Find the most suitable debt recovery route
Answer ten practical questions to identify a likely next step for an overdue business debt.
Takes around 2 minutes
No account needed
No documents required
No action authorised
Free indicative result
Find your likely next step
Choose the answer that best fits the debt. Your indicative route updates as you progress.
Check this route against the actual documents
Submit the debt for a free review before taking action. We will assess the evidence, debtor position, dispute risk and most proportionate recovery route.
Review the supporting detail
Use the route comparison and suggested next steps below to understand how the recommendation was reached.
Suggested next steps
What a case review would add
Why the route matters
The most effective recovery route is not simply the most forceful option. It should reflect the strength of the evidence, the debtor’s position, the value and age of the debt, any dispute, and the realistic likelihood of payment.
Clear invoices, contracts, purchase orders, delivery evidence and correspondence make formal action easier to justify. If liability or the amount is genuinely disputed, the route may need to focus first on resolving the factual issues.
A trading company with assets and cash flow presents a different recovery profile from a dissolved, insolvent or dormant business. The legal route must fit the debtor’s actual status and ability to pay.
The likely return should justify the time, court fees, legal costs and enforcement risk. A commercially proportionate route aims to maximise recovery rather than simply escalate pressure.
Where judgment already exists, the focus usually shifts from proving the debt to choosing the most suitable enforcement method. Previous demands, payment plans and broken promises can also affect the next step.
A good route therefore combines legal suitability with commercial judgment: whether the action is available, whether it is proportionate, and whether it is likely to produce payment.
Routes the tool may suggest
- Commercial debt recovery or a Letter Before Action
- County Court proceedings
- Statutory Demand or insolvency suitability review
- Enforcement of an existing judgment
- Evidence, dispute or debtor-viability review
What can change the recommendation
The documents, dispute position, debtor circumstances and realistic enforcement prospects can all change the appropriate route.
Factors that may change the recommendation
- An existing unpaid judgment may move the case directly to enforcement review
- A genuine dispute may make insolvency pressure inappropriate
- Weak evidence may require file strengthening before escalation
- Insolvency warning signs may make standard chasing commercially weak
- Low-value debts may require a more proportionate route
What we would review
- Debt value and age
- Debtor legal status and trading position
- Supporting documents and admissions
- Dispute position and previous recovery activity
- Likely assets and enforcement prospects
- Whether the likely cost and risk are proportionate
Explore the main recovery options
Read the relevant guide or submit the debt for a case-specific review.
Recovery methods
Suitability checks
Calculators and support
Commercial debt recovery with clear credentials
HK Commercial Debt Recovery combines qualified credit expertise with transparent terms, appropriate insurance and registered data-protection controls.
HK Commercial Debt Recovery is a trading name of HK Credit Services Ltd, Company No. 17265874, registered in England and Wales.
Get the route checked against the actual debt
Submit the debt for a free review. We will assess the evidence, debtor position and most proportionate next step before any action is authorised.