Debt Recovery Tips For Better Collections

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When you have an account of a customer or client that has not been paid in some time, you may have to become proactive in the recovery of this debt.  You can either try to collect it yourself or you can hire a collection agency to do the job for you. 

Make Communication Easy

One of the things any debt collector must keep in mind is the importance of communication.  Closing all avenues of communication will have detrimental effects on any future business between yourself, if you are the collector, or your client, if you are a hired collection attorney.  You want to try to avoid that situation, especially if the debtor has been a good customer in the past.  Most problems can reach a mutually beneficial conclusion if both sides communicate.  At the same time it is imperative that the debt be paid.  Respectful but firm reminders are the best way to make your point that the account needs to be paid.

Stay Organized

As a collection lawyer, you need to be organized.  Have the debtor’s file in front of you when you make that reminder phone call.  When you call, make a note of the date and time you place the call.  Also, write down whether your call was answered in person or by the answering machine.  If a person answered, write down who this person was.  It is also helpful if you make little notes about the content of the conversation.

Calls Must Be Respectful

The call to the debtor should not contain any objectionable language.  It should be firm but polite and without any harassment in tone or content.  No matter how frustrated you are, you have to stay within the guidelines of the law.  If the debtor seems to be stalling and after a preset amount of time there is no attempt to pay, you may have to go to the next step and involve the judicial system to recover the money owed to you.