Prepared by Sydney Collect
Updated October 2026 · Provider details checked on each provider's website, 6 October 2026
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Key stat: large Australian businesses take 58 days on average to pay their suppliers, 6 days longer than small businesses. For a carrier on 30-day terms, your biggest customers are paying late by design. (Atradius Payment Practices Barometer Australia 2025, via the 2026 Debt Collection Report, §6)

Should a transport operator use a letter of demand or a collection agency?

If one or a few freight invoices are overdue and the customer hasn't disputed them, send a letter. Our $29 letter goes out the same day and nothing comes out of what you recover.

If a letter has already been ignored, or you want someone else to keep chasing for weeks, a commission agency such as AMPAC or eCollect fits better. They take a share of what they collect.

How did we compare the options?

We looked at four things for each one:

  • What it is. A one-off letter, or an agency that keeps chasing.
  • What it costs. Taken from each provider's own website on 6 October 2026. Where a rate isn't published, we say so and don't guess.
  • Whether it names transport. Only what each site actually says.
  • What the trade-off is.

What does each option cost for an overdue freight invoice?

OptionCostTransport named?Best for
SydneyCollect Letter sent for you$29 flatFreight, haulage, courier, warehousing and 3PL invoicesA specific overdue invoice you want acted on today
AMPAC Commission agency, 30+ yearsCommission, rate not publishedYes: "Transport & Logistics" is on its industry listA debt that needs an agency to keep chasing
eCollect Commission agency, since 2002Commission, rate not publishedNo: 20+ industries listed, none is transportA harder debt, with a licensed agency behind it

Source: each provider's own website, checked 6 October 2026. AMPAC and eCollect both say commission is payable only when they collect. Links are in the sources list below.

Freight invoice 30 days past due? Send the letter before it gets to 90. Send a letter for $29

Why do large shippers pay transport operators late?

Transport has below-average insolvency. Transport, postal and warehousing runs at 2.05 failures per 1,000 businesses, against 3.42 nationally (2026 Debt Collection Report, §5). Your debtor is more likely to be solvent but slow.

Slow payment is the problem. Two transport entities sit on the report's Late Payer Index: LATAM Airlines at 184 days and Hull 2227 (Shipping) at 165 days, both at the 95th percentile (§6). The median across 167 large transport entities is 54 days.

Fuel and wages go out straight away. A letter in the accounts payable queue moves the invoice up the pile. See the transport and logistics guide for the full numbers.

What do you get with SydneyCollect's $29 letter?

You tell us who owes you and how much. We send a letter of demand with lawyer-approved wording on SydneyCollect letterhead, and we track it. If the invoice is still unpaid after 14 days, we pass it to a partner law firm.

The 2026 report found a formal letter gets 55 to 70% of debts paid where reminders have failed, usually in 7 to 21 days (§8). It can't get paid a customer that is insolvent or disputes the invoice.

We only act where the debtor is in NSW, Victoria, Queensland or the ACT.

What do AMPAC and eCollect offer?

AMPAC calls itself a fully licensed commercial collection agency with over 30 years of experience. "Transport & Logistics" is on its list of industries. It says commission is payable only on successful recovery, and doesn't publish the rate or how long a chase takes.

eCollect works on "no recovery, no commission", with no upfront fees. It holds Australian Credit Licence 430899 and AFCA membership 31289, and says it has served over 10,000 businesses since 2002. Its site doesn't list transport among its industries and doesn't publish a commission rate.

Which one should a transport operator use?

  • One or a few freight invoices overdue, no dispute: send the $29 letter.
  • A letter was ignored and you want someone else to keep chasing: a commission agency like AMPAC or eCollect. Expect to give up a share of what they collect.
  • You want an agency that names transport: AMPAC does. eCollect doesn't.
  • The customer is in WA, SA, Tasmania or the NT: we can't send it. Use our free letter generator and send it yourself.
  • The customer is in liquidation, the invoice is disputed, or you already have a judgment: a letter won't help. You need a proof of debt, a negotiation, or enforcement.

Plenty of operators have a long tail of small invoices across many customers. Bulk Debt Recovery sends them all from one spreadsheet at $29 per letter. See how Bulk Debt Recovery works.

SydneyCollect is one of the options on this page. We checked the details for the others on their own websites. If something is wrong, email [email protected] and we'll fix it within 24 hours.

Frequently asked questions

Send a letter first if the invoice is a few weeks overdue and the customer hasn't disputed it. It costs $29 and nothing comes out of what you recover. Use a commission agency such as AMPAC or eCollect when a letter has been ignored and you want someone else to keep chasing.
A SydneyCollect letter of demand is $29 flat. AMPAC and eCollect both work on commission, paid only when they collect, and neither publishes a percentage on its website. You get a rate after they review the debt.
About 30 days past due, while the customer is still trading and still has the cash. Waiting until 90 days adds risk. The 2026 Debt Collection Report found a formal letter gets 55 to 70% of debts paid where reminders have failed, usually within 7 to 21 days.
AMPAC's website lists Transport & Logistics among the industries it serves. It describes itself as a fully licensed commercial collection agency with over 30 years of experience. It doesn't publish its commission rate or a typical turnaround time.
No. We send letters to debtors in NSW, Victoria, Queensland and the ACT. We aren't licensed to collect debts in WA, SA, Tasmania or the NT. It's the debtor's location that counts, so a Perth carrier chasing a Sydney shipper is fine.

Sources