Why the Iran war should be a prompt to monitor your customers

01/07/2026 / by Hilton-Baird

The ongoing pressures caused by the Iran War are taking a heaving toll on UK SMEs, particularly those trading internationally.

Recent research from Bibby Financial Services suggests as many as seven in 10 SMEs fear bankruptcy if the disruption continues, with supply chain instability and rising costs compounding an already challenging economic environment.

Specifically, the supply chain disruption is damaging businesses’ cash flow, with 61% reporting that rising shipping and logistics costs, including energy and insurance, are the biggest contributors to financial strain.

Businesses facing increased costs may initially absorb these pressures in an effort to maintain customer relationships. However, as margins tighten and working capital becomes more constrained, the common coping mechanism is to delay payments to suppliers.

The importance of early visibility

Bibby’s research should serve as a timely prompt for businesses to review who they are supplying, and specifically whether they are exposed to the ongoing geopolitical uncertainty.

By the point at which payment issues become clearly visible, recovery options may already be more limited. As invoices grow older, they typically become harder to collect, particularly where customers are experiencing financial pressure.

Maintaining early visibility across the ledger is therefore critical.

Businesses that monitor payment behaviour and customer creditworthiness closely, and act on early indicators, are often better placed to mitigate risk and preserve cash flow.

Managing collections in a volatile environment

While external pressures on your customers cannot be controlled, your approach to collections can be.

In periods of uncertainty, a structured and consistent credit control process becomes increasingly important. This includes:

ongoing monitoring of credit risk and financial health for all customers
setting clear expectations from the outset
maintaining regular and timely follow-ups
escalating issues at an appropriate stage

The objective of credit control is not simply to chase payment, but to manage risk proactively.

Strengthening resilience

The current environment is likely to remain uncertain. As such, resilience is becoming a key consideration for many businesses.

This means:

identifying potential issues earlier
responding more decisively to changes in customer behaviour and pressures
ensuring processes remain consistent

While the wider economic landscape continues to evolve, the ability to monitor customers’ creditworthiness and conduct credit control effectively remain critical factors in protecting cash flow and supporting long-term stability.

Can we help?

If you find that you don’t have enough time available to effectively manage your credit control, you could potentially benefit from outsourcing this function to the experts.

Whether you want to outsource all of your credit control or just the collection of invoices that reach a certain age, as the UK’s trusted debt collection agency we could be your ideal partner.