bfs.admin.ch/hub/api/dam/assets/34907025/master (retrieved 2026-01-23)

• opendata.swiss dataset: https://opendata.swiss/de/dataset/betreibungshandlungen-nach-kanton4

Regulatory notice#

This publication is provided for information purposes only and does not constitute legal, tax or investment advice. It is not an offer, solicitation or recommendation. It is directed solely at qualified investors in Switzerland and is not intended for U.S. persons.