A fuel jobber is part lender. You hand over high-value fuel and wait to be paid, on margins so thin that one bad debt can erase the profit from a lot of volume. That makes credit and collections a core discipline. This is how to get paid without souring the relationships that drive your business.
Why credit is central
Jobbers sell big volumes on thin margins and extend credit to customers, so a lot is owed at any moment and a single default hurts out of proportion. Managing who gets credit, how much, and how fast they pay is part of staying profitable, tightly linked to how a jobber makes money in the first place.
Setting terms
Start every account with a signed credit application and a credit check, and ask smaller or newer dealers for a personal guarantee so the owner stands behind the debt. Net 10 with payment by EFT is the common baseline term in wholesale fuel; tighten toward prepay for shaky accounts and loosen only as history earns it. Set a hard credit limit per account and revisit it as the customer grows or payment behavior changes. Then watch DSO, days sales outstanding, as the one number that shows whether the whole book pays on time.
The cost of loose collections
Cash tied up in slow receivables, and the risk of a bad debt that thin margins cannot absorb. Loose collections also let small problems grow: an account drifting from 30 to 90 days is far harder to recover. Timely collections protect both cash flow and margin, which is why receivables belong in every month-end review. FastDragon flags an account the moment it slips past terms, on accrual books that show what you are owed.
Collecting without losing the customer
Put the terms in writing before the first load, then act fast when a payment slips. One call in the first week fixes most late payments. Save holds and demand letters for accounts that stay behind after that, and the relationship survives the collecting.
Common questions
What does net 10 EFT mean in fuel sales?
Net 10 EFT means payment is due 10 days after the invoice date, pulled electronically from the customer's bank account instead of mailed as a check. It is the default across much of the wholesale fuel world because the dollars per load are large and EFT removes mail float and excuses. Riskier accounts get shorter variants, down to prepay.
What is a good DSO for a fuel jobber?
DSO, days sales outstanding, is receivables divided by average daily credit sales: how many days of sales sit uncollected. Judge it against your stated terms. If most accounts are net 10, a DSO in the low teens is healthy, and a DSO that creeps upward month over month is the earliest warning that collections are slipping.
Can a jobber secure a fuel account beyond a personal guarantee?
Yes. Common tools are a UCC-1 filing that takes a security interest in the customer's inventory or equipment, a letter of credit from the customer's bank, and cash deposits held against the account. Collateral turns a write-off into a recovery if the account fails, and stronger security supports a higher credit limit.
When should a jobber put an account on credit hold?
A common trigger is any invoice aging past terms plus a short grace window, or a balance over the credit limit. The hold means no more loads until the account is current or on a written catch-up plan. Fuel supply is strong leverage, since the customer's pumps run dry without it. Decide the trigger in advance and apply it evenly, so a hold reads as policy.
What receivables reports should a jobber review weekly?
An AR aging that buckets balances as current, 1-30, 31-60, and over 60 days past due; a list of accounts over their credit limit; and the DSO trend. Weekly is the right cadence for fuel because one customer can take several loads in a week, so exposure grows fast between monthly reviews.