Debt Collections FAQs

I admit the rationale all agencies are the same is a common suggestion by credit professionals. We have heard this comment on many occasions, but I couldn’t disagree more. Saying all agencies are the same is like saying all steakhouses prepare their signature entrees in the same exact way. GHR prides itself on continually separating itself from the competition and immediately adding value into the relationship as an outside vendor.

From the onset of the relationship you are introduced to a consultant that has tremendous knowledge of credit and collections. GHR also provides you with a customer service representative that handles the day to day transactions and keeps you updated on the status of the accounts placed. A state of the art website with portal gives you an online window into the operation here at GHR. With nightly updated status reports, detail driven collector notes and the ability to forward placements through the portal the site is extremely user friendly and created to tailor to the client’s needs.

Most importantly at the end of the day we are looking to impress you with our recovery rate and feedback on each receivable placed. This is the true standard to which every agency is held to and we commit to work day in and day out to impress you in those areas. Our goal is to become an extension of your department’s collection process and work hand in hand to lower the DSO in a professional manner.

Once an account is placed with GHR is takes 24 hours for it to be imputed into our system and a collector assigned. You will receive an acknowledgement from us here along with the debtor being sent a letter on GHR letterhead communicating the debt has been handed over to us for collections.

Day one the collector is on the phone leaving voice messages and/or starting reconciliation of the debt. In the first week we are making daily calls to the debtor to reach them. We will face the same obstacles you faced in collections, but sometimes the sheer fact it has been escalated to a third party creates a sense of urgency.

We typically say in around 60 days we have a clear idea on where the debt stands. At that point we have retained some correspondence from the debtor and have a general idea on the financial state of the company you have placed. Our customer service department and status reports will keep you updated on any progress and if a payment or payments have been remitted you will receive notification as well.

If the check is sent to us here at GHR you will get a check number, date of check and dollar amount for your records. We will hold the payment for 14 days to make sure the funds clear then either remit the balance minus our fees OR payment in full with an invoice attached for our services. If the check was sent to your office we will notify you payment is on the way and request confirmation. You will then receive an invoice for our fees. We can also remit funds via wire for quicker turnaround. At the customer’s request we can also send one wire or check at the end of the month with a spreadsheet detailing the individual payments. This is all at the discretion of the customer.

If payment have not be secured we have still have not exhausted all efforts. GHR is a member of the Commercial Law League of America and we have a network of attorney around the country that can bring your cases to suit. If a file is closed our standard process is to forward the account to an attorney’s office in the area of the debtor and allow them the opportunity to recover the placement. At this time rates due change, but we are still working on a contingency basis.

We are able to work your receivables from start to finish and if closed still have some great information for you to hold on file.

A simple statement of account will suffice for us to start collections. We need the standard information on the debtor such as company name, phone number, address, contact name, email address, and dollar amount placed. This is outlined in a placement report I can forward to you via email as well.

If possible back up documentation from you would also be useful. A typical game the debtor plays is requesting that information once we get them on the phone. This is a stall tactic which is very common. If you have invoice copies, signed POs or contracts and your collector’s notes that information is all useful for us to hold on file.

We employee both low dollar and high dollar collectors here at GHR. This clears any conflict in collectors “cherry picking accounts” due to balance size which unfortunately comes into play with some agencies. Structuring our collection floor in this way and distribution of the placements allows the same attention to be given to each account. GHR collectors are goaled and commissioned directly into how many dollars collected on a monthly basis. So no conflicts are created and we maintain a professional yet aggressive approach to each file.

One of our strengths here at GHR is communication through our status reports. We feel strongly as we are an extension of your collections department that a reporting system is essential. These reports outline each placement. From debtor name, date of placement, dollar amount placed, amount collected, and collector code for each individual account. We can also customize these reports and add additional fields to duplicate a report you may run of your aging. From specific customer numbers to associated PO #s there is not much we can’t customize to your request.

The recovery rate of an agency is basically the pulse and key indicator of how well they are performing. With this said there are variables you may not think about at first that directly affect that number. From industry, to age of receivable, or debtor’s financial standings at time of placement. These all come into play when analyzing agencies percentages.

For example during the housing collapse in 2008 the industry saw a direct correlation with the building and material supply sector. The amount of placements rose but the recovery rate dropped as well. Due to the economic climate and contractors cash flow issues bills we not being paid and suppliers were feeling the effects. This is when time of placement is key. Getting the bills over to us and escalation done quicker leads to high recovery and you not left out in the dark.

Most don’t realize but commercial collection agencies are not required by law to be audited by an outside firm. GHR has gone to great lengths to remain transparent with our client trust funds and remittance policy compliance. There are too many horror stories out there of agencies not remitting funds and stealing cash from customers. The license obtained by GHR was taken out to let our clients rest easy we are holding to the highest standards in compliance as a third party collection agency.

The best third party agencies go into each and every partnership with this mind set. We are being hired by companies to become a part of their escalation process. Losing that perspective waters down the services were are willing to provide. We hold each and every customer relationship with genuine appreciation and commit to working on their behalf. This is your company’s receivables we are trying to collect and relationships with your clients solely left for us to manage. We require our staff to fully remember that and work professionally towards the same goals you have in place. Agencies that do not become a “true extension” of their client’s process are not adding the complete value need to sustain a relationship and grow with the customer’s needs and requests.