In a previous post, we talked about the incredible importance of Terms and Conditions to a business. It’s a document that provides several benefits to companies, including offering legal and financial protection.
Such protection is useful in case you need to chase after late payments. If you have the correct Terms and Conditions in place, you can add the debt recovery costs on top on the original debt. From this, one can see just how beneficial T&Cs can be and it is unfortunate that many businesses continue to operate without it.
In the last three months, Slater Byrne has been able to add on recovery costs to only 18 out of 115 clients signed up. This means that a staggering 85% of clients signing up with us do not have adequate Terms and Conditions in place.
There are many possible reasons for this, one of which is that business owners just do not know how to start creating their own T&Cs.
Tips for Drafting Your Terms & Conditions
Drafting your own Terms and Conditions might seem intimidating, but there are ways that you can make this process simple and straightforward. Here are some tips you can use:
1. Start with an outline
An outline will help you get an overview of how your T&Cs will look and what sections or factors will be included. Start by conducting a thorough review of your business structure and processes. Then, list down all the things that can possibly go wrong with a transaction. Analyse each situation carefully and determine how you would address each problem. These solutions will become the foundation of your Terms and Conditions.
2. Consider your customer
Make sure to keep your customer in mind when deciding what language to use for your Terms and Conditions. The goal is to create terms that are not only thorough, but also easy to understand. If you will be using a lot of technical terms in the document, consider creating a section where these terms are clearly defined.
It’s also a good idea to include a section on managing customer satisfaction. This must include a process on rectifying any disputes to maintain good business relationships.
3. Include the essentials
As we mentioned in our previous article, effective Terms and Conditions should include important details like:
- definition of products and services
- warranty and guarantee details
- refunds and returns policies
- privacy policies
- relevant laws governing the contract
- payment terms
- security clauses
- a director’s guarantee
It should also include a clause stating that debt recovery costs will be added to the outstanding debt if it is outside your payment terms.
We Can Help You!
At Slater Byrne Recoveries, we are committed to helping businesses reduce risk and improve financial security. Our team can help you formulate effective Terms and Conditions that not only protect you, but also protect your customers.
Call us today at 0447 474 300 for more information. You can also send us an email at info@slaterbyrne.com.au
Liam White joined the Slater Byrne Recoveries team in early 2013. He has worked across the credit & dispute resolution industry for a number of years. He is currently working in a Marketing/Head of Sales capacity at Slater Byrne Recoveries.