After more than 25 years in debt recovery, we know which Sydney industries are most commonly affected by unpaid invoices.

• Construction and subcontractors across the city’s growth corridors. Master Builders NSW reports 1,540 NSW construction businesses entered external administration in 2025/26, with construction representing 24.5% of all insolvencies nationally that year. We regularly handle overdue progress claims for subcontractors and suppliers. See our construction debt recovery page.

• Wholesale, manufacturing and logistics across Western Sydney and the M4/M7 corridors, where 30-day and 60-day terms often stretch well past due.

• Professional services in the CBD, including consultancies, agencies and accounting firms with unpaid fee invoices.

• Small business B2B invoices across every postcode in NSW.

The scale of the late-payment problem isn't just anecdotal. The Payment Times Reporting Regulator's January 2026 update shows average payment time to small business suppliers sits at 27.4 days, the 95th percentile stretches to 64 days, and only 68.2% of invoices are paid within 30 days. If your customers pay later than that, you're not alone and you're not being unreasonable to chase.

Once you place a file with us, the recovery process usually works as follows.

1. Placement and file review. You send us the invoice, contract, statement and any correspondence. We review the debt for age, evidence and likelihood of recovery.

2. First contact and letter of demand. We contact the debtor in writing and by phone within days, setting out what's owed and the timeframe to pay or respond.

3. Negotiated recovery. Most debts resolve at this stage, either as a lump sum or a payment arrangement we monitor for you.

4. Referral to E C Legal. If legal review or action may be appropriate, eCollect can refer the matter to eCollect’s associated legal firm, E C Legal. The established systems and processes between the two firms allow matter information and supporting data to be transferred in a format the solicitors can quickly understand and assess. eCollect staff are also trained in preparing matters for legal review. Legal advice and action are subject to E C Legal’s applicable costs and terms.

If you want the wider view, we've got a plain-English piece on how debt recovery works in Australia.

A letter of demand is a formal written notice that sets out the debt, the basis of the debt and a deadline to pay. It's not a court document. But it puts the debtor on notice and is often the moment a debt gets paid.

We follow the ACCC debt collection guidelines on conduct. That means telephone contact is capped at 3 calls a week or 10 a month, weekday calls between 7:30am and 9pm, weekend calls between 9am and 9pm, and no harassment, coercion, misleading or unconscionable conduct. Compliant recovery works better than pressure tactics, and it protects you as the creditor.

Our letter of demand template shows what this notice typically contains.

For most commercial placements, the commission is charged only when we recover funds for you. Where no money is recovered, there is no collection fee.

Legal steps are separate. If a matter needs to move to court, we quote the cost first and you decide before we take the step. You can also claim interest and reasonable recovery costs if your contract or invoice terms allow. Have a look at our debt recovery services for how the model fits different account sizes.

• Operating since 2000 under one ABN, with 10,000+ clients and $120M+ recovered.

• ISO 9001 certified and AFCA member (Australian Financial Complaints Authority).

• Established referral process to eCollect’s associated legal firm, E C Legal, where legal review or action may be appropriate.

• Sydney office at Level 6, 115 Pitt Street, with operators covering all of NSW.

• Named people on our staff page, not an anonymous call centre.

We also cover the rest of the country as part of our national debt collection service, with dedicated pages for Melbourne and Victoria and Brisbane and Queensland. If your debtor is interstate, place the file with the Sydney office and we handle it end to end.

Send us the invoice, the contract or terms if you have them, a recent statement of account, and any correspondence with the debtor. That's enough for us to appraise the debt and tell you the likely path to recovery.

The Debt Terminator appraisal is free and there's no obligation to place the file after it. The appraisal does not include legal advice or mean that any referral, opinion, assessment or legal action from E C Legal will be free. If you'd rather speak to someone first, contact our Sydney team at Level 6, 115 Pitt Street.

General information only, not legal advice on your specific matter.

NSW Local Court, civil jurisdiction

NSW District Court, about the court

NSW Limitation Act 1969

ACCC debt collection rules

Payment Times Reporting Regulator, January 2026 update

Master Builders NSW, construction insolvencies