Our Collection Process

  1. Immediately following placement, the first official written notice will be sent to the debtor/guarantor informing them that collection action has been put in place.

    Upon assignment to an Account Manager, personal contact is attempted, and a demand for payment in full is made.

    Accounts deemed not collectable, are referred to management for review, regardless of amount. Accounts that appear to be uncollectible — such as instances of incarcerations or bankruptcies — are placed in a suspended status by A/R Credit Collections Bureau management. After reviewing the account, if management feels that further activity is warranted, the account is either returned to the Account Manager or placed with a Supervisor for follow-up.

  2. Accounts deemed to be “skips” (debtors whom appear to have left their last known residence with no known forwarding or contact information) are processed through our information databases in an attempt to retrieve updated or new information, and then placed back into the care of Account Managers for immediate follow-up. This process, called Skip Tracing, is performed in over half of A/R Credit Collection Bureau's open accounts.

  3. Using a firm but friendly approach, Account Managers perform what is called the “Q and F talk-off.” Debtors are asked specific “qualifying” questions to determine if the account is collectible, and how the account will ultimately be “finalized” through payment, searching for assets, or litigation.

  4. All possible resolutions for payment in full are attempted before a payment plan is considered, and a subsequent payment application is filed before an amount is established. A/R Credit Collection Bureau requires a complete financial analysis of debtors to determine if a payment plan is the only option for account resolution.

Credit Agency Reporting

Reports to credit agencies are made sixty (60) days after accounts are assigned for collection. Accounts paid within the first sixty (60) days after assignment will not be reported to credit agencies, thus raising client's overall recoveries. Accounts that are paid in full after the first sixty (60) days will be given a status change to “paid account.” Accounts that are disputed during the initial sixty (60) day period will not be reported until the dispute is resolved. Accounts that are disputed after the initial sixty (60) days and have been reported will either be, a) re-classified as a disputed account, or b) deleted until the dispute can be resolved. Decisions as to the change in status or deletion are made on a case-by-case basis by A/R Credit Collections Bureau management.

Legal Proceedings

After exhaustive attempts to collect debt have failed, we may determine that the debtor will not pay voluntarily, but has the means to pay through litigation. Legal collection procedures are decided on a case-by-case basis, and are only pursued when necessary to insure collection. Accounts under $500 are referred for legal action depending upon verification of available assets. Accounts over $500 are referred for legal action for the purpose of recording abstracts as well as asset liquidation. All clients will receive a “legal assignment” notice for approval and authorization, which must be signed and returned before legal action begins. This provides the client with the final say regarding whether or not to pursue legal action to recover the claim.