Past due accounts receivables are a constant problem with many businesses especially during any economic down turn. Sometimes the time and effort to get paid will exceed that needed to make your business grow and function efficiently. This makes an efficient system of contacting your past due accounts very important. There are basically four stages of debt recovery that are employed by businesses.

Initially a business that has past due account receivables will use its own resources to contact the customer. In most cases this is done with debt collection letters. Normally the first collection letter is sent out within 15 days after an account is past due. This is normally a gentle reminder that the account is past due and a request that they contact your business if there are any questions or they need assistance.

Second debt collection letters are normally sent after another 30 days have passed and the customer has not made contact with you. The letter should again state the amount that is past due and how long it is past due. Enclosed with the letter should be copies of the original invoice. Again you should urge the customer to make immediate contact with you. Offer incentives to make the payment and let them know that you are willing to work with them. Note that failure to take action could mean filing a report with the business credit bureau or turning the account over to a collection agency or a lawyer. Always include a self addressed envelope with a stamp to encourage a response.

If the past due account does respond to the second collection letter it is a good bet that further debt collection letters and contacts will be unsuccessful. You may consider using the telephone to contact the customer however you must be well prepared with a script that keeps you focused on the collection process. In most cases unless you have had the proper training telephone collections are best left to the experts.

The next step in the collection process is to employ a collection agency to recover your past due accounts. Collection agencies are expensive to use many times requiring large upfront fees. Online debt collection agencies are much less expensive many times costing less than 10 dollars per collection effort. In addition online debt collection allows the business owner to recover more of the debt and control the collection process from the businesses computers. Essentially an online debt collection agency uses professional debt collect letters to begin the collection process. Getting a collection letter from a professional collection agency has a chilling effect on most past due account holders.

If the efforts of an online debt collection agency are not effective then your only recourse is to sue the debtor. In many cases you can file in small claims court and manage the case yourself. However if the debt is substantial you will need the skills of an attorney to effectively sue the debtor. Obviously this is a very expensive option and thus the amount of the debt must be substantial to make the process worthwhile.

Whether you use an online debt collection agency, the courts or do the collections in house the process of collections is expensive and time consuming. Focusing your efforts through an effective process will help reduce the cost and increase the collection of your accounts receivables

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