Payment reminder writer: draft a polite reminder or Mahnung for an unpaid invoice

Chasing a late payer feels awkward, so the reminder gets put off and the money stays out. The payment reminder writer skill drafts a polite payment reminder or Mahnung in under 150 words, in the customer’s language, a little firmer at each step, with the matching QR-bill wording.

What it does

• Writes reminders in three steps: friendly (about 5 days overdue), firm (about 20 days) and final (about 35 days), or by your own rules. It never jumps straight to the final step unless you ask.
• Checks each invoice’s status first:
  • Paid: no reminder. It tells you to match the payment in your accounting.
  • Part-paid: a reminder for the remaining amount only, naming the payment received.
  • Disputed: no reminder. It offers a short, neutral note asking to clarify the open point.
  • Payment plan: no reminder unless an instalment is missed.
• Writes in German, French, Italian or English: Zahlungserinnerung and Mahnung, rappel, sollecito. German uses Swiss spelling and greetings (“Guten Tag Frau Meier”, “Freundliche Grüsse”).
• Gives the firm and final reminders a real deadline date, about 10 days out.
• Adds the line for the QR-bill’s “Additional information” field in the right language, for example “Rechnung [NO], 2. Mahnung” or “Facture [NO], dernier rappel”.
• Adds a reminder fee or default interest only if you say yes. Interest is open amount × 5% × days overdue ÷ 365, rounded to 0.05, with the calculation shown. It then reminds you to create a new QR-bill for the new total in your invoicing software.
• Names next steps in the final reminder, such as debt collection (Betreibung, poursuite, esecuzione), only in words you approve.
• Uses the amount exactly as invoiced, with VAT already in it. No guilt-tripping, no capital letters, no exclamation marks.

It prepares drafts only. It never sends a reminder, adds fees you haven’t agreed, threatens steps you haven’t decided on or starts debt collection.

When to use it

• An invoice is a few days overdue and you want a friendly payment reminder.
• A key customer is late and you want a personal note instead of your software’s standard Mahnung.
• An invoice is part-paid or disputed, and the standard reminder would be wrong.
• The customer writes in French or Italian, and your own French or Italian is rusty.
• You’ve run this week’s overdue list and need the reminders drafted.

To find out who needs a reminder this week, start with the overdue invoice review.