How to use FreeAgent's Cashflow functionality

This article explains how to use FreeAgent’s Cashflow functionality. It includes information to help you understand the data in your Cashflow report and then export it. The article also explains how to use the Cashflow dashboard to complete certain FreeAgent tasks.

Please note that FreeAgent’s Cashflow functionality is available to users with level 7 access or above.

Navigating to the Cashflow feature

To access the Cashflow area of your FreeAgent account, navigate to the ‘Banking’ tab at the top of the screen and select ‘Cashflow’ from the drop-down menu.

The Cashflow area displays a range of data based on the transactions in your FreeAgent account. The data will update automatically each day.

Understanding the data in your Cashflow report

This ‘Cashflow’ graph provides a visual representation of your forecasted cashflow over the next 90 days. You can change your view of the graph to show either your balance or your ingoing and outgoing transactions by using the drop-down menu on the right-hand side above the information panel. You can also customise the data that FreeAgent displays in your Cashflow report.

The information panel displayed to the right of the graph shows amounts for:

• today’s balance (this is the amount of cash that FreeAgent calculates is in your business at today’s date - remember to exclude any bank accounts, including loan accounts, from your Cashflow report if you don’t want them to be included in today’s balance)
• a forecasted incoming amount for the next 90 days
• a forecasted outgoing amount for the next 90 days
• a predicted balance in 90 days’ time

Shortfall prediction

This section reflects the number of days in which FreeAgent forecasts that the total of all your included bank balances will reach £0.

Suggested actions

This section includes some suggested steps to help you manage your business's financial health such as paying upcoming bills, explaining bank transactions and managing overdue invoices. FreeAgent suggests these actions based on your business’s forecasted balance and shortfall prediction, as well as the other information in your account.

Incoming

Details of all the incoming payments that FreeAgent expects you to receive in the next 90 days (please note that the feature is set up to expect each overdue invoice payment to arrive on tomorrow's date).

Outgoing

Details of all the outgoing payments that FreeAgent expects you to make in the next 90 days.

Exporting your Cashflow report

You can export a list of all the incoming and outgoing events that FreeAgent has included in your cashflow calculation, along with a running balance.

To do this, select ‘Export Report’ in the top-right corner of the Cashflow area and select either ‘CSV’ or ‘PDF’ from the drop-down menu, depending on your preferred file format.

The report file will download automatically.

Sending ‘Quick Send’ invoice reminders from the Cashflow dashboard

If you have a ‘Quick Send’ invoice reminder email template set up, select the three dots next to the invoice in the ‘Incoming’ section and select ‘Send reminder’.

To view a preview of the email reminder before sending it to your customer, select ‘Preview reminder’ from the drop-down menu.

Select ‘Send Email’ to complete the process and send the email reminder to your customer. Please note that the option to send a reminder from the Cashflow dashboard will remain visible after sending an invoice reminder to your customer.

If you don’t have a ‘Quick Send’ email reminder template set up, select the three dots next to the invoice in the ‘Incoming’ section and select ‘Create Quick Send template’.

Select ‘Save Quick Send Reminder Template’ to complete the process and send the email reminder to your customer.

Paying bills from the Cashflow dashboard

To pay a bill using Payit™, select the three dots next to the bill in the ‘Outgoing’ section and select ‘Pay Bill’.

Select ‘Payit™’ in the ‘Pay this bill’ area on the right-hand side to complete the process.

Please note that Payit™ is only available if you have full (level 8) access to your FreeAgent account and if a NatWest, Royal Bank of Scotland or Ulster Bank NI business bank account is marked as your primary bank account in FreeAgent. You will also need to have entered the supplier’s bank details in their contact page in FreeAgent.