PROUD DEBT COLLECTOR?

TCM wallet doctor

Can one be proud to be a debt collector? Am I a proud debt collector? I was asked this question twice in the last weeks, first by a politician, then by a colleague abroad.  The answer is: ‘no’ and ‘yes’.

NO: who would be proud of a shameful, senseless and unprofitable job?

It seems that some people associate debt collectors with heartless creatures feeding greedily on impoverished victims by attempting ruthlessly to root out a few cents from them.

If that is true, this job is dreadful. If that is true, debt collection is a senseless activity as it must be very hard and unprofitable to try and extract money where there is none.  And who could be proud of a disgraceful yet mostly unsuccessful – hence stupid job?

YES: the debt collector and the debtor avoid efforts and costs; the creditor can invest and develop.

Daily business shows that most unpaid bills are not due by insolvent debtors. About 15% of receivables we handle (hence 15% of about 4% of the creditors’ invoices) are linked with cash strapped debtors. Thus about 85% of the receivables we are entrusted are caused by a wide variety of reasons (invoice not received, long term debtor absence or unavailability, inadequate product or service, faulty delivery, debtor distraction, and so on) including sometimes a – more or less conscious – debtor negligence. Luckily pure bad will remains scarce.

Tribunal or dialogue

The instinctive solution of an unhappy creditor is the tribunal to seek a sentence ordering payment by the debtor. This appeases the creditor as, frequently ill-informed about the debtor’s motives and frustrated of his money, the creditor usually castigates the debtor right away. But justice requires time and money. Eventually, the long-awaited payment might be cashed; but this is unpredictable.

That is why the debt collector praises dialogue. For centuries, dialogue proved quicker, cheaper and less inconvenient than tribunals.

Indeed, for the 15% who cannot pay anyway, the collector’s job is to assess the consistency of this condition. Then all he can do is to close the claim or, as it may happen, reschedule at medium or long term. Indeed, except where a rich debtor’s uncle is keen to jump in (and these uncles have always been scarce), there is no immediate clearance possible (even with a court order).  Through intelligent communication, the debtor and the collector avoid useless work and costs, in particular the courts procedures.

For those who can pay but don’t, dialogue is usually more effective at triggering payment. Moreover, all parties are generally happy at the end of the process – leaving the creditor and the debtor in a positive relationship. At TCM, 99 claims in a hundred are resolved out of courts. This means that less than one percent are solvent debtors that refuse to settle a claim to a well performing creditor.

Invest and thrive

A debt collector irons out problems and suggests reasonable solutions. As he is not involved in the causes of the debt, he has no hard feelings and can better listen. In addition, he has specific tools to follow-up and manage the claim (follow up systems, access to useful information).

As the debt collector collects relatively quickly and inexpensively, the creditor can invest this cash flow in many ways, including in growth and job creation.

For debtors, costs are kept at low levels. Moreover, consumers benefit from an on hand amicable debt collection system: it eases access to credit at reasonable conditions and globally, a better economy.

For the wider society, the debt collector helps reduce the cost of our Justice system (with less cases going to court) and hence the tax burden funded by us all.

Conclusion

Through his professionalism and listening skills, the debt collector avoids the unnecessary use of heavy weaponry to settle what usually turns out to be a misunderstanding. It saves time, money and anger.

Concluding: yes, definitely, we are proud of collecting debts.  But maybe we need a new name for our business: Wallet Doctor.

Etienne van der Vaeren

PROUD DEBT COLLECTOR?

TCM wallet doctor

Can one be proud to be a debt collector? Am I a proud debt collector? I was asked this question twice in the last weeks, first by a politician, then by a colleague abroad.  The answer is: ‘no’ and ‘yes’.

NO: who would be proud of a shameful, senseless and unprofitable job?

It seems that some people associate debt collectors with heartless creatures feeding greedily on impoverished victims by attempting ruthlessly to root out a few cents from them.

If that is true, this job is dreadful. If that is true, debt collection is a senseless activity as it must be very hard and unprofitable to try and extract money where there is none.  And who could be proud of a disgraceful yet mostly unsuccessful – hence stupid job?

YES: the debt collector and the debtor avoid efforts and costs; the creditor can invest and develop.

Daily business shows that most unpaid bills are not due by insolvent debtors. About 15% of receivables we handle (hence 15% of about 4% of the creditors’ invoices) are linked with cash strapped debtors. Thus about 85% of the receivables we are entrusted are caused by a wide variety of reasons (invoice not received, long term debtor absence or unavailability, inadequate product or service, faulty delivery, debtor distraction, and so on) including sometimes a – more or less conscious – debtor negligence. Luckily pure bad will remains scarce.

Tribunal or dialogue

The instinctive solution of an unhappy creditor is the tribunal to seek a sentence ordering payment by the debtor. This appeases the creditor as, frequently ill-informed about the debtor’s motives and frustrated of his money, the creditor usually castigates the debtor right away. But justice requires time and money. Eventually, the long-awaited payment might be cashed; but this is unpredictable.

That is why the debt collector praises dialogue. For centuries, dialogue proved quicker, cheaper and less inconvenient than tribunals.

Indeed, for the 15% who cannot pay anyway, the collector’s job is to assess the consistency of this condition. Then all he can do is to close the claim or, as it may happen, reschedule at medium or long term. Indeed, except where a rich debtor’s uncle is keen to jump in (and these uncles have always been scarce), there is no immediate clearance possible (even with a court order).  Through intelligent communication, the debtor and the collector avoid useless work and costs, in particular the courts procedures.

For those who can pay but don’t, dialogue is usually more effective at triggering payment. Moreover, all parties are generally happy at the end of the process – leaving the creditor and the debtor in a positive relationship. At TCM, 99 claims in a hundred are resolved out of courts. This means that less than one percent are solvent debtors that refuse to settle a claim to a well performing creditor.

Invest and thrive

A debt collector irons out problems and suggests reasonable solutions. As he is not involved in the causes of the debt, he has no hard feelings and can better listen. In addition, he has specific tools to follow-up and manage the claim (follow up systems, access to useful information).

As the debt collector collects relatively quickly and inexpensively, the creditor can invest this cash flow in many ways, including in growth and job creation.

For debtors, costs are kept at low levels. Moreover, consumers benefit from an on hand amicable debt collection system: it eases access to credit at reasonable conditions and globally, a better economy.

For the wider society, the debt collector helps reduce the cost of our Justice system (with less cases going to court) and hence the tax burden funded by us all.

Conclusion

Through his professionalism and listening skills, the debt collector avoids the unnecessary use of heavy weaponry to settle what usually turns out to be a misunderstanding. It saves time, money and anger.

Concluding: yes, definitely, we are proud of collecting debts.  But maybe we need a new name for our business: Wallet Doctor.

Etienne van der Vaeren

Don’t wait another second – collect your money

Focus on your business, we’ll take care of your outstanding payments. Contact us to find out more.

Don’t wait another second – collect your money

Focus on your business, we’ll take care of your outstanding payments. Contact us to find out more.