Last year I wrote about managing unpaid therapy fees, but I’m replacing that article with this updated version because the rules around the formal debt-recovery process changed on 1 October 2026.
It’s a good reminder that when we’re running a private practice, some of the information we rely on, particularly around tax, GDPR and legal processes, needs reviewing regularly.
So, what should you actually do if a client owes you money? The first thing I’d say is:
Most unpaid fees are better prevented than chased.
Have a clear payment policy, put it in your therapy agreement and decide in advance what happens if somebody doesn’t pay.
Ideally, don’t allow several unpaid sessions to accumulate. If your policy is that sessions pause while payment is outstanding, make that clear from the beginning.
Most of the time, a simple reminder will resolve it:
Hi [Name], just a quick note as I can’t see payment for our session on [date]. It may simply have been overlooked. The outstanding amount is £[amount]. You can make payment via [method/link]. Thank you.
But occasionally, despite reminders, the money still isn’t paid.
That’s when you need to know your options, and the process has changed.
Below the paywall, I’ll take you through what to do when reminders haven’t worked, what’s changed in the Pre-Action Protocol, when you might consider making a court claim, the additional confidentiality issues we need to think about as therapists, and when it might actually be better to write the debt off. I’ll also give you a simple step-by-step process to follow if this ever happens in your practice.
Keep reading for the updated guidance →