It’s a painful lesson to learn but the key here odd to recognize when someone is a sufficiently large customer than a default represents an existential risk to your business.

Businesses tend to go the other way and be more accommodating to larger customers like continuing to fulfill their orders and not taking action at, say, 90 days late.

Secured credit can be one way to resolve that without being super strict on late payments or wanting repayment of limited credit.

There's insurance that covers this - no idea whether it's a good value but it certainly exists.

Here's an example: https://www.nationwide.com/business/insurance/accounts-recei...

We don't do work with folks with a past due invoice. It works well. We can't engage on the next engagement until you pay the prior.

The folks who slow pay are a paint to deal with overall I've found, so no big loss when they go. Or you don't get paid, which is even worse! And yes, they will slow pay anyone who lets them.