European Companies Fear Increase of High-Risk Customers

PR66407

AMSTERDAM, Nov. 3, 2016 /PRNewswire=KYODO JBN/ --

     Atradius Collections releases 10th edition of the Global Collections Review

examining the collections behaviour of companies across 30 countries surveyed.

The report also looks at potential future developments regarding the services

offered by debt collection agencies while also identifying the factors that

influence the collection process.

    (Photo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20160622/382197LOGO )

    According to the 10th edition of the Global Collections Review, the

majority of European companies do not expect a significant change in the

quality of their customers' portfolios. However, they expect an increase in

payment delays, a deterioration of the credit risk situation and an increase in

high-risk customers. On the other hand, companies in the Americas and Asia

Pacific appear to be more positive, expecting improvements in the ability of

their customers to pay invoices on time due to expected improvements in the

liquidity position of buyers.

    Looking at the quality of the overdue receivables portfolio, with the

exception of Europe, companies in all other regions expect improvements in the

number and the age of outstanding invoices, as well as a decrease in the number

of disputed invoices.

    Trading on credit in both domestic and international B2B transactions is a

common practice in all countries surveyed, however it is more prevalent in

domestic transactions. One side-effect of offering credit terms is payment

delays.

    This year a shift in the recovery approach has been noted: more companies,

especially in Europe and in the Asia Pacific region, have opted for legal

collections more frequently with the cooperation of law offices. Companies

located in the Americas and Asia Pacific region have a different approach

compared to those in Europe: they appear to be more inclined to adopt

alternative solutions than (or in addition to) traditional debt collections

services.

    About the Global Collections Review

    The Global Collections Review is based on a survey of over 6.400 companies

across 30 countries in the APAC, Americas and European regions. The appropriate

contacts for accounts receivable management were interviewed. The interviews

were all conducted exclusively for Atradius and there was no combination of

topics. The GCR report presents the results of the evaluation of collections

behaviour and it includes only those countries for which completed responses

are available. The full report can be downloaded here [

https://atradiuscollections.com/global/publications/global-collections-review.html

].

    About Atradius Collections

    Through a presence in 25 countries, Atradius Collections provides trade

invoice collection services in 96% of the countries across the world. Its wide

breadth of services,  ranging from first party to legal collections, helps

companies around the globe recover unpaid invoices. Atradius forms part of

Grupo Catalana Occidente (GCO.MC), one of the leading insurers in Spain and

worldwide in credit insurance.

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SOURCE: Atradius N.V.