← blog
workflow
2026-03-26
6 min read
Automating Invoice Chasing: How One Freelancer Recovered £8,000 in Late Payments
A freelance designer had £8,340 sitting in overdue invoices. Manual chasing felt too awkward to do consistently. We built a system that did it for her — professionally, persistently, and automatically.
The Problem With Manual Chasing
Most freelancers have the same issue: the invoiceOur client had six overdue invoices ranging from £400 to £2,200. The oldest was 94 days old.
Our client had six overdue invoices ranging from £400 to £2,200. The oldest was 94 days old. Total outstanding: £8,340.
n8n invoice chasingn8n invoice chasing — daily cron
n8n invoice chasing — daily cron
Cron08:00 daily
→
Stripelist open invoices
→
Functioncalc days overdue
→
IF / Switchtier 1–4 routing
→
Gmailsend tiered email
→
Sheetslog action + timestamp
runs every morning · no human input required · logs every action
The Escalation Tiers
Four email templates that escalate in tone without becoming hostile:
- Tier 1 (7–13 days): Friendly nudge — "Just checking this didn't get lost in your inbox."
- Tier 2 (14–29 days): Polite but clear — invoice number, amount, payment link included.
- Tier 3 (30–44 days): Firm — references overdue status, requests action by a specific date.
- Tier 4 (45+ days): Final notice — mentions potential escalation to a collections process.
⚠ the workflow checks last_contacted in Sheets before sending. if a client was emailed <48h ago, no automated email fires. human override is always respected.
Technical Notes
Stripe's due_date field is only set if you configure payment terms explicitly. We fell back to created + 30 days when it's null. The Gmail OAuth setup needs a Google Cloud project — straightforward, took about an hour.
What Happened
Within the first week, three of six overdue clients paid. Two responded to Tier 1 — they'd genuinely forgotten. One responded to Tier 2 with a same-day payment. The remaining three needed Tier 3. The 94-day invoice took a Tier 4 message plus a manual call, but the automated escalation created the urgency that made her finally pick up the phone.
Zero awkward manual
chasing emails written
£8,340 in outstanding invoices recovered
Zero awkward manual chasing emails written
Average days-to-payment: 52 → 18
System still running — catches new overdue invoices automatically
~3 hours/month saved on invoice admin
If you want this running for your freelance or agency business, we build it for a fixed price — typically recovered within the first invoice it chases.