Which business in your group owns the unpaid claim?

The group total may have several creditors

Your accounting team reports that a builder owes the group half a million dollars. That may be commercially useful, but it does not establish which entity can pursue each amount. If several companies supply work under a common brand, identify the contracting and invoicing entity before instructing someone to recover the combined balance.

Trace the supplier on each job

Imagine a group with separate electrical installation and equipment hire companies. Both trade with the same builder, while one office handles accounts. Collect the accepted quotes, contracts and invoices for each company. If the documents do not agree about the supplier, flag the inconsistency for legal advice rather than selecting whichever company has the larger balance.

Use the agreement as the starting point

business.gov.au recommends reviewing the contract when payment has not arrived. That review includes understanding the relevant parties, as well as the commercial payment terms. Give the adviser the original agreement and any later documents that may have changed it. A shared logo, director or postal address does not answer every question about the claim.

Source: business.gov.au: What to do when you haven't been paid

Explain centralised receipts

If the builder pays into a shared collection arrangement, show how receipts were allocated between company ledgers. Provide the underlying banking records and instructions. In the installation and hire example, a payment may have cleared one company's invoice while remaining unallocated in the other team's report. Reconcile that before presenting a group total as wholly unpaid.

Do not repair history by reissuing everything

Ask the accountant and lawyer how inconsistencies should be addressed. Do not simply replace old invoices with another company's name or backdate a document to make the file look uniform. Preserve the original records and explain any correction. Questions about an assignment or transfer of rights need proper review and supporting documentation.

Give clear recovery instructions

Provide separate reconciled schedules showing the proposed creditor, debtor and supporting agreements. Ask the adviser how the claims should be pursued and which entity must give instructions. The businesses may coordinate commercially, but the recovery file should accurately reflect ownership of the rights being asserted. That clarity prevents the size of the group balance from hiding a basic identity problem.