In an ideal world all of our clients would pay us on time and in full. Unfortunately sometimes this isn’t the case for all sorts of reasons some of which may be legitimate while others are simply delaying tactics.
Telling in the difference between the two can be hard but as a general rule you should always stick to your guns and ask that debts be repaid in full. If you don’t, you could find that late payments become a habit impacting on your cash flow and in extreme cases putting the future of your business in doubt. Paying by instalments might also come to be seen as the norm resulting in lots of extra unpaid admin work.
Unfortunately, there will be occasions where pride has to be swallowed and you will be forced to grant some concessions if you want to remain on good terms with your client. For example, the client may have cash flow issues themselves. If these are temporary and you are confident this is the case, then introducing a payment plan is better than getting nothing.
Any payment plan agreement must be put in writing so that you are covered in the event that payments are still not made. If a case goes to the small claims court, payment plans can muddy the water unless they are made official.