The 12 ways tradesmen guarantee they won't get paid.

Agree it on a handshake. No written terms, no PO number.

The fix Written terms and a PO on every job, so the debt is provable before it exists.

Start work with no deposit and buy the materials out of your own account.

The fix Deposit and stage payments, so you are never funding someone else's cashflow.

Invoice late, invoice vaguely, and send it to whoever you last spoke to on site.

The fix Same-day invoicing, itemised, addressed to the person who actually pays it.

Send no statements, so their bookkeeper never sees your name in the pile.

The fix A monthly statement to accounts. Bookkeepers pay what is in front of them.

Wait sixty days before the first chase, by which time the debt has gone cold and their next cash cycle is funding someone louder.

The fix First chase inside 48 hours of the due date, while you are still the freshest thing on the desk.

Chase once, apologetically, then stop. You have now proved that ignoring you works.

The fix A sequence that never goes quiet and never gets shrill, on a fixed rhythm they can feel.

Keep taking new work from them while the old invoices sit there unpaid.

The fix A stop-work trigger agreed in advance, so it is policy rather than a row.

Never mention interest or compensation, so being late costs them nothing at all.

The fix Statutory interest and fixed compensation added automatically at the threshold, and it is yours to keep.

Treat the solicitor's letter as a nuclear option, and make sure they know you would never use it.

The fix A ladder where the letter is simply the next step, on a known date, with your approval.

Keep no record of variations and extras, so one disputed line swallows the whole invoice.

The fix An evidence pack per debt that isolates the disputed line and leaves the rest payable.

Accept the cheque is in the post, and restart the clock every time you hear it.

The fix Every promise converted into a dated commitment, written down, and followed up the day it breaks.

Fear the relationship more than the loss. Forever.

The fix Someone else does the confronting, in your name, so the relationship survives the conversation.