Purring – template for sole proprietors

The template

Send it in Norwegian. This is the letter your customer receives, and the words in it are the ones their accounts department looks for. Replace everything in [square brackets], and keep the rest as it stands.

Emne: Purring: faktura [nummer] forfalt [dato]

Til [kundens navn]

Faktura [nummer] på [beløp] forfalt til betaling [dato]. Vi kan ikke se at beløpet er betalt.

Beløp: [totalt] (faktura [beløp] + purregebyr 38,00 kr)
Kontonummer: [kontonummer]
Merk betalingen med fakturanummer [nummer]
Betalingsfrist: [dato, minst 14 dager frem]

Ved betaling etter opprinnelig forfall beregnes forsinkelsesrente fra forfallsdato, for tiden 12,25 % p.a. (forsinkelsesrenteloven § 3).

Er fakturaen allerede betalt, ber vi om at dere sender oss en kopi av betalingsbekreftelsen, så vi kan rette opp.

Vennlig hilsen
[ditt navn], [foretak] ENK

What you can add – and when

The purregebyr, the reminder fee, is 38 kroner in 2026, but only if the purring is sent at least 14 days after the due date and gives the customer at least 14 days’ new deadline. Forsinkelsesrente, Norway’s statutory late-payment interest, runs from the original due date whether or not you agreed it. If you invoice another business, you can also claim 430 kroner in standardkompensasjon, a flat compensation for recovery costs – a much larger amount than the fee, and one most sole proprietors don’t realise they can claim.

Write like yourself, not like a collection agency

The purring should be factual and concise, but it doesn’t need to be cold. «Vi kan ikke se at beløpet er betalt» – we can’t see that the amount has been paid – is enough. You don’t need to imply bad intent, and you shouldn’t threaten debt collection in an ordinary purring. Threats belong in the inkassovarsel, where they have legal weight. A reminder that promises consequences you don’t follow through on teaches the customer that your deadlines mean nothing.

When to skip the purring

Sending a purring is optional. If the invoice is more than a month past due, or you’ve already reminded the customer verbally, the inkassovarsel is the right next step: it costs the same, gives the same 14-day deadline, and is the step the law requires before the claim can go to debt collection. Sending three polite reminders in a row only delays the decision.

Keep a copy

Send from your own email and save the sent message. The date and content are your documentation if the case goes to forliksrådet, the conciliation board, or to a debt-collection agency. As a sole proprietorship you have no finance department to keep track of this — a folder with sent purringer per customer is the only system you need.