• Half of European companies regard their degree of digitalization to be high or very high – in Germany only 26 percent do so
  • Only one percent of German companies has a completely digital dunning procedure, compared with 17 percent across Europe

Hamburg, Germany, October 23, 2019 – The survey is representative and the picture it paints is unambiguous. 3,400 financial executives in 17 European countries were surveyed on behalf of financial services provider EOS. Overall, 14 percent regard the degree of digitalization in their companies compared with other sectors to be very high (Germany: 5 percent) and 35 percent as high (Germany: 21 percent). This means that German managers clearly rate their companies as the worst performers in Europe in this conjunction. Even more striking are the insights provided about dunning processes.  Only one percent of companies in Germany currently have fully digitalized dunning processes, compared with 17 percent across the rest of Europe. In two-thirds of German companies the dunning procedure has only been partly digitalized (47 percent) or barely digitalized at all (17 percent). This is despite the fact that digitalizing the dunning process significantly reduces payment defaults.

High investment requirement delays digitalization process

“As the figures show, the majority of German companies are still lagging behind when it comes to digital dunning processes. There is an acute need to take action here to avoid the risk of payment defaults,” says Justus Hecking-Veltman, Chief Financial Officer of the EOS Group. “A manual, analogue dunning system is not just susceptible to errors but generally does not reach the customer using what is the most suitable communication channel for them personally at the best possible time.”

The financial expert believes the main reason for the sluggish progress of digitalization is the high level of investment required to modify dunning processes. “The introduction of digital tools and processes calls for considerable financial resources in addition to having the right mindset,” says Hecking-Veltman. “At EOS, for example, we invested around 10 million euros in the last fiscal year alone in the digital upgrade of our core debt collection systems.”
  Germany Europe

Very high degree of digitalization at company

 5% 14%
High degree of digitalization at company

 21% 35%
Fully digitalized dunning system

 1% 17%
Dunning system largely digitalized

 33% 24%
Dunning system partially digitalized

 47% 38%
Dunning system barely digitalized

 17% 17%
 

About the representative EOS Survey “European Payment Practices” 2019

In partnership with independent market research institute Kantar, EOS conducted phone interviews with 3,400 companies in 17 European countries to ask them about the prevailing payment practices in their respective locations. In the spring of 2019, 200 companies (each with an annual turnover of more than EUR 5 million) in each of the countries Belgium, Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Croatia, Denmark, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Poland, Romania, Russia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Switzerland, and the UK answered questions about their own payment experiences and current issues relating to risk and receivables management. The annual survey has now been conducted by EOS no less than 12 times.

Downloads / further information

Please find more information on our study website.

About EOS Group

EOS Group is a leading international provider of customized financial services. As a specialist in the evaluation and processing of receivables, EOS deploys new technologies to offer its some 20,000 customers in 26 countries financial security through smart services. The company’s core business is the purchase of unsecured and secured debt portfolios. Working within an international network of partner companies, EOS Group has a workforce of more than 7,500 and over 60 subsidiaries, so it can access resources in more than 180 countries. Its key target sectors are banking, utilities, real estate and e-commerce. EOS is part of Otto Group.

More about EOS Group: www.eos-solutions.com

 

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