1. Order Management
  2. Overdue Balances and Collections
  3. Dunning
  4. Understanding Dunning Letter Templates
  5. Creating Dunning Template Records

Creating Dunning Template Records

On a dunning procedure, each dunning level that you add must be associated with a dunning letter template record. The dunning letter template record is where you select the template files to use for your dunning email letters and dunning PDF letters. This is how the system knows which template to use to send a dunning letter to a customer.

To create dunning template records, read the following topics:

Supported Languages for Dunning

The Dunning Letters SuiteApp currently supports the following languages:

Read Selecting a Default Language on a Dunning Template Record to understand the system behavior.

Selecting a Default Language on a Dunning Template Record

The dunning template record requires a default language for the PDF template and a default language for the email template so that the system can send a dunning letter even if there is no language template that matches the customer’s language.

Note:

The customer’s language is defined in the Language field of the customer record. All dynamic values in a Dunning letter are generated in the language set in the preferences. To set up the language go to Home > Set Preferences.

On the dunning template record, in the Language column, the first language that you add is automatically assigned as the default language. If you add more languages, you can change the default language for the dunning template record by clicking the appropriate box in the Default column.

Be aware of the following system behavior when using dunning template records:

Example 1 – Multi-Language Dunning Template Record

Language Template

Default

German – supported language

 

Greek – unsupported language

Yes

Dutch – unsupported language

 

Example 2 – Single Language Dunning Template Record (Supported Language)

Language Template

Default

French – supported language

Yes

To ensure you do not send a French letter to non-French customers, this French dunning template record must not be assigned to the dunning procedure of non-French customers.

Creating a Multi-Language Dunning Template Record

To create a multi-language dunning template record, refer to the following guide:

  1. Add languages to your company general preferences page. See Configuring Multiple Languages.

  2. In the Language field of customer records, select the customer’s preferred language. See Setting Preferences on the Customer Record.

  3. Create a dunning template record and add a template for each language. See Creating a Dunning Template Record.

  4. Create a dunning procedure and assign the dunning template record you created in Step 3. See Creating Dunning Procedures.

  5. Assign the dunning procedure you created in Step 4 to the customer who should receive dunning letters based on this template. See Assigning a Dunning Procedure to a Customer.

Be sure to read the following topics:

Creating a Single Language Dunning Template Record

To create a single language dunning template record, refer to the following guide:

  1. Add languages to your company general preferences page. See Configuring Multiple Languages.

  2. In the Language field of customer records, select the customer’s preferred language. See Setting Preferences on the Customer Record.

  3. Create a dunning template record that contains only one language. See Creating a Dunning Template Record.

  4. Create a dunning procedure and assign the dunning template record you created in Step 3. See Creating Dunning Procedures.

  5. Assign the dunning procedure you created in Step 4 to the customer who should receive dunning letters based on this template. See Assigning a Dunning Procedure to a Customer.

Be sure to read the following topics:

Creating a Dunning Template Record

Important:

Dunning template records must be created from the user interface only. This is because there are validations that are not supported in CSV import. Using CSV import to create dunning template records can result in errors such as missing default templates, multiple default templates, and multiple items with the same language.

Before creating a dunning template record, be sure to read the following topics:

Perform the following steps to create a dunning template record.

To create a dunning template record:

  1. Go to Dunning > Setup > Dunning Templates > New.

  2. Enter a name for the dunning template record.

  3. (Optional) Enter a description for the dunning template record.

  4. If you want to attach open invoices to dunning letters that use this template, check the Attach Copies of Invoices box. Attached copies of invoices are generated using the layout specified on the transaction form. For information about using custom layouts, see Custom Forms.

    When the Attach Copies of Invoices box is checked, the following option becomes available:

    • Only Overdue Invoices – Check this box if you want to attach to the dunning letter only posting invoices with due date and days overdue greater than 0.

      • For customer dunning, if you do not check this box, all open and posting invoices will be attached to the dunning letter.

      • For invoice dunning, if you do not check this box, single invoice found in the dunning evaluation results will be attached to the dunning letter.

      • For invoice group dunning, this box does not have any affect. All the invoices belonging to an invoice group are attached to the dunning letter.

      For more information, see Attaching Statements and Invoices to Dunning Letters.

  5. If you want to attach a customer statement to dunning letters that use this template, check the Attach Statement box.

    When the Attach Statement box is checked, the following options become available:

    • Only Open Transactions on the Statement – Check this box to show only open transactions on the statement.

    • Custom Statement Form – Select the statement form that you want to use for generating the statement. If you leave this field blank, the statement will be generated using the system preferred statement form and the layout specified on the custom form. For information about using custom forms, see Custom Forms.

    • Statement Start Date – Enter the number of days relative to the day of dunning evaluation, when the coverage of the statement will start. For example, if you enter 3, starting from three days after the dunning evaluation day and until the Statement Date, all customer transactions within this period will be included in the statement. Entering negative numbers is also valid. For example, if you enter -30, starting from 30 days before the dunning evaluation day until the Statement Date, all customer transactions within this period will be included in the statement. If you leave this field blank, all transactions in the customer's history will appear on the statement.

    • Statement Date – Enter the number of days relative to the day of dunning evaluation, marking the last day when customer transactions will be included in the statement. The date on that day will be the Statement Date indicated on the statement to be attached to the dunning letter. For example, if you enter 3, all customer transactions from the Statement Start Date until 3 days after the dunning evaluation day, will be included in the statement. If you enter -3, all customer transactions from the Statement Start Date until 3 days before the dunning evaluation day, will be included in the statement. The default value is 0, which is the day of dunning evaluation. If you leave the value as zero, all customer transactions from the Statement Start Date up to the dunning evaluation day will be included in the statement.

      Note:

      When the Dunning Letters SuiteApp is updated, the existing settings or parameters of the Dunning templates are retained. If you have not changed Dunning template settings since installation of the bundle, the default parameters in the templates are kept.

    Note:

    In invoice dunning and invoice group dunning, customer statements cannot be attached to the dunning letter. For more information, see Attaching Statements and Invoices to Dunning Letters.

  6. Click the Email subtab to add template files for sending dunning letters by email.

    The Dunning Email Template subtab is for the NetSuite email templates. The Dunning XML Email Template subtab is deprecated, but it is still visible on the Dunning Template record to ensure backward compatibility.

    1. In the Language column, select the language of the template file you want to add. The first language that you add is automatically assigned as the default language. If you add more languages, you can change the default language for the dunning template record.

      For more information, see the following topics:

    2. In the Email Template column, select the email template to use for the language.

    3. Click Add.

    4. Repeat these steps to add template files in various languages.

    5. In the Default column, check the box for the template that you want to use as the default. The system automatically assigns the first row as the default language. If you have templates in various languages, you can change the default language.

      Note:

      A dunning template record must have a default template for each type (PDF and Email). The system will display an error message when you try to save the dunning template record with a missing default template. A missing default template error may be caused by clearing the Default box of the default language or by deleting the row for the default language.

      For more information, see the following topics:

  7. Click the PDF subtab to add template files for the dunning PDF.

    1. In the Language column, select the language of the template. The first language that you add is automatically assigned as the default language. If you add more languages, you can change the default language for the dunning template record.

      For more information, see the following topics:

    2. In the Subject column, enter text to show on the subject line of the letter.

    3. (Optional) In the Header column, select the file to use for the header.

    4. In the Body Document column, select the file to use for the body of the letter.

    5. (Optional) In the Footer Document column, select the file to use for the footer.

    6. Click Add.

    7. Repeat these steps to add PDF template files in various languages.

    8. In the Default column, check the box for the template that you want to use as the default. The system automatically assigns the first row as the default language. If you have templates in various languages, you can change the default language.

      Note:

      A dunning template record must have a default template for each type (PDF and Email). The system will display an error message when you try to save the dunning template record with a missing default template. A missing default template error may be caused by clearing the Default box of the default language or by deleting the row for the default language.

      For more information, see the following topics:

  8. When you are finished adding the template files, click Save. You can now assign this dunning template record to a dunning procedure.

Viewing Saved Dunning Templates

Saved dunning templates can be viewed and edited at Dunning > Setup > Dunning Templates.

Editing a Dunning Template Record

You can edit a dunning template record if you want to do the following:

To edit a dunning template record, go to Dunning > Setup > Dunning Templates, and click the Edit link of a dunning template record.

Deleting a Dunning Template Record

You can delete a dunning template record if it is not associated with any dunning level.

In Edit mode, you can delete a template by placing your cursor over Actions on the template record, and clicking Delete.

Tracking Changes to a Dunning Template Record

You can track actions or changes to a dunning template record in the System Notes of the record.

On a dunning template record, click the Notes subtab and then click System Notes.

The System Notes logs changes to the fields of a dunning template such as the name, description, and the options to attach copies of invoices or attach a statement.

The System Notes in dunning template records is automatically enabled upon installation of the Dunning Letters SuiteApp.

For more information on using System Notes, see System Notes Overview.

Related Topics

Understanding Dunning Letter Templates
Creating Dunning Template Records
Best Practices for Creating and Using Dunning Templates
Creating Dunning Letter Email Templates
Creating Dunning Letter PDF Templates
Including Fields from the Transaction Saved Search in Dunning Templates
Including Information from NetSuite Records in Dunning Templates

General Notices