How do I automate dunning and collections reminders?

Schedule reminders relative to the due date (a few days before, then at set intervals after), with escalating tone and channel, and add a suppression check before each send confirming the invoice is still genuinely open and undisputed. Most accounting systems support scheduling this natively; the suppression check is what prevents the most damaging automation failure.

By Zuny Fester, Head of Operations and Marketing

Reviewed by Zuny Fester

Published September 10, 2026Last reviewed September 10, 2026Editorial policy

Part of the accounts receivable and collections guide.

Typical schedule	A reminder before the due date, then escalating reminders after
What escalates	Tone, channel, and sometimes who the message comes from
Critical safeguard	Confirm the invoice is still open and undisputed before each send
Where this often lives natively	Most accounting systems' invoicing settings

Setting up the schedule

A typical dunning sequence starts with a friendly reminder a few days before the due date, followed by a firmer reminder shortly after it's overdue, and escalating further at set intervals (7, 14, 30 days past due, for example) with increasingly direct language and sometimes a change in who the message appears to come from — moving from an automated system email to a message from an account manager.

Why the suppression check matters more than the schedule

A well-designed schedule is worthless if a reminder fires on an invoice that's already been paid or disputed. Before each scheduled send, confirm at that moment — not when the sequence was originally scheduled — that the invoice is still open, that no payment has posted even if not yet applied, and that no dispute or support ticket is linked to it. This single check is what prevents the most common and most damaging automation failure in collections.

Next step

Map the finance workflow with the most exposure and prove the automation path.

Bring the invoice, contract, payment reconciliation, or customer finance workflow you have to defend at audit. Loopfour can map the trigger, controls, integrations, and approval loop.

Book a workflow review

Checklist

Setting up an automated dunning sequence

Schedule a reminder before the due date
Escalate tone and interval after the due date passes
Check invoice status immediately before every send, not just at scheduling time
Suppress the sequence if a dispute or support ticket is linked to the account

Frequently Asked Questions

Weight by a combination of dollar amount, days overdue, and known customer risk signals — the largest, oldest, or highest-risk accounts generally warrant manual attention first.

Often yes — a large strategic account may warrant a more personal message earlier in the sequence than a standard automated one used for smaller accounts.

Commonly two to three automated reminders before a person gets involved, though this varies by account size and relationship importance.

Sources

Topic

AR & Collections

Accounts receivable is the money customers owe a business for goods or services already delivered on credit — a current asset on the balance sheet until it's collected. AR and collections, as a practi…

Diagnostic

How do I automate accounts receivable without losing customer relationships?

Automate the mechanical middle of the process first — aging, prioritization, payment application — and keep a human in the loop on anything customer-facing until the underlying data is reliable. Most relationship damage comes from an automated reminder firing on stale data: chasing an invoice that's already paid, disputed, or attached to a customer mid-renewal conversation with your sales team.

Role guide

How do I prioritize which overdue invoices to chase first?

Weight by a combination of dollar amount, days overdue, and customer risk signals — a large balance moves the total AR number most, an old balance is hardest to collect the longer it ages, and a risk signal (payment history, a known dispute) can override both. A weighted score generates a daily worklist automatically; sorting a spreadsheet by eye doesn't scale.