Interested in debt collection news news and analysis?
Sign up today for our FREE newsletters and get them delivered to your inbox.
A debt collection agency is a firm that collects debt owed by an individual or business by utilizing debt collection strategies. Acting as an agent of the creditor, a debt collection agency will collect debts with a commission based on the debt owed. Debt collection agencies may utilize receivables technology (such as call centers or automated dialers) or other debt collection strategies to recover debt.
Creditors pass debts on to a debt collection agency so that they are wiped from their accounts receivable records. If the amount recovered by the debt collection agency is less than what is owed, the difference is recorded as a loss. Debt collection occurs in credit card receivables and the telecom industry. A debt collection agency is subject to regulations such as the Fair Collection Practices Act (FDCPA) and must adhere to legal debt collection strategies. Accounts receivable data security is also an important factor for debt collectors.
Free reports on debt collection from insideARM:
Advertisement
Ontario - Collect Savvy
Ontario Systems offers state of the art technology, allowing you to increase your collections through innovation rather than effort. That’s Collect Savvy.
News Headlines
- AHA Seeks Changes to IRS Form Detailing Charity Care, Debt Collection Practices 3/19/10
- Accounts Receivables Management Industry Calls On Congress to Keep FTC As Exclusive Regulator 3/19/10
- ARM Leaders Discuss New Consumer Financial Protection Proposal 3/18/10
- Civil Suits Against ARM Companies Soar in 2009: U.S. Courts 3/17/10
- Portfolio Recovery Associates Expands Legal Services with Acquisition 3/16/10
- Dept. of ED Releases Performance Report for January 3/15/10
- Asset Acceptance Reports Loss for Q4 and Full Year 2009 on Impairments 3/11/10
- Debt Collection Agency to Bring 1,200 Jobs to Kansas 3/9/10
- Exploring Rising Complaints Against Debt Collectors 3/5/10
- Collection Agency Settles FTC Credit Reporting Charges for $1 million 3/4/10
- Experts Say New Credit Card Rules will Significantly Impact ARM Industry 3/3/10
- Rent-a-Center Settles Debt Collection Probe for Nearly $350,000 3/2/10
- Collection Law Firm Mann Bracken to Liquidate in Receivership 3/1/10
- FTC Reports Jump in Debt Collection Complaints 2/26/10
- Numbers from the ARM Industry’s First Virtual Trade Show 2/26/10
- Phony Health Insurance Plans on the Rise, Impacting Collections 2/25/10
- Credit Card ARM Inventory to Remain Strong as Charge Offs Spike 2/24/10
- SIF Strategies Differ Between Collection Agencies and Debt Buyers 2/23/10
- Bills Introduced in State Legislature Target Debt Buyers 2/22/10
- State AG Settles Charges Against Three Debt Collection Agencies for $404,000 2/19/10
- Fed Official Details Debt Buying Industry Situation at Trade Show 2/19/10
- Rising Strategic Mortgage Defaults Broadly Impacting Debt Collection Industry 2/18/10
- insideARM’s EXPO 3.0 Virtual Exhibition is Live Today 2/16/10
- Portfolio Recovery Fourth Quarter Net Income Up 17 Percent on Record Revenues 2/12/10
- Exhibitors Gearing Up as Curiosity Grows About Online ARM Expo 2/10/10
- Encore Capital Group Reports Big Fourth Quarter and Full Year 2009 2/9/10
- FTC Returns $1.6 Million to Consumers Scammed by Bogus Debt Collector 2/8/10
- Department of ED Releases First Performance Reports for New Collection Contract 2/5/10
- Proposed FCC Change to TCPA would Negatively Impact ARM Industry 2/4/10
- Court Decision Raises Questions About Collecting in Validation Period Under FDCPA 2/3/10
- ARM Industry Confidence Slips Due to Tempered Economic Expectations 2/2/10
- U.S. Government to Pay $7.4 million in Debt Collection Class Action Settlement 1/29/10
- California Debt Collection Agency Steps Up to Fight Obesity 1/29/10
- American Debtor Pool Undergoing Massive Demographic Shift 1/28/10
- Text Messaging As the Next Frontier in Collection Communication 1/27/10
- Politicians Still Arguing Over Debt Collection Regulation 1/26/10
- State Attorney General Goes After Capital One for Debt Collection and Re-Aging 1/25/10
- Appeals Court Rules For Collectors in FDCPA Class Action Case 1/22/10
- Derailed Health Care Reform Effort Will Not Mean Business as Usual for ARM Industry 1/21/10
- New ACA CEO Lays Out Agenda for ARM Industry 1/19/10
- State Issues Suspension Order to Debt Collector Mann Bracken 1/15/10
- Supreme Court Hears Oral Arguments in FDCPA Case 1/14/10
- FTC Asking for Detailed Portfolio Information from Debt Buyers 1/12/10
- Two State Attorneys General Take Action on Debt Collection Agencies 1/11/10
- Debt Collection Supervisors Settle FTC Charges 1/8/10
- ARM Leader Poised to Start New Chapter as Bankruptcy Court Judge 1/7/10
- FTC Orders Buyers of Consumer Debt to Submit Information for Study of Debt Purchasing Industry 1/6/10
- KGC Facilitates the Sale of O’Connor-Ravell Associates to Commercial Collection Corporation of New York 1/4/10
- Best Places to Work in Collections Winner Profile: Williams & Fudge 12/21/09
- Supreme Court Cases Could Have Significant Impact on ARM Industry 12/17/09
Analysis Headlines
- Valuation Trends in the ARM Industry
- ARM Industry Legislative Primer
- How Do Collection Industry Employees Feel About their Employers?
- M&A Activity in the Accounts Receivable Management Industry: Early Signs 2010 Will Be a Stronger Year
- The Fine Art of Interviewing - Getting Really, Really Specific
- Using Decision Analytics to Increase your Collections and Net Back.
- Understanding the Shift Toward Consumers in the ARM Legal Landscape
- Collecting During the Christmas Season
- Preparing for the Post-Recession Collections Environment
- Strategic Planning for 2010: Driving Sales Results
- The Secret Weapon in Attracting Quality Candidates: Better Job Ads
- What to Expect at EXPO 3.0; Getting The Most out of a Virtual Exposition
- Rebuilding America...One Credit Score at a Time
- Understanding Debtors in a New Technology Environment
- Creditors Are Shifting Strategy: Soon, Less will be More
- Does Your Online Advertising Pass the Stress Test? Eight Questions to Answer Before Your Next Campaign
- The Collections Quandary: Tripped by a Cell Phone No More
- Loan Modification and Delinquency Management Approaches that Build Loyalty
- SearchReceivables.com - A New Way to Find Suppliers
- Six-Sigma Methodologies Can be a Fit for ARM Firms
- Recovery Management: Best Practices for Managing Collection Agencies
- Making your First Impression Count with Consumers
- Consumer Credit At Risk On The Rise
- Interview: Louis Summe, Co-Founder and CEO of LiveVox
- Survival Tips to Weather the Economy for Bankcard/Credit Card Agencies
- Medical ARM Firms Feeling Pressure of a Sour Economy
- Banks Show Sliding Confidence on Collection Prospects, But Expect Rebound: Survey
- Data Causing Concern for Credit Card Market
- Managing Collection Processes in Uncertain Credit Markets
- Collection Agencies Shifting Strategies in Rough Economy: Survey
- $28 Million FTC Settlement with Bear Stearns/EMC Mortgage has Significant Impact on ARM Industry
- Healthcare Self-Pay Collection - Recover from Those Who Can Pay
- What is UR txt msg str@tegy?
- Improving Deceased Account Collections Performance Without Sacrificing Client Brands
- The Art of the Talk Off Can be Taught
- Kaulkin Ginsberg to Present the Best Places to Work in Credit and Collections
- Interview: John McNamara, Chief Marketing Officer at LiveVox
- Collections Management Requires a Plow Horse, Not a Show Horse
- Leveraging Technology: Automated Collections
- Consumer Gloominess Likely to Continue to Pressure Collections
- Survey Shows Tough Times But Rosier Outlook for Collectors
- Leveraging Analytics to Prioritize Collections Efforts and Increase Return on Investment
- The 5 E’s: A Creditor’s Guide to Managing Outside Collection Agencies
- A Customer in Bankruptcy
- Sales and Collection Departments Need to Work Together for Company Success
- Compliance Essential for Effective Accounts Receivable Management
- NCO’s OSI Purchase Helps More Than Just NCO in Government Markets
- Economy Creating a Challenging Collections Environment
- The Tangled Web of Google Health – Online Medical Records Could Change Healthcare Receivables Strategies
- Good Cop-Bad Cop and Other Techniques for Small Business Collectors
Research Headlines
- Kaulkin Report 7 Excerpt - Bankruptcy Reform
- Kaulkin Report 7 Excerpt - Investments in Technology Required for Improved Efficiency
- Kaulkin Report 7 Excerpt - More Household Income Used to Repay Debt
- Kaulkin Report 6th Edition - Convergence Pricing Outlook
- Kaulkin Report 6th Edition - Mergers & Acquisitions
- Healthcare ARM Report - Healthcare Sector of the ARM Industry
- Kaulkin Report 6th Edition - Legal Framework
- Kaulkin Report 6th Edition - Globalization Outlook
- Kaulkin Report 6th Edition - M&A Outlook
- Kaulkin Report 6th Edition - First Party Collections
- Kaulkin Report 6th Edition - Collection Law Firms
- Kaulkin Report 6th Edition - Debt Buying
- Kaulkin Report 6th Edition - Pricing Outlook
- Kaulkin Report 6th Edition - Contingency Collections
- Kaulkin Report 6th Edition - Offshoring
- Kaulkin Report 6th Edition - Technology Vendors
Press Releases
- Executive Change: Regina Weir Named Chief Personnel Officer at MRS 3/22/10
- CAI Gets New Look, Launches Portal for Creditors and Consumers 3/22/10
- Executive Change: Brian J. Wasilewski Appointed CEO of HBCS 3/22/10
- Austin EMS Scores MSB Highest Based on Its Demonstrated Government Collection Experience 3/19/10
- Apollo Health Street to Provide Accounts Receivable Management for St. Mary’s Health System of Evansville, Indiana 3/19/10
- Courts Today and Government Revenue Collection Association Team-Up to Improve Government Collections 3/19/10
- TranDotCom Partnership Provides Debt Management Integration 3/18/10
- Lemberg & Associates Files Class Action Suit Against Predatory Debt Collection Practices 3/18/10
- Ontario Systems Announces Strategic Alliance with State Collection Service, Inc. 3/17/10
- Collection Agency Takes Pledge to End the “R-word” 3/17/10
- Esker Offers New Service for Delivery of Collection Documents 3/16/10
- Jumpstart Coalition Honors ACA International Education Foundation Chair 3/16/10
- LiveVox to Present at ACA’s Spring Forum 2010 3/16/10
- TEC Services Group Launches Analytics Division 3/15/10
- MSB Jumps In To Help Governments Reduce Costs 3/15/10
- Maxwell, Turner & Associates Expands Medical Collections Department 3/15/10
- Atlanta Debt Collection Law firm Receives Prestigous Recognition 3/12/10
- Dolphin Speakers Highlight Best Practices at SAP’s Financials 2010 3/12/10
- Executive Change: ACA International Announces New PR Director 3/11/10
- Aspect Positioned in the Leaders Quadrant for 2010 Magic Quadrant for Contact Center Infrastructure Worldwide 3/11/10
- Executive Change: Bill Barnshaw Named COO of MRS Associates 3/11/10
- IAT’s Hosted Services Provides Advanced Collection Services Unrestricted Access to Collection Success 3/10/10
- The National List of Attorneys Announces CreditorsRightsLawFirms.com 3/10/10
- Executive Change: Gary Moore Named Associate Partner at The Intelitech Group 3/10/10
- Executive Change:Gary D. Turner Joins Southwest Credit as Vice President of Sales 3/10/10
- Debt Resolve Announces Signing of Top 5 Global Bank Client 3/10/10
- RevQ Announces Webinar Series to Help Government Collectors Strengthen Revenue Recovery 3/10/10
- FDCPA, Other Consumer Rights Lawsuit Stats 3/10/10
- Executive Change: Squaretwo Financial Names Kim Bingham SVP, Human resources and Organizational Development 3/9/10
- Concuity Wins New Revenue Cycle Management Customer With ClearContracts 3/9/10
- LiveVox Enhances High Balance Contact Suite with Scheduled Callbacks 3/9/10
- NCO Group Announces Expansion of Its Healthcare Remittance Processing Service Solution 3/5/10
- The National List of Attorneys, Live at their EXPO 3.0 Booth in March 2010 3/5/10
- TASC Executive Director to Discuss Debt Settlement at Collections & Credit Risk Conference 3/5/10
- Executive Change: Scott DeWitt to ACT as Senior Division Manager 3/5/10
- TASC: Consumers Must be Vigilant When Assessing Credit Options 3/4/10
- Grimley Financial Corporation Celebrates 25 Years 3/3/10
- Persolvo Data Systems Enable a Single Debt Settlement Negotiator to Complete 404 Settlements in January 3/3/10
- New Edition: International Debt Collections Handbook! 3/3/10
- Research and Markets: An Essential Report on Credit Collections and Services 3/3/10
- Executive Change: SquareTwo Financial Names Rick Roth Chief Marketing Officer 3/2/10
- IAT Celebrates 24 Years of Dialing Technology Success 3/2/10
- USOBA to Speak at National Collections and Credit Risk Conference 3/2/10
- Executive Change: Portfolio Recovery Associates Names John Fain and John Fuller to Its Board of Directors 3/1/10
- TransUnion: National Auto Loan Delinquency Rates Remain Flat in Fourth Quarter 2009 3/1/10
- Consumer Sues Florida Debt Collector for $800, Receives $120,000 3/1/10
- Aktiv Kapital Maintains Profitability in Challenging Market 2/26/10
- Arctic Collect Launches Micro-Enterprise Collection Software 2/25/10
- Local, small business contributes to Haiti relief through the American Red Cross. 2/25/10
- Kinne, Leib, McNamara, and McNaughton Join collector mentor™ Editorial Board 2/25/10
