Selecting a credit debt collector is possibly the most challenging and crucial task. Some elements you need to consider while choosing a debt collector are:
- Experience and professionals
- Geographical existence
- Expertise
- Charges and charging design
- Consumer references
- Debt Collection Agency Provider has covered this topic in depth through numerous free collections reports and short articles on this website.
Action II - Hiring the Debt Collection Agency and Establishing Processes
When you choose the debt collector, the first two actions you need to take are:
Enter into a contract with the agency;
Establish procedures on how you are going to communicate with the agency.
You are likely to pass sensitive info to the collection agency such as your account receivables, customer contacts, item and services prices, etc. to help with faster debt collection. You desire to be sure that this information does not fall in the wrong hands.
Setting up procedures is a crucial step in dealing with the collection agency. The success or failure of your partnership will depend a lot on how distinct your procedures are and how strictly they are followed. Crucial procedures you need to define are:
Internal processes: You need to put in place a clear procedure on specifying uncollectable bill and referring the case to the collection agency. You don't want to refer the case to the collection agency before you make a genuine effort to gather the charges internally.
Details transfer: How will you transfer the information to the collection agency about your fees and defaulting clients, and how will you get the details from your debt collector? Debt collection software can make the information transfer process easy and secured.
Third party dealing: As discussed previously, it is crucial for you to make sure the security of the information you give to the collection agency. The debt collection agency may use several of its involved firms to obtain details about defaulting consumers. Hence you need to set up a clear protocol on how much information they can share with such third parties.
Interaction: You have to establish single point contacts for interaction within the business and the collection agency. In debt collection practices, the timing of interaction is extremely important and hence it will go a long way in deciding the success of your debt collection process. Again, the importance of debt collection software can not be overemphasized here.
Step III - Performance Monitoring
Once all processes are set, begin keeping an eye on the efficiency of the debt collection agency. This is a continuous procedure when handling a collection agency. Essential specifications to keep track of are:
Quantitative
- Number of cases referred to the credit debt collection agency and percentage of cases successfully solved by them.
- Percentage of debt recovered by the collection agency from all cases referred.
- Percentage of debt recuperated by the debt collector from fixed cases.
- Portion of quantity paid as fees/commission to the collection agency to the overall uncollectable bill cases described them.
- Average number of days taken by the collection agency for full/partial credit collection.
Qualitative
* How well do the collection agency specialists deal with your customers?
* Has the collection agency followed all legal requirements mentioned in the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act?
* Has the debt collector surpassed the arrangements of the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act?
* Has the debt collector followed all procedures and guidelines set by you?
Step IV - Agreement Closure
Ideally, the chosen debt collection agency will work best for you. But if it doesn't, then you need to move all your debt collection procedures from the agency. You should keep in mind the following crucial points when you are ending the agreement:
Confidentiality and non-disclosure provisions are applicable even after completion of the agreement with the debt collection agency in addition to its employees. The collection agency returns all files connected to your service and ruins all info related to your business from their information storage.
You are most likely to pass delicate info to the collection agency such as your account receivables, customer contacts, item and services rates, and so on to help with faster debt collection. Setting up processes is a very crucial action in dealing with the collection agency. The collection agency Zenith Financial Network Inc may use one or more of its involved companies to get info about defaulting customers. In debt collection practices, the timing of communication is exceptionally essential and thus it will go a long way in choosing the success of your debt collection process. If it does not, then you require to transfer all your debt collection procedures from the agency.
