Speed is Necessary in Debt Collection

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Which single element of debt collection contributes the most to the success, or failure, of receiving the payments you’re owed? Pin-pointing a single “most important” element of the process is difficult, but a strong case could be made for speed. The longer a debt is outstanding, the less likely it will be paid off, it’s as simple as that. For this reason, the most effective collection firms all work on the tightest timelines possible.

Many of our competitors will tell you that collecting outstanding debts takes a long time, and successful collections tend to occur at the end of an extended period of harassment and provocation. This is nonsense. With the right, respectful, and fully legal tactics, favorable debt collection will often occur within 30 days of handing your accounts over to a qualified collection firm. A truly qualified collection firm will be able to achieve fast results using the right combination of intelligently worded letters and non-harassing phone calls.

Cases that aren’t resolved by about a month’s worth of letters and phone calls aren’t going to be resolved by a year’s worth of letters and phone calls. For these accounts a different tactic is required- the threat, and eventual procedure, of legal action. If a debtor will only respond to legal action then there’s no reason to wait to levy this ace-in-the-hole. The explicit threat of legal action is often enough to elicit payment from stubborn problem debtors. For those debtors who still refuse to pay, court action is all but guaranteed to result in a ruling in your lender’s favor.

It doesn’t take a whole lot of time to determine whether a debtor will respond to conventional tactics or whether tougher measures are required. Once this determination is made, waiting around to proceed with those tougher measures will simply delay the receipt of your payments. 

Little Known Secrets for Collecting Judgments

Most debt collectors don't want to have to bring their debtors to court for the same reason why most debtors don't want to go to court. Going to court to settle a debt is an uncertain affair, it can be very expensive if you have to hire lawyers, and it is almost always a big interruption of your daily working life and routines. Yet there are a few little known secrets for collecting judgments which the most successful debt collectors understand, and which help them make court a worthwhile experience every time.

The first little known secret for collecting judgments is the fact you need to run the math and figure out whether a debt is worth bringing to court in the first place. Take out a piece of paper and draw two columns on it. In the first column write out how much money you have to gain from collecting on the debt which you're considering bringing your debtor to court over. In the next column write out and add up all of the expenses you can expect to incur from going to court. See if the numbers work out in your favor, and then decide whether to go to court or not.

Interestingly enough, the best secret for collecting judgments in court is a very simple, common sense one- you need to make sure you abide by the law throughout the entire process. The number one reason why you'll lose a court case against an individual who owes you a debt is if you break the law at any point in the process of attempting to collect from them. If your debtor can prove that you have harassed them, or if you otherwise violated one of their rights as a debtor, then you will lose your case. Most debt cases are yours to lose, so focus on making sure you abide by the law and your industry's best practices and you should do just fine collecting judgments.