Maybe you haven’t ever heard the term before. Perhaps you only think of debt collections in the traditional sense, generally debts over 90 days old that are deemed uncollectible by in-house methods. The fact of the matter is that you could be losing a lot of money during that critical first 90 days. The newer the debt, the more likely it is to be recovered. Therefore, most collection agencies charge a commission rate based on how old a debt is. The newer the debt, the lower the commission rate.
Early out collections, also known as Outsourcing, is the process of turning over debts to an agency at day 31. The debtor has been given 30 days to pay the bill or setup a reasonable payment plan, especially for self-pay patients. At day 31, a gentle reminder, or soft collection call is placed to try and turn this debt into revenue quickly, while the debt is still fresh on the debtor’s mind. Because these debts turn over so much faster, many companies opt to use a collection agency to outsource this work that would otherwise be handled in-house.
For small to medium size companies, in-house collection efforts can be a burden because generally the office manager, administrative assistant, and in some cases the receptionist, are tasked with making these calls until day 91 when they are typically handed off to the outside collection agency for traditional collections. This is one of the most flawed business practices that we see every day because the average office staff member is not a trained collection agent, and most of the time, companies that hold the debts do not have the technology in place to collect through a myriad of methods such as the use of virtual agents, chatbots, text message payments, online pay portals, and voicemail drop alongside a live, specially-trained agent. This equates to lost revenue and negates the purpose of debt recovery. The longer a debt goes unpaid, the likelihood of collection drops, so why trust these efforts to anyone but an experienced collection agency with collectors that have had decades of experience? Using an agency adept at collecting in the most efficient and professional way possible will reap a higher recovery rate.
Not all debt collection agencies are the same. For almost 60 years, Account Resolution Team has helped countless companies restore order to their revenue stream and financial records. We understand the nuances of doing business in our specialized industry, because we live and work in the same, tight-knit communities our clients do.
ART Is an agile team that takes client service personally. We honor the long client relationships we’ve built over the years. In fact, many of our clients become our partners through referrals.
Interested in learning about contingency-only collections with ART? Give us a call today! 423-586-7613.
