Collection letter template for past-due pest control accounts.

A few days to 2 weeks past due

Assume the customer forgot. Name the service, the amount, and the original due date, give the payment link, and invite a call if the charge looks wrong. No deadline and no consequences.

About 30 days past due

Say that you wrote before and have not heard back, ask for payment by a specific date, and offer a payment arrangement. Pair it with a short courtesy call if the balance is worth one.

About 60 to 90 days past due

State plainly what happens next and when: a service hold, a collection agency, or small claims. Name only a step you will actually take, and give the customer a way to dispute or arrange payment first.

Name a collection agency, small claims, or a service hold only if you will follow through and your service agreement allows it. An empty threat teaches customers to ignore the next letter.

Only add late fees or interest that your signed agreement states and your state allows. A charge that first appears on a collection letter starts a dispute, not a payment.

Send the letter to the account holder, not to a neighbor, employer, or tenant. Property managers and landlords who are the billed party are the exception.

State rules on collection practices, late fees, and contact times differ, and some apply to businesses collecting their own invoices. One review of your letters and agreement covers every account after it.

• Nobody can say which customers got the first letter and which got the second
• Reminders stop every peak season because the office is answering the phones
• Balances reach 90 days before anyone calls the customer
• Each branch follows up in its own way, or not at all

See how to run a weekly accounts receivable workflow for every branch.

Good Ops does the follow-up for FieldRoutes companies: it texts eligible past-due customers their portal link, places a courtesy call if the balance stays unpaid, and hands disputes back to your team. It does not send letters, create invoices, or take payments. See how Good Ops AI Collections works.

A collection letter is a written request for payment of a past-due balance. Businesses usually send a short series, starting with a friendly reminder and ending with a final notice that states what happens if the balance stays unpaid.

Most small service businesses send two or three letters over 60 to 90 days, alongside reminder texts or calls, before deciding on an agency, small claims, or a write-off. Set the number and timing in writing and apply them the same way to every account.

The balance, what it is for, how long it has been past due, the date you need payment or a response by, the specific next step you will take after that date, and how to pay, dispute the charge, or ask for a payment arrangement.

The federal Fair Debt Collection Practices Act mainly covers third-party debt collectors, not a business collecting its own customers’ balances under its own name. Some states apply similar rules to original creditors, so have counsel review your letters, late fees, and contact practices for each state where you operate.

It is free and needs no account. The template runs in your browser tab, and nothing you type is saved or sent to Good Ops. Print it, save a PDF, or copy the text into an email before you leave the page.