The short answer
Most late rent is forgotten rent, not refused rent. So the most effective step happens before the due date: a short reminder that rent is coming up. If rent still is not marked paid three days after the due date, one polite text usually settles it, as long as the wording thanks anyone who has already paid. Voco sends both by text, asks you before it sends a chase, and leaves every decision after that with you.
Why does a reminder beat a chase?
A tenant who has forgotten is not avoiding you. Their payday moved, a standing order failed, or the date slipped past during a busy week. A reminder before the due date catches all of those before they become arrears, and nobody has to have an awkward conversation.
A chase after the date is still useful, but it does a different job. It tells the tenant you have noticed, and it invites them to tell you when the money is coming. Done politely, it keeps the relationship intact. Done badly, it accuses someone who paid on time of not paying.
A simple schedule
| When | What | Who decides |
|---|---|---|
| Shortly before rent day | A friendly reminder text | Sent automatically, unless you switch it off |
| Rent day | Nothing. Give the payment time to arrive | n/a |
| Three days after rent day, if not marked paid | One polite chase text | Voco asks you first, by default |
| After that | A conversation, by you or your team | You |
One reminder and one chase per payment. No daily texts, and no escalation by message.
What should a rent reminder and a chase say?
The reminder before rent day:
"Hi Sam, a reminder from [Your agency]: your rent of £850 is due on 1 Dec. Thank you."
The chase, three days after the due date:
"Hi Sam, [Your agency] here. We haven't seen your rent of £850 due on 1 Dec yet. If you've paid, thank you and please ignore this; if not, please let us know when to expect it."
Two choices in that wording are deliberate. "We haven't seen" rather than "you haven't paid", because the money may be on its way. And "please let us know when to expect it", because a date from the tenant is worth more than an apology.
Why "ask me first" is the default
You often know things Voco does not. The tenant rang on Friday to say they will pay on the 5th. They paid in cash. Their housing payment comes on a different day. A chase in any of those cases damages trust for nothing.
So chasing is set to ask you first. Voco lists the late payment under Needs you and waits for your go-ahead before texting. If you find you approve every one unchanged, you can switch chasing to send on its own. The reminder before rent day is on by default, because there is no harm in a friendly heads-up.
Marking rent as paid
Voco does not connect to your bank. When rent arrives, mark it paid against the tenancy. A payment that is not marked stays unpaid in Voco, and if it is three days late it will come up for a chase. A minute a week keeping payments up to date is what keeps the chases accurate.
An earlier rent that is still unpaid stays on the list after the next rent day comes round, so a missed month does not quietly drop out of view.
Set the rent day to match how the tenant is paid
A lot of late rent is a calendar problem. If a tenant is paid on the 28th and rent is due on the 25th, they will be late every month without meaning to be. Where you can agree it at the start of a tenancy, set the rent day a few days after the tenant's payday. A reminder then lands when the money is actually in their account.
The same approach for inspection visits
Routine inspections go wrong for the same reason rent does: people forget. Voco can text the tenant a notice of a routine inspection with a link to say if the time does not suit, and a reminder the day before. Like the rent texts, these are short, polite and sent from your agency's name.
When should you stop texting and talk?
Texts are the first step, not the whole process. If rent is still unpaid after a reminder and a chase, the next move is a conversation, by phone or in person, to understand what has happened and agree a plan.
If arrears build, get proper advice before taking any formal step. The rules on tenancies and possession in England changed under the Renters' Rights Act 2025, and the right route depends on the tenancy. Voco does not give legal advice, and it does not send formal notices.
Setting it up
- Add each tenancy with the tenant's name, mobile number, rent and rent day.
- Leave rent reminders on, and decide whether chasing should ask you first (the default) or send on its own.
- Make marking rent as paid part of your weekly routine.
Landlords who manage their own properties can also have Voco answer tenant calls and route repair reports; see Voco for landlords and property managers. If your agency welcomes tenants on benefits, handling those enquiries fairly covers the questions to ask at the start.
Texts count towards your monthly spend cap, so nothing runs away with your budget. Voco costs about 29p a minute with no monthly fee and no contract.
Tenancies sit alongside certificates in Voco. See gas safety, EICR and EPC renewals for the compliance side, and the guide to AI for letting agents for how it all fits together.
