A
reminder
letter is a letter sent by a professional organization to remind a
customer about necessary action to be taken in relation with the company. This
could be about contract renewal or delayed payment. Given here are tips on
writing such letters along with samples of the same.
Writing
reminder letters is pretty sensitive, particularly if they are meant to
remind the receiver about late or overdue payments. The language has to be
impeccably diplomatic, and the letter has to be short.
The
letter does not have to sympathize with the reader for not being able to take
necessary action on time. However, it can contain some probable reasons why the
person may have forgotten to take action.
Paying due attention to language is essential
because good customer care ensures continued relations with a client. Clients
can be put off by almost anything - poor communication, or poor service, for
instance. Whether it is for overdue credit card payment, or for a policy that
has to be renewed, here are some tips on writing a reminder letter, followed by a sample of the same.
How to Write a Reminder Letter :
1. Given
below is an outline of a reminder letter that will serve as a template that you
can follow when writing one yourself.
2. Start
by providing all your details so that the client is aware of the sender of the
letter. Ideally, a professional letterhead should be used for this purpose.
3. Since
it is a reminder letter, put in a 'subject' line that is a short description of
what the letter is about.
4. In
the first paragraph, state that this letter is a reminder for (specific
reason). If any amounts are to be paid, these will be mentioned in the first
paragraph. It is possible that this may not be the first reminder you are
sending across. If this is the case, ensure that you state that you have sent
several reminders before this one.
5. In
the second paragraph, you may or may not include what you think the reason may
be for the delay. This depends on what the letter is a reminder for. For
instance, if it is for delayed payment, you can write the previous reminder may
have been misplaced in the mail, or that it may have been overlooked by the
client. For any other reason, it may not be necessary.
6. Include
a line that the letter should be disregarded if the necessary action has already
been taken.
7. End
the letter by mentioning the. last date for the necessary action to be taken,
and provide your contact details should the client have any further inquiries.
8. Sign
off with your signature, your name, and your designation.
9. Having
provided this outline, we will now take a look at some samples of reminder
letters that will give you a fair idea about how these should be written.
EXAMPLE :
1. Reminder Letter Sample for Delayed Payment
March
21, 2011
Your Name,
Your Address,
City/State/Province
Subject:
Late Payment Reminder for Credit Card Number XXXX-XXXX
Dear Ma'am/Sir,
This is a reminder for your overdue credit card bill
for the period February 5, 2011 to March 5, 2011. The total bill amount is
$1350 and a copy of the bill has been enclosed along with this letter.
You are requested to make the payment before April
01, 2011 to avoid any charges for delayed payments. If you have already cleared
the bill, kindly disregard this notice.
You may call us on our customer care number should
you have any further inquiries.
Thank you for your cooperation.
Regards,
(Your Signature)
Dayana Miller
Customer
Care Manager
XYZ
Credit Cards
2.
Reminder Letter Sample for
Contract Renewal
March 21, 2011
Your Name,
Your
Address,
City/State/Province
Subject: Reminder for Renewal of Vehicle Policy Number XXXX-XXXX
Dear
Ma'am/Sir,
This is to remind you that your vehicle insurance
policy expires on April 15, 2011. You are requested to renew it before the said
date, the amount for which is $600, to prevent the policy from lapsing.
If you have already renewed the policy, kindly
disregard this notice. You may call us on our customer care number should
you have any further inquiries.
Thank you for your cooperation.
Regards,
(Your Signature)
Susan
Miller
Customer Care Manager
XYZ Insurance
3.
Final Reminder Letter Sample
for Overdue Bill Payment
March
21, 2011
Your Name,
Your
Address,
City/State/Province
Subject: NOTICE BEFORE LEGAL ACTION
Dear Ma'am/Sir,
Despite
several previous reminders, we find that our invoice number XXXX-XXXX remains
unpaid.
You
are requested to make the full payment before April 15, 2011 along with accrued
interest and charges for delayed payment to date, in order to avoid any legal
action from our side.
I
am sure that such stringent action will not be necessary, and that you will
make the necessary payments before the due date. A copy of the invoice has been
enclosed for your records.
You
may contact me on (contact number/email address) should you have any further
inquiries.
Thank
you for your cooperation.
Regards,
(Your Signature)
Christopher
Miller
Finance
Controller
ABC
Imports
As
you can see, a reminder letter is short, simple, and to the point. If the
letter is particularly meant to inform the receiver about legal action, for not
taking the necessary action, it is important that only this be highlighted in
the subject. This will help the receiver of the letter clearly understand what
is in store. Use these samples to draft an effective reminder letter
4. Sample reminder letter for payment
-
First
Reminder
Firm
Name,
Address
Dear
Sirs,
We
would like to remind you that a sum of Rs. …………… remains overdue in spite of
the lapse of two months since we dispatched 1,200 packets of Topaz Blades to
you.
We
shall be glad if you will send us a cheque to balance the amount immediately.
If by any chance your cheque is already in the mail, please ignore this
reminder and accept our thanks.
Yours
faithfully,
…………………
-
Second
Reminder : An
Appeal for Cooperation
Firm
Name,
Address
Dear
Sirs,
We
had written to you on ……………, about the overdue balance in respect of 1,200
packets of Topaz Blades amounting to Rs. …………… which has probably escaped your
attention.
We
want your business, and we want you to feel that you are the privileged
customer, you really are. You will receive continued good service in exchange for
prompt payment.
Yours
faithfully,
…………………
-
Third
Reminder : An
enquiry
Firm
Name,
Address
Dear
Sirs,
We
very much regret that we have not received any reply to our letter dated ……………,
regarding the overdue amount against your firm of Rs. ……………
We
have failed to understand why you have not sent any reply in spite of the lapse
of more than three months since we dispatched the packets of Topaz Blades to
you
It
is regrettable that our letters have been ignored which may jeopardize our
business relations.
We
shall appreciate an immediate reply.
Yours
faithfully,
……………………………
-
Forth
Remind :
Threatening Legal Action
Dear
Sirs,
We
very much regret that the sum of Rs. …………… has been overdue since long and in
spite of our repeated requests and reminders you haven’t cared to reply or
remit the amount.
If
we do not receive the above amount within a week of the receipt of this notice,
we shall be constrained to resort to legal proceeding and you shall be held
liable to the consequences.
Yours
faithfully,
…………………………
-
Fifth
Reminder : An
Appeal to Fair play
Dear
Sirs,
We
regret that despite your promise of prompt payment regarding the good we had
dispatched to you, you have not done so. You seem to have forgotten all that
you had written earlier.
Could
we hope that you would remit amount without any further delay?
Yours
ever in service,
Yours
faithfully,
……………………………
5. Overdue Payments & Example Letters
Many
businesses dread dealing with customers who have outstanding accounts or unpaid
bills. Sometimes these matters can be unavoidable, however, so it pays to have
a clear system in place to deal with these situations. There are also steps
that can be taken from the very beginning of a business transaction to avoid
late payment. These include:
·
agreeing to the price
at the quoting stage, including any interest or charges for late payment,
·
making sure payment
terms are clear, and potentially offering first time or one off clients a
shorter payment term,
·
conducting credit
checks if necessary,
·
always invoicing on
time, and
·
following up invoices
with statements.
To
avoid spending valuable time and effort chasing late payments you should
consider having collection letter templates ready to use and a timing process
for sending each one already in place.
As
well as having a set policy in place it is also important to document
everything, for example, when and what letters are sent, or outcomes of any
phone conversations with the customer. These may become legal records later if
you have to take action with a collection agency or solicitor.
These
letters should range from a friendly reminder to a final notice:
·
1st letter – short and
friendly reminder, can be included on statement page
·
2nd letter – follow up
to reminder, more direct and less cordial than the first
·
3rd letter – demand payment
within 7 days or threaten legal action
·
4th letter – demand
payment and state legal proceedings will be started by a certain date.
Keep
in mind that the goal of these letters should be to retain customer goodwill as
well as to encourage prompt payment.
If
you do end up having to send a final notice to a client it is important that
you don’t make empty threats but be prepared to follow through with collection
measures. Often a firm letter on solicitors’ letterhead will get more immediate
results.
Below
are examples of outstanding account letters that can be downloaded for use and
edited as required.
References
:
