Just one in five European companies has completely digitalized their receivables management
44 percent of companies in Germany have a barely or only partially digitalized dunning process
23 percent of German companies have a fully digitalized dunning process
The pandemic led to an increase in the receivables management workload at around a third (31 percent) of companies in Europe. At the same time, the proportion of European companies that have fully digitalized their dunning processes has risen by just 4 percent since 2019. In Germany, only 23 percent of companies have a fully digitalized dunning process. These were some of the findings from the meanwhile 13th representative EOS Survey “European Payment Practices”, which polled 3,200 companies in 16 European countries.
Expanding digitalization can improve repayment rates
To master the increased workload, a quarter of the European companies surveyed are pushing the digitalization of their own dunning systems, but overall, far too few companies had taken this step. According to the EOS survey, only 21 percent of companies in Europe have a fully digitalized dunning process. At 45 percent of companies, the dunning system is either barely or only partially digitalized. The same picture emerges in Germany, where just 23 percent of companies have a fully digitalized dunning process. A further 36 percent of German companies say they have a partially digitalized dunning process in place, while 8 percent use a dunning process that it is barely digitalized.
This is despite the fact that digital processes can already lead to a lower error rate and improved liquidity. Michaela Homann, Head of Technical Customer Communications at EOS in Germany, explains: “Linking technology with the perspective of the defaulting consumers improves repayment rates. Because in our experience, defaulting consumers want to make payments quickly using digital means and without a lot of effort. For example, this includes enabling customers to communicate via their preferred digital channels and pay outstanding invoices around the clock using self-service options. In this context, offering various digital payment methods like Apple Pay or PayPal should be standard.” Digitalizing receivables management can also prevent errors and improve the customer experience. In view of the economic forecasts both for Germany and the entire Eurozone, companies are urged not just to digitalize their dunning processes but also to look into working with debt collection service providers. Across Europe, 11 percent of the companies polled rely exclusively on external support (10 percent in Germany), while another 35 percent process outstanding receivables both in-house and via external partners (also 35 percent in Germany).
About the EOS Survey “European Payment Practices”
In partnership with independent market research institute Kantar, EOS used phone interviews with 3,200 companies in 16 European countries between March 4 and April 19, 2022, to ask them about the prevailing payment practices in their respective locations. In the spring of 2022, 200 companies (each with an annual turnover of more than EUR 5 million) in each of the countries Belgium, Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Croatia, Denmark, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Poland, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Switzerland, and the UK answered questions about their own payment experiences and current issues relating to risk and receivables management. This is the 13th time that EOS has conducted the survey.
The EOS Group is a leading technology-driven investor in receivables portfolios and an expert in the processing of outstanding receivables. With over 45 years of experience, EOS offers some 20,000 customers in 25 countries around the world smart services for all their receivables management needs. Its key target sectors are banking, real estate, telecommunications, utilities and e-commerce. EOS employs more than 6,000 people and is part of Otto Group.
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