So we have a situation that's just... Odd, but unfortunately very common. And I've always struggled to find a way to handle it in the "correct" way. I'm not sure what "correct" really means, but maybe it's the situation where everyone wins.
Long story short, we have a mid sized Drs office as a client who we work well enough with. They're an older Dr, kind of stuck in their ways, but it's been smooth for about a year.
Well, they are 3+ months behind on their lab bill with us with constant promises of "I will pay you soon" which never comes. They're just above $10k overdue and still sending us new cases.
And this is where I'm stuck, do we "cut them off" and require payment to continue work, or do I keep letting them take advantage of our kindness?
I know the risks of cutting off an office, since it has happened before. They can just as easily take a few new impressions and start sending things to another lab, and never pay the money they owe us. We are a small lab, so a $10k bill is the difference between paying payroll and cutting hours.
But at the same time, we have definitely let things like this ride for months on end with no pay off or "thank you" by the end of it either. Being taken advantage of never feels good, but neither does making the hard call.
What do you guys propose? Have any of you been in this situation before? How have you handled it?