New invoices are being paid while the older balance stays untouched

A payment arrives for this month's work

Consider a supplier with $28,000 overdue from an earlier project. The customer pays a new $6,000 invoice promptly, yet provides no explanation for the older balance. The latest receipt is welcome, but it does not resolve the outstanding account. Review what distinguishes the old invoices instead of assuming the payment proves either a willingness or refusal to settle everything.

Check the records behind the age difference

Match the older invoices to their orders, due dates and previous responses. Identify any change in project manager, entity, approval process or disputed scope. Reconcile the current receipt through the normal accounting process without changing its allocation to make the ageing report look better. If the allocation is uncertain, clarify it with the customer and accountant before relying on the revised balance.

Ask about the older account directly

business.gov.au's dispute guidance recommends checking facts and discussing the issue with the other party. Send a focused enquiry identifying the outstanding invoices and asking what prevents their payment. A statement that the account is active does not answer that question. Request the status of the old amounts rather than another general assurance that the customer values the relationship.

Source: business.gov.au: Prevent, manage and resolve disputes

Distinguish an administrative hold from a dispute

If the reply identifies missing information, establish exactly what is required and whether it has already been provided. If the customer challenges the work, obtain the specific objection and review it with the appropriate adviser. In this hypothetical account, the new invoices might follow a different approval path; their payment cannot establish that the old project balance has been accepted.

Keep ongoing supply decisions separate

Assess new exposure under the actual contract and credit arrangements. Do not automatically increase the account limit because a recent invoice was paid, or stop existing work without advice. Show management both the old unresolved balance and the new trading position. That prevents current activity from gradually making a substantial historic debt less visible in weekly discussions.

Set the next decision against the old obstacle

Record the explanation, supporting documents and the next response required. If no useful answer arrives, take the old-account chronology to CRP or your recovery adviser. The task is to resolve the specific unpaid balance while making deliberate decisions about continuing trade, rather than allowing regular small receipts to create the impression that the whole account is healthy.