The number of Australian companies offering their customers credit terms has increased sharply over the past year, as has the level of overdue payments.According to the latest Coface survey of corporate credit risk management, a significant number of companies do not use any risk management tools to minimise or manage overdue payments, which suggests that the credit management sector of the financial services industry could be doing more to promote its services.According to the survey, which was released yesterday, 93 per cent of Australian companies offered their customers credit terms in 2012. In 2011, 63 per cent of companies offered their customers credit terms.Competitive pressure was the main reason for offering credit terms. In addition, more customers asked for credit terms to help overcome liquidity problems.The average term was 30 days, but about 20 per cent of companies were prepared to offer 60 days, and a small number offered 90 days or more.More than half the Australian companies surveyed (59 per cent) said more than three-quarters of their business was transacted using credit terms.Eighty-three per cent of companies had overdue accounts (unpaid after the due date indicated in the credit contract). Australia has the highest overdue rate among the seven Asia-Pacific countries in the survey.Thirty-four per cent of companies reported that their overdue accounts increased last year, and 23 per cent of companies reported that the average number of overdue days was more than 60.Respondents said the main reason accounts were overdue was that customers were in financial difficulty. Fraud was also a significant factor and was responsible for nine per cent of overdue payments.Twenty-four per cent of companies reported that they did not use any credit management tools to mitigate the risk or cost of overdue payments. Among the tools that were used, the most popular was credit agency reports, followed by credit insurance, debt collection service and factoring.