Sunday, 4 September 2011
Deanem Collections: A very modern con.
Deanem Collections: A very modern con.: This week’s blog has been inspired by a case that is about to go through the courts and I hope it will prove to be a salutary lesson in why ...
A very modern con.
This week’s blog has been inspired by a case that is about to go through the courts and I hope it will prove to be a salutary lesson in why if sometimes an offer/proposal can be too good.
A couple of months ago we were contracted by John* a Solicitor as he was trying and failing to get a £20,000 debt settled from Fred* obviously before we could act I had to know the background and this was the story John told me.
It seems John knew Fred from a club they frequented, Fred came up to John in the bar one day and asked him if he would like to make some serious money. Well John like the rest of us was/is finding money tight was immediately interested. Fred explained that he was involved along with Bob* a nodding acquaintance of John in the purchase of a property but they were £2,500 short and they needed to complete the deal within 48 hours or the whole deal would collapse. Fred explained that even though he had in excess of £170,000 in his post office account it would take too long to access it and so they wondered if John would like to put up the shortfall. Fred promised John that if he did stump up the £2,500 he would receive £10,000 within 4 weeks. John was interested as the additional £7,500 would be very useful but being an intelligent man he was rightly concerned that it might be a con. Fred then played his masterstroke he not only showed John his Post Office book which showed a balance of £178,750.69 but said that of the money was not repaid he would agree to pay interest on the money until it was settled. John thought this sounded fair and agreed on the proviso that Fred agreed to pay £1,000 per month interest if the debt was not repaid by the agreed date.
The next day Fred accompanied John to the bank as he withdrew the £2,500, as they parted Fred reassured him that he would “definitely” get his £10,000 by the agreed date as he didn’t want to pay any extra in interest.
I’m sure you can guess what happened, yes you’re right John hasn’t seen a penny, and 9 months later John instructed Deanem to collect the debt. I explained to John that due to the fact that the interest charge could be classified as” Usury” it would be unlikely that we could force the debtor to pay the interest but we should be able to get the agreed debt settled. John was adamant that he was entitled to the interest as well and didn’t care what we had to do to get it!
When Sandra Field, my collections manager first spoke to Fred, he apologised and said it was never his intention to catch John but he was waiting for the deal to be completed however, if John wanted his money he would ask his “Dad” to get the money out of his saving account! He said that as they had to give notice for the withdrawal it would take a few days and as soon as he had the money, he would settle John’s account. This conversation took place at the beginning of June. At the beginning of July when Fred had been making different excuses and promises on a daily bases, Sandra warned Fred that if he didn’t settle we would serve him with a “Statutory Demand” on 8 July and once served and he did not settle he could be declared Bankrupt. The 8th duly arrived and the Statutory Demand was served on his home address, this action provoked a response from Fred’s mother who claimed that her son didn’t owe “Nuffink” and if anyone came near the house again “She’d have the law on to them”. Since that date Fred has continued to say that A) he has the money and will be paying the debt, on that day B) He has asked his “Daddy” to get the money, C) he was trying to raise the money the list goes on and on and on. Finally on Friday I lost patience with Fred and decided to call at his home to see as he now claimed he had the money if I could collect it and avoid the need to make him Bankrupt. Fred was aware that I was going to attend and when I arrived, I text him to let him know and received a text back that said “HAHA I don’t live there”
Unfortunately there is only one way this can now be settled that is through the courts and hopefully when Fred is ordered by a Judge, he will comply and finally settle his debt with John rather than face the prospect of loosing everything including his “Post Office” savings.
The sad thing is had John thought about it for more than 30 seconds he would have realised that there was a high chance that he was being conned and should have walked away.
I’m sure that there are many out there who if offered the same opportunity would have like John taken it, but please remember this con has been going on for as long as people have used money. If you’re still not sure go to your local Video/DVD reseller and rent out the BBC’s excellent programme Hustle.
While the above is true due to the fact that this case is about to go in to court all names have been changed.
If you would like to find out how this case ends or the work carried out by David & the Deanem Collections team, please either visit our website www.deanemcollections.co.uk or email David at david@deanemcollections.co.uk
A couple of months ago we were contracted by John* a Solicitor as he was trying and failing to get a £20,000 debt settled from Fred* obviously before we could act I had to know the background and this was the story John told me.
It seems John knew Fred from a club they frequented, Fred came up to John in the bar one day and asked him if he would like to make some serious money. Well John like the rest of us was/is finding money tight was immediately interested. Fred explained that he was involved along with Bob* a nodding acquaintance of John in the purchase of a property but they were £2,500 short and they needed to complete the deal within 48 hours or the whole deal would collapse. Fred explained that even though he had in excess of £170,000 in his post office account it would take too long to access it and so they wondered if John would like to put up the shortfall. Fred promised John that if he did stump up the £2,500 he would receive £10,000 within 4 weeks. John was interested as the additional £7,500 would be very useful but being an intelligent man he was rightly concerned that it might be a con. Fred then played his masterstroke he not only showed John his Post Office book which showed a balance of £178,750.69 but said that of the money was not repaid he would agree to pay interest on the money until it was settled. John thought this sounded fair and agreed on the proviso that Fred agreed to pay £1,000 per month interest if the debt was not repaid by the agreed date.
The next day Fred accompanied John to the bank as he withdrew the £2,500, as they parted Fred reassured him that he would “definitely” get his £10,000 by the agreed date as he didn’t want to pay any extra in interest.
I’m sure you can guess what happened, yes you’re right John hasn’t seen a penny, and 9 months later John instructed Deanem to collect the debt. I explained to John that due to the fact that the interest charge could be classified as” Usury” it would be unlikely that we could force the debtor to pay the interest but we should be able to get the agreed debt settled. John was adamant that he was entitled to the interest as well and didn’t care what we had to do to get it!
When Sandra Field, my collections manager first spoke to Fred, he apologised and said it was never his intention to catch John but he was waiting for the deal to be completed however, if John wanted his money he would ask his “Dad” to get the money out of his saving account! He said that as they had to give notice for the withdrawal it would take a few days and as soon as he had the money, he would settle John’s account. This conversation took place at the beginning of June. At the beginning of July when Fred had been making different excuses and promises on a daily bases, Sandra warned Fred that if he didn’t settle we would serve him with a “Statutory Demand” on 8 July and once served and he did not settle he could be declared Bankrupt. The 8th duly arrived and the Statutory Demand was served on his home address, this action provoked a response from Fred’s mother who claimed that her son didn’t owe “Nuffink” and if anyone came near the house again “She’d have the law on to them”. Since that date Fred has continued to say that A) he has the money and will be paying the debt, on that day B) He has asked his “Daddy” to get the money, C) he was trying to raise the money the list goes on and on and on. Finally on Friday I lost patience with Fred and decided to call at his home to see as he now claimed he had the money if I could collect it and avoid the need to make him Bankrupt. Fred was aware that I was going to attend and when I arrived, I text him to let him know and received a text back that said “HAHA I don’t live there”
Unfortunately there is only one way this can now be settled that is through the courts and hopefully when Fred is ordered by a Judge, he will comply and finally settle his debt with John rather than face the prospect of loosing everything including his “Post Office” savings.
The sad thing is had John thought about it for more than 30 seconds he would have realised that there was a high chance that he was being conned and should have walked away.
I’m sure that there are many out there who if offered the same opportunity would have like John taken it, but please remember this con has been going on for as long as people have used money. If you’re still not sure go to your local Video/DVD reseller and rent out the BBC’s excellent programme Hustle.
While the above is true due to the fact that this case is about to go in to court all names have been changed.
If you would like to find out how this case ends or the work carried out by David & the Deanem Collections team, please either visit our website www.deanemcollections.co.uk or email David at david@deanemcollections.co.uk
Saturday, 13 August 2011
Deanem Collections: What links having a cat spayed and credit control?...
Deanem Collections: What links having a cat spayed and credit control?...: "I’m grateful to Craig Lesser of Key Connectors for this weeks blog challenge.
Craig wanted to know if I could link the spaying of a cat a..."
Craig wanted to know if I could link the spaying of a cat a..."
What links having a cat spayed and credit control?
I’m grateful to Craig Lesser of Key Connectors for this weeks blog challenge.
Craig wanted to know if I could link the spaying of a cat and credit control and I pleased to report that I can. As a responsible pet owner Craig took the commendable action of taking his kitten to the vet and by haviong it spayed he was insuring that his pet would not be responsible for adding to the cat population. This precautionary action can be translated to helping a business maintain healthy cash flow, how so I can hear you ask.
Today, as I’ve pointed out in previous blogs it has now become the norm to instantly offer credit to all customers. The reason given is that if you don’t offer an average 30 days credit then the customer may not place the order with them, obviously in the current financial climate all orders are needed. However we can all be vigilant and responsible like Craig and carry out a simple credit check on new and existing clients.
Not long ago he only way to obtain a credit check/report was to use a specialist and licensed agency such as Deanem Collections, nowadays there are a number of options available. The first is to use Barclays Banks Credit Focus product, for £10 per month you can carry out an unlimited number of credit checks on limited companies. Unfortunately these reports are not available for non-limited entities such as partnerships or trading as, nor can they provide a report on individuals. If you need a report on either a partnership or a non-limited agency then I would recommend www.riskdisk.net if however you need to credit check an individual and you’re not registered with the Information Commissioner you will need specialist agencies such as Deanem Collections, who are licence by the Information Commissioner.
So what information can you find out, much will depend on who is providing the report. However having said that, the level of information available is limited by the constraints and parameters of the Data Protection Act.
A typical basic limited company report will provide you with the companies registered number and address along with details of the Directors, but not their home address. It will provide you with details of their last 3 years published trading figures (turnover, profit & loss etc), any adverse information such as CCJ’s (County Court Judgment). A report should also provide you with a suggested credit limit. The possible information available on a non-limited company report by its very nature is limited and I would suggest in these cases that a credit check should be carried out on the company’s principle officers.
At this stage I would like add a word of warning regarding CCJ information. Currently if a company or individual is the subject of a CCJ you will be able to find out the date it was registered, case no, amount and the court it was heard in, it will not tell you who the claimant was. If I’m carrying out a credit check and a CCJ has been registered I always recommend that before deciding to offer credit our client should speak to their potential client to find out the reason behind the CCJ. This way if say the Judgment was for the non-payment of a utilities bill and you’re selling widgets you may still wish to offer them limited credit. If however the Judgment was due to them not paying a trade invoice, you will probably not want to offer them any form of credit.
Please remember that a credit report can only provide a snap shot of a company’s current trading position and as such should be used as a guide when offering credit terms. At the end of the day it will always be your decision as to who is worthy of being offered credit.
I trust that you have found the above of interest and I look forward to answering Mr Neville Spears blog challenge of linking Salmon to credit control.
If you would like to find out more about David and or Deanem Collections Ltd please visit our website www.deanemcollections.co.uk or have a specific question please do not hesiatet to send David an email to david@deanemcollections.co.uk
Craig wanted to know if I could link the spaying of a cat and credit control and I pleased to report that I can. As a responsible pet owner Craig took the commendable action of taking his kitten to the vet and by haviong it spayed he was insuring that his pet would not be responsible for adding to the cat population. This precautionary action can be translated to helping a business maintain healthy cash flow, how so I can hear you ask.
Today, as I’ve pointed out in previous blogs it has now become the norm to instantly offer credit to all customers. The reason given is that if you don’t offer an average 30 days credit then the customer may not place the order with them, obviously in the current financial climate all orders are needed. However we can all be vigilant and responsible like Craig and carry out a simple credit check on new and existing clients.
Not long ago he only way to obtain a credit check/report was to use a specialist and licensed agency such as Deanem Collections, nowadays there are a number of options available. The first is to use Barclays Banks Credit Focus product, for £10 per month you can carry out an unlimited number of credit checks on limited companies. Unfortunately these reports are not available for non-limited entities such as partnerships or trading as, nor can they provide a report on individuals. If you need a report on either a partnership or a non-limited agency then I would recommend www.riskdisk.net if however you need to credit check an individual and you’re not registered with the Information Commissioner you will need specialist agencies such as Deanem Collections, who are licence by the Information Commissioner.
So what information can you find out, much will depend on who is providing the report. However having said that, the level of information available is limited by the constraints and parameters of the Data Protection Act.
A typical basic limited company report will provide you with the companies registered number and address along with details of the Directors, but not their home address. It will provide you with details of their last 3 years published trading figures (turnover, profit & loss etc), any adverse information such as CCJ’s (County Court Judgment). A report should also provide you with a suggested credit limit. The possible information available on a non-limited company report by its very nature is limited and I would suggest in these cases that a credit check should be carried out on the company’s principle officers.
At this stage I would like add a word of warning regarding CCJ information. Currently if a company or individual is the subject of a CCJ you will be able to find out the date it was registered, case no, amount and the court it was heard in, it will not tell you who the claimant was. If I’m carrying out a credit check and a CCJ has been registered I always recommend that before deciding to offer credit our client should speak to their potential client to find out the reason behind the CCJ. This way if say the Judgment was for the non-payment of a utilities bill and you’re selling widgets you may still wish to offer them limited credit. If however the Judgment was due to them not paying a trade invoice, you will probably not want to offer them any form of credit.
Please remember that a credit report can only provide a snap shot of a company’s current trading position and as such should be used as a guide when offering credit terms. At the end of the day it will always be your decision as to who is worthy of being offered credit.
I trust that you have found the above of interest and I look forward to answering Mr Neville Spears blog challenge of linking Salmon to credit control.
If you would like to find out more about David and or Deanem Collections Ltd please visit our website www.deanemcollections.co.uk or have a specific question please do not hesiatet to send David an email to david@deanemcollections.co.uk
Saturday, 30 July 2011
Deanem Collections: What links the Taming of the Shrew and Credit Coll...
Deanem Collections: What links the Taming of the Shrew and Credit Coll...: "This week’s blog has been inspired by Jacqui Frost of The Office Genie who challenged me to write a blog linking The Taming of The Shrew and..."
What links the Taming of the Shrew and Credit Collection?
This week’s blog has been inspired by Jacqui Frost of The Office Genie who challenged me to write a blog linking The Taming of The Shrew and credit control.
When I first received the challenge my mind went blank was it possible to link William Shakespeare’s masterpiece with credit control. But then I thought of the “Shrew” in Shakespeare’s tale Katherine & her sister Bianca. In the story Bianca is everything that Katherine is not she is soft-spoken, sweet and unassuming and is the one that all the men want to wed. The problem is that Bianca cannot get married until Katherine does. In the story Katherine is eventually “tamed” by Petruchio and eventually both Kate & Bianca find happiness.
There is a direct link between the characters and credit control and I hope this illustrates why I can make this statement. When I started in business over 30 years ago being allowed time to pay was not expected or demanded as it is today, you had to earn the right to be granted credit. Once you had proven yourself worthy of being offered credit and you had passed the vigorous vetting procedure, well OK it wasn’t that vigorous as it usually consisted of you providing 2 trade references. Obviously the salesman, or Bianca would be delighted and they soon became a “friend”. They would show you the latest goods, they would shower you with compliments etc etc.
Depending on the size of the company you were dealing with there would be at least 1 or 2 people, who were generally ladies who took care of the credit control for the company. These ladies could also be like Bianca as it was in their interest to be nice with customers who paid. However, if you didn’t pay your invoice Bianca would suddenly become Katherine.
I once met a Katherine when I was asked to meet Maggie* who was the credit control manager for a major publishing house. Maggie had a reputation for being a bit of a dragon and was for ever stopping new customers from obtaining credit and as such upset the sales team who found it hard to attract new advertisers who would not be granted credit. The board felt that while Maggie was doing a good job they wanted to know if she was acting unreasonably and asked me to carry out a review.
Maggie & I met for a cup of coffee and I found her to be charming very much like Bianca, she explained that before joining her present employer, she had been a tax inspector. It was her belief that if as long as a client let her know if there was a difficulty and sorted out a payment plan and stuck to it, she was happy. However woe betide anyone who did not keep their promise, as she then became Katherine. When I asked her how far she would go to get paid, she pulled out a portable credit card machine! She explained that she would attend exhibitions both here and abroad and if she saw an errant advertiser entertaining someone, she would march up to them and demand that they pay their overdue invoice.
I reported back to the board that Maggie was the perfect example of a competent credit controller whose goal was to insure that her company did not suffer from bad or late payers. John* the sales director asked what did I think of Maggies’ attitude to granting credit as it affected the sales staff’s ability to attract new customers as they wanted credit before placing an order. I explained that I felt Maggie was right and gave him my favourite analogy of not being able to go to Tesco, Sainsbury and Waitrose etc and fill up a trolley and then walk out with out paying. I finished my report by saying that I felt as long as they allowed Maggie to carry out her job the company would continue to grow and remain relatively debt free.
A few years later I met Geoff* who was the Chairman of the publishers at a networking event and as we both had some spare time I treated him to a coffee and asked how things were, howMaggie, John and the rest of the team that I had met were. Geoff explained that after Maggie had retired John had insisted that the company employ less of a Kate and more of a Bianca as he felt it would allow his team to take the company to the next level. Geoff then went on to explain that within a year the company had gone from having virtually zero debtors to over 15% and the majority of the debtors had come form new customers that had been signed up since Maggie retired.
When I asked him what he had done, he took a deep breath and said that he had begged Maggie to come back on a part time basis so that she could teach her successor how to do her job. When I asked Geoff how John took the news, he said that John had said that if Maggie came back he would leave because he felt that she stifled the sales team with her attitude. Geoff then smiled and said since Maggie had come back debts had fallen and while they had lost a small number of customers, the majority respected the fact that if they wanted to advertise within their titles then they had to follow Maggies’ rules.
While I have not used Maggie, Geoff’s or John’s real names the story is true. If you would like to know a bit more about the Taming of the Shrew or other works by Shakespeare I would suggest that you obtain a copy of To Be or Not To be, Innit by Martin Baum.
If you would like to challenge David to link a subject to credit control or like to know more about him or Deanem Collections Ltd please do visit our website www.deanemcollections.co.uk or send David an email david@deanemcollections.co.uk
When I first received the challenge my mind went blank was it possible to link William Shakespeare’s masterpiece with credit control. But then I thought of the “Shrew” in Shakespeare’s tale Katherine & her sister Bianca. In the story Bianca is everything that Katherine is not she is soft-spoken, sweet and unassuming and is the one that all the men want to wed. The problem is that Bianca cannot get married until Katherine does. In the story Katherine is eventually “tamed” by Petruchio and eventually both Kate & Bianca find happiness.
There is a direct link between the characters and credit control and I hope this illustrates why I can make this statement. When I started in business over 30 years ago being allowed time to pay was not expected or demanded as it is today, you had to earn the right to be granted credit. Once you had proven yourself worthy of being offered credit and you had passed the vigorous vetting procedure, well OK it wasn’t that vigorous as it usually consisted of you providing 2 trade references. Obviously the salesman, or Bianca would be delighted and they soon became a “friend”. They would show you the latest goods, they would shower you with compliments etc etc.
Depending on the size of the company you were dealing with there would be at least 1 or 2 people, who were generally ladies who took care of the credit control for the company. These ladies could also be like Bianca as it was in their interest to be nice with customers who paid. However, if you didn’t pay your invoice Bianca would suddenly become Katherine.
I once met a Katherine when I was asked to meet Maggie* who was the credit control manager for a major publishing house. Maggie had a reputation for being a bit of a dragon and was for ever stopping new customers from obtaining credit and as such upset the sales team who found it hard to attract new advertisers who would not be granted credit. The board felt that while Maggie was doing a good job they wanted to know if she was acting unreasonably and asked me to carry out a review.
Maggie & I met for a cup of coffee and I found her to be charming very much like Bianca, she explained that before joining her present employer, she had been a tax inspector. It was her belief that if as long as a client let her know if there was a difficulty and sorted out a payment plan and stuck to it, she was happy. However woe betide anyone who did not keep their promise, as she then became Katherine. When I asked her how far she would go to get paid, she pulled out a portable credit card machine! She explained that she would attend exhibitions both here and abroad and if she saw an errant advertiser entertaining someone, she would march up to them and demand that they pay their overdue invoice.
I reported back to the board that Maggie was the perfect example of a competent credit controller whose goal was to insure that her company did not suffer from bad or late payers. John* the sales director asked what did I think of Maggies’ attitude to granting credit as it affected the sales staff’s ability to attract new customers as they wanted credit before placing an order. I explained that I felt Maggie was right and gave him my favourite analogy of not being able to go to Tesco, Sainsbury and Waitrose etc and fill up a trolley and then walk out with out paying. I finished my report by saying that I felt as long as they allowed Maggie to carry out her job the company would continue to grow and remain relatively debt free.
A few years later I met Geoff* who was the Chairman of the publishers at a networking event and as we both had some spare time I treated him to a coffee and asked how things were, howMaggie, John and the rest of the team that I had met were. Geoff explained that after Maggie had retired John had insisted that the company employ less of a Kate and more of a Bianca as he felt it would allow his team to take the company to the next level. Geoff then went on to explain that within a year the company had gone from having virtually zero debtors to over 15% and the majority of the debtors had come form new customers that had been signed up since Maggie retired.
When I asked him what he had done, he took a deep breath and said that he had begged Maggie to come back on a part time basis so that she could teach her successor how to do her job. When I asked Geoff how John took the news, he said that John had said that if Maggie came back he would leave because he felt that she stifled the sales team with her attitude. Geoff then smiled and said since Maggie had come back debts had fallen and while they had lost a small number of customers, the majority respected the fact that if they wanted to advertise within their titles then they had to follow Maggies’ rules.
While I have not used Maggie, Geoff’s or John’s real names the story is true. If you would like to know a bit more about the Taming of the Shrew or other works by Shakespeare I would suggest that you obtain a copy of To Be or Not To be, Innit by Martin Baum.
If you would like to challenge David to link a subject to credit control or like to know more about him or Deanem Collections Ltd please do visit our website www.deanemcollections.co.uk or send David an email david@deanemcollections.co.uk
Wednesday, 27 July 2011
Deanem Collections: There is nothing like a claim.
Deanem Collections: There is nothing like a claim.: "I was sent this blog by George Emsden, who inturn received it from the author Alan Lakey I was so impressed I wanted to pass it on to my rea..."
There is nothing like a claim.
I was sent this blog by George Emsden, who inturn received it from the author Alan Lakey I was so impressed I wanted to pass it on to my readers.
Something for nothing? Let's make a claim. Alan Lakey takes us in to a murky claims culture:
The rise of the claims culture continues unabashed, dismally trumpeted by a blitz of automated phone messages instructing that we should all claim compensation for PPI mis-sales - via the caller, of course. The surge in newspaper adverts on mis-selling has also plumbed new depths of shamelessness and deceit.
This relentless push is inspired by the unrelenting Americanisation of the UK but part of the responsibility lies with the current and previous regulator which derived vigour from portraying the consumer as always on the end of a scam and of implying that such scams emanated from all parts of the industry.
In addition, the appetite of the FOS for publicising its services at every turn also lends itself to the accusation of claims incitement. The US effect is incorrigible and may be impossible to reverse but the negativity of bad regulation can be, maybe not just yet though.
During the last week, my office has received six automated calls where the recorded message, in friendly newsreader tones, assured me that I am able to claim for my PPI missale and my recent injury, dodgy pavement if I remember rightly.
Disturbingly, this torrent of misinformation works, as confirmed by the FOS which highlighted that three qaurters of PPI claims stem from third-party introductions.
Some weeks back, a long-standing client telephoned me declaring that she had received a phone call about claiming for mis-sold PPI insurance. "And why are you phoning me"? I asked. "So that I can make a complaint", she explained.
I enlightened her that she did not have a PPI plan and she dutifully accepted this terrible reality and ended the call.
One the plus side, I can say that at least this unremitting tosh is specific and normally enables listeners to judge whether or not they are, or think they are, affected. Other, even less savoury claims-mongers, are taking their advertising to new subterranean levels. This suggests desperation or perhaps the road to wealth. No doubt this will become clear in due course.
Last week, while scanning a London evening paper, I chanced across a big claims-monger advert advising me that I could be "owed thousands without even knowing it". Excited by this good fortune, I avidly read on. It explained that its business is "winning compensation for holders of life policies and investments - whether or not you believe there is a problem with them".
Apparently, any plan taken out since April 1988, when regulation first reared its head, is fair game. The advert focused on the direct-sales companies, banks and building societies which we know are easier targets than IFAs.
Could this focus be down to IFA sales practices being superior? Or could it be due to the disagreeable practice whereby some insurers pay compensation to a certain level without bothering to investigate? Both, I would conjecture.
So, will the Financial Conduct Authority take up the FSA's baton and continue to espouse the fiction that mis-selling and bias is endemic throughout the industry or will it seek to provide some kind of balance? The FCA's recent Approach To Regulation paper (p.15) advised six regulatory principles, one of which states "that consumers should take responsibility for their decisions".
Now just imagine, if that ever should occur, there would be no claims-mongers, far fewer staff at the FOS and whatever regulator is in temporary existence and a consequent reduction in fees.
Alan's Orginal article Money Management 07Jul2011
As I said I didn't write the article and hope you enjoyed it. My regular blogg will be available next week when it will be based on The Taming of The Shrew, Tallymen or the events in Norway
Something for nothing? Let's make a claim. Alan Lakey takes us in to a murky claims culture:
The rise of the claims culture continues unabashed, dismally trumpeted by a blitz of automated phone messages instructing that we should all claim compensation for PPI mis-sales - via the caller, of course. The surge in newspaper adverts on mis-selling has also plumbed new depths of shamelessness and deceit.
This relentless push is inspired by the unrelenting Americanisation of the UK but part of the responsibility lies with the current and previous regulator which derived vigour from portraying the consumer as always on the end of a scam and of implying that such scams emanated from all parts of the industry.
In addition, the appetite of the FOS for publicising its services at every turn also lends itself to the accusation of claims incitement. The US effect is incorrigible and may be impossible to reverse but the negativity of bad regulation can be, maybe not just yet though.
During the last week, my office has received six automated calls where the recorded message, in friendly newsreader tones, assured me that I am able to claim for my PPI missale and my recent injury, dodgy pavement if I remember rightly.
Disturbingly, this torrent of misinformation works, as confirmed by the FOS which highlighted that three qaurters of PPI claims stem from third-party introductions.
Some weeks back, a long-standing client telephoned me declaring that she had received a phone call about claiming for mis-sold PPI insurance. "And why are you phoning me"? I asked. "So that I can make a complaint", she explained.
I enlightened her that she did not have a PPI plan and she dutifully accepted this terrible reality and ended the call.
One the plus side, I can say that at least this unremitting tosh is specific and normally enables listeners to judge whether or not they are, or think they are, affected. Other, even less savoury claims-mongers, are taking their advertising to new subterranean levels. This suggests desperation or perhaps the road to wealth. No doubt this will become clear in due course.
Last week, while scanning a London evening paper, I chanced across a big claims-monger advert advising me that I could be "owed thousands without even knowing it". Excited by this good fortune, I avidly read on. It explained that its business is "winning compensation for holders of life policies and investments - whether or not you believe there is a problem with them".
Apparently, any plan taken out since April 1988, when regulation first reared its head, is fair game. The advert focused on the direct-sales companies, banks and building societies which we know are easier targets than IFAs.
Could this focus be down to IFA sales practices being superior? Or could it be due to the disagreeable practice whereby some insurers pay compensation to a certain level without bothering to investigate? Both, I would conjecture.
So, will the Financial Conduct Authority take up the FSA's baton and continue to espouse the fiction that mis-selling and bias is endemic throughout the industry or will it seek to provide some kind of balance? The FCA's recent Approach To Regulation paper (p.15) advised six regulatory principles, one of which states "that consumers should take responsibility for their decisions".
Now just imagine, if that ever should occur, there would be no claims-mongers, far fewer staff at the FOS and whatever regulator is in temporary existence and a consequent reduction in fees.
Alan's Orginal article Money Management 07Jul2011
As I said I didn't write the article and hope you enjoyed it. My regular blogg will be available next week when it will be based on The Taming of The Shrew, Tallymen or the events in Norway
Monday, 25 July 2011
Deanem Collections: Who is responsible for your company’s bad debt?
Deanem Collections: Who is responsible for your company’s bad debt?: "This week’s blog has been inspired by the very sad and tragic death of Amy Winehouse. I was quite shocked by the comments being left on soci..."
Who is responsible for your company’s bad debt?
This week’s blog has been inspired by the very sad and tragic death of Amy Winehouse. I was quite shocked by the comments being left on social network sites. While the majority of the comments were on the loss and the fantastic music she left, people were also commenting on the fact that due to her addictions death was inevitable. That’s not what surprised or shocked me, it was the almost vitriolic attacks by addiction defenders, who will state that an addiction is an illness and no one asks to become an addict. This always gets me as I’ve never seen someone put a gun to someone’s head and demand they drink or snort a line of coke, or pop a pill.
So I’m sure you’re asking what has the above got to do with a company having bad debts and poor credit control. We’ll I hate to be the one who tells you this, ultimately 99% of those companies with bad debts are responsible for their own financial situation. We as business owners have allowed ourselves over the years to grant credit to all and sundry. Like an addict it’s very easy to blame everyone else for your poor cash flow, ultimately it is only when you recognise that you don’t have to give credit to all of your clients that cash flow will improve. When I run seminars on credit control I remind the delegates that they can’t go in to Tesco, Sainsbury’s, Waitrose etc and leave with a trolley load of provisions unless they have been paid for.
I’m certain that there are a number of people who will be reading this and will say that I’m talking rubbish, that without credit their business will wither and die. To those people all I can say is take off the blinkers and face reality. I was speaking to John* who was an old client this afternoon who when we first met had an unhealthy level of overdue invoices and his bank manager was nagging him to do something about getting his overdraft under control. While we were able to solve his immediate cash flow problems by collecting the majority of the debts, we discussed at the time what he should do about providing future credit. His main concern was upsetting his established “clients” who were always late paying.
I managed to convince John to offer a two tier cost structure of either 100% with order or a split payment structure which would carry a 10% surcharge. How this works is very simple, if someone wants credit they pay 10% extra. However, they can only get credit if they pay 50% with order, 25% prior to delivery the final 25% 30 days after delivery. John was telling me that far from losing clients the majority are happy to order using the split payment system, his bank manager even phoned to congratulate him on the improvement to his cash flow!
While I will admit that a split cost structure may not suit all business, the above does prove that you don’t have to stick to historic practices and if you are finding that your “clients” are taking longer to pay and can’t think how to get paid early, please contact us.
*Johns’ name has been changed.
To find out more about David or Deanem Collections Ltd please do visit our website www.deanemcollections.co.uk or send David an email david@deanemcollections.co.uk
So I’m sure you’re asking what has the above got to do with a company having bad debts and poor credit control. We’ll I hate to be the one who tells you this, ultimately 99% of those companies with bad debts are responsible for their own financial situation. We as business owners have allowed ourselves over the years to grant credit to all and sundry. Like an addict it’s very easy to blame everyone else for your poor cash flow, ultimately it is only when you recognise that you don’t have to give credit to all of your clients that cash flow will improve. When I run seminars on credit control I remind the delegates that they can’t go in to Tesco, Sainsbury’s, Waitrose etc and leave with a trolley load of provisions unless they have been paid for.
I’m certain that there are a number of people who will be reading this and will say that I’m talking rubbish, that without credit their business will wither and die. To those people all I can say is take off the blinkers and face reality. I was speaking to John* who was an old client this afternoon who when we first met had an unhealthy level of overdue invoices and his bank manager was nagging him to do something about getting his overdraft under control. While we were able to solve his immediate cash flow problems by collecting the majority of the debts, we discussed at the time what he should do about providing future credit. His main concern was upsetting his established “clients” who were always late paying.
I managed to convince John to offer a two tier cost structure of either 100% with order or a split payment structure which would carry a 10% surcharge. How this works is very simple, if someone wants credit they pay 10% extra. However, they can only get credit if they pay 50% with order, 25% prior to delivery the final 25% 30 days after delivery. John was telling me that far from losing clients the majority are happy to order using the split payment system, his bank manager even phoned to congratulate him on the improvement to his cash flow!
While I will admit that a split cost structure may not suit all business, the above does prove that you don’t have to stick to historic practices and if you are finding that your “clients” are taking longer to pay and can’t think how to get paid early, please contact us.
*Johns’ name has been changed.
To find out more about David or Deanem Collections Ltd please do visit our website www.deanemcollections.co.uk or send David an email david@deanemcollections.co.uk
Sunday, 17 July 2011
Deanem Collections: How important is your reputation?
Deanem Collections: How important is your reputation?: "This week’s blog has been inspired by a sad but significant event that took place earlier today (Sunday 17 July). As some of you may recall,..."
How important is your reputation?
This week’s blog has been inspired by a sad but significant event that took place earlier today (Sunday 17 July). As some of you may recall, last August my father passed away after many years of ill health. The reason for bringing this up is that in the Jewish religion it is the custom to set the tomb stone in place approximately 1 year later and today was the stone setting for my late father.
The first thing I noticed was despite the appalling July weather a significant number of people attended the ceremony, in fact someone counted that there were around 100 people. By and large they all said the same thing to me and my siblings that one of the things they admired and valued about my father was his reputation for being trustworthy and honest. The second thing I noticed was that a number of the epitaphs read like CV's! It was this that reminded me of a question that my father posed, when I was quite young.
He asked me “what was I given as a baby that was mine for life, but once lost or tarnished could never be recovered?” after much head scratching he finally gave me the answer and that was my name. He was quite right, you only have to look around you at the reputation, or lack of some of the people making the news. We have the sight of famous actors such as Hugh Grant and Steve Coogan hypocritically pontificating about the activities of some journalists when just a few short years ago they were caught out by the papers for behaving inappropriately.
I was always led to beleive that in business your name was your most important asset, which has led me to wonder why executive officers go out of their way to put themselves and or their company in a position to damage it. Lets take the recent phone hacking scandal, while the Chief Executor may not have known, or not been made aware of what actions were being carried out, the moment to resign was when the allegations were proven to be correct and not when the worlds press and politicians were calling for it. Had she resigned at the beginning at least her reputation would not have been so badly damaged.
While the brouhaha about the phone hacking was going on, I had a meeting with a potential customer for Deanem Collections. I had been asked to meet the senior management of a registered social landlord, the meeting went very well and before it ended I asked them why they had requested to meet me. They said that it was that our reputation for hard work and total honesty meant they felt they could trust my company to assist with the collection of their tenancy arrears. I was delighted, as it has taken many years of hard work to get to this position and I know that I would never knowingly do anything that could change people’s perception of Deanem Collections Ltd or myself.
If you would like to find out more about David Baum or Deanem Collections Ltd please do not hesiatet to email David at david@deanemcollections.co.uk or visit our website www.deanemcollections.co.uk
The first thing I noticed was despite the appalling July weather a significant number of people attended the ceremony, in fact someone counted that there were around 100 people. By and large they all said the same thing to me and my siblings that one of the things they admired and valued about my father was his reputation for being trustworthy and honest. The second thing I noticed was that a number of the epitaphs read like CV's! It was this that reminded me of a question that my father posed, when I was quite young.
He asked me “what was I given as a baby that was mine for life, but once lost or tarnished could never be recovered?” after much head scratching he finally gave me the answer and that was my name. He was quite right, you only have to look around you at the reputation, or lack of some of the people making the news. We have the sight of famous actors such as Hugh Grant and Steve Coogan hypocritically pontificating about the activities of some journalists when just a few short years ago they were caught out by the papers for behaving inappropriately.
I was always led to beleive that in business your name was your most important asset, which has led me to wonder why executive officers go out of their way to put themselves and or their company in a position to damage it. Lets take the recent phone hacking scandal, while the Chief Executor may not have known, or not been made aware of what actions were being carried out, the moment to resign was when the allegations were proven to be correct and not when the worlds press and politicians were calling for it. Had she resigned at the beginning at least her reputation would not have been so badly damaged.
While the brouhaha about the phone hacking was going on, I had a meeting with a potential customer for Deanem Collections. I had been asked to meet the senior management of a registered social landlord, the meeting went very well and before it ended I asked them why they had requested to meet me. They said that it was that our reputation for hard work and total honesty meant they felt they could trust my company to assist with the collection of their tenancy arrears. I was delighted, as it has taken many years of hard work to get to this position and I know that I would never knowingly do anything that could change people’s perception of Deanem Collections Ltd or myself.
If you would like to find out more about David Baum or Deanem Collections Ltd please do not hesiatet to email David at david@deanemcollections.co.uk or visit our website www.deanemcollections.co.uk
Tuesday, 12 July 2011
Deanem Collections: Are you guilty of overselling and under performing...
Deanem Collections: Are you guilty of overselling and under performing...: "This week I’m grateful to a statement I read which was attributed to a rival debt collection agency. The statement proudly claimed that thei..."
Are you guilty of overselling and under performing?
This week I’m grateful to a statement I read which was attributed to a rival debt collection agency. The statement proudly claimed that their agency could guarantee to collect 85% of all debts passed to them. It further went on to say that they didn’t believe there was a debt that they couldn’t collect.
I was amazed by the statement as I felt that at Deanem Collections we are pleased if we managed to collect an average 40 – 50% of debts passed and resolve a further 25%. I decided to speak to the agency concerned, because if they could guarantee the % it may have been worthwhile outsourcing our collection work to them.
I made two calls, the first posing as a potential customer. I was amazed at the commission rate they charged as they only had two rates under 6 months @ 25% and over 6 months @ 40%. I mentioned that the rate seemed high and was told that the rate could be reduced if I was to pay a handling charge of 10% of the debt, commission would be reduced to 10% and 25% but as they can almost certainly guarantee collection it was “a bit of a no brainer”. I then uttered those immortal words “I’ll think about it”.
About an hour or so later I called again, this time as myself and spoke to “Mike” and explained that I was possibly interested in outsourcing our non-collected debts to them, especially if they could guarantee collection. Mike suggested that we met for a cup of tea and see if we could work together.
During the meeting Mike, explained about their commission rates and handling charges, he also let slip that the stated collection rate was slightly exaggerated as the true figure was around 50% resolved or collected. I asked him what he told customers when they didn’t collect, he said very simply “we’re sorry but this is one of those rare cases where we haven’t been able to collect the debt” in the meanwhile they’ve pocketed a fee for not collecting the debt. I asked him if there was any negative comments from their customers when they didn’t collect, Mike said that while “punters” will generally be upset, his team was very good at making them feel that they’ve tried everything to collect the debt. I asked if they got much in the way of repeat business and he said no. He carried on by stating “That while there was an unlimited number of businesses out there who were suffering from bad paying customers, there was a ready flow of “punters” that were desperate for someone to collect the debt, who needed repeat customers”.
Mike then asked if I had any cases that we could pass to him, as he thought we could both make money out of our uncollectable debts. I said I would think about it, thanked him for his hospitality and then said I had to go to an appointment and left.
My meeting with Mike only went to reinforce my belief that there is a correct way and a wrong way of acting as a debt collector. The right way is to never guarantee your customer anything other than you will try your very best to collect their debt. The wrong way is Mike’s way which seems to embrace P.T. Barnum’s motto “There’s a sucker born every minute”
If you would like to find out more about David and Deanem Collections please do not hesiatet to contact us on +44 (0) 208 446 7720 or email us at enquiries@deanemcollections.co.uk or visit our website www.deanemcollections.co.uk.
I was amazed by the statement as I felt that at Deanem Collections we are pleased if we managed to collect an average 40 – 50% of debts passed and resolve a further 25%. I decided to speak to the agency concerned, because if they could guarantee the % it may have been worthwhile outsourcing our collection work to them.
I made two calls, the first posing as a potential customer. I was amazed at the commission rate they charged as they only had two rates under 6 months @ 25% and over 6 months @ 40%. I mentioned that the rate seemed high and was told that the rate could be reduced if I was to pay a handling charge of 10% of the debt, commission would be reduced to 10% and 25% but as they can almost certainly guarantee collection it was “a bit of a no brainer”. I then uttered those immortal words “I’ll think about it”.
About an hour or so later I called again, this time as myself and spoke to “Mike” and explained that I was possibly interested in outsourcing our non-collected debts to them, especially if they could guarantee collection. Mike suggested that we met for a cup of tea and see if we could work together.
During the meeting Mike, explained about their commission rates and handling charges, he also let slip that the stated collection rate was slightly exaggerated as the true figure was around 50% resolved or collected. I asked him what he told customers when they didn’t collect, he said very simply “we’re sorry but this is one of those rare cases where we haven’t been able to collect the debt” in the meanwhile they’ve pocketed a fee for not collecting the debt. I asked him if there was any negative comments from their customers when they didn’t collect, Mike said that while “punters” will generally be upset, his team was very good at making them feel that they’ve tried everything to collect the debt. I asked if they got much in the way of repeat business and he said no. He carried on by stating “That while there was an unlimited number of businesses out there who were suffering from bad paying customers, there was a ready flow of “punters” that were desperate for someone to collect the debt, who needed repeat customers”.
Mike then asked if I had any cases that we could pass to him, as he thought we could both make money out of our uncollectable debts. I said I would think about it, thanked him for his hospitality and then said I had to go to an appointment and left.
My meeting with Mike only went to reinforce my belief that there is a correct way and a wrong way of acting as a debt collector. The right way is to never guarantee your customer anything other than you will try your very best to collect their debt. The wrong way is Mike’s way which seems to embrace P.T. Barnum’s motto “There’s a sucker born every minute”
If you would like to find out more about David and Deanem Collections please do not hesiatet to contact us on +44 (0) 208 446 7720 or email us at enquiries@deanemcollections.co.uk or visit our website www.deanemcollections.co.uk.
Saturday, 25 June 2011
Deanem Collections: How to improve your profits.
Deanem Collections: How to improve your profits.: "This week I have been inspired by Robert Craven of The Directors Centre who I had the pleasure of hearing at a Barclays bank business semina..."
How to improve your profits.
This week I have been inspired by Robert Craven of The Directors Centre who I had the pleasure of hearing at a Barclays bank business seminar.
Robert posed the question of how can you improve your profit margins? Do you A) raise your profits, B) cut your profits or C) cut your supplier costs. I still find it strange that most people still beleive that by cutting your prices you’ll become more profitable, especially when you consider the following.
If you raise your prices by 10%, you reach the same profit margin in 75% of the time. However, if you cut your prices by 10% you have to work up to 30% more or an average 2.5 days longer just to reach the same profit margin.
The question is then always asked “But some of my clients wont buy from me if I put my prices up” You know what that person is generally right, but what he/she neglects to take in to consideration is that the customer that quibbles is usually one of the bottom performing customers. You know the type, they do you a great favour by placing an order with you but are never happy with the colour, design, layout etc and then take the longest to pay their invoice.
What Robert didn’t explain was how to raise your prices without upsetting your customers hopefully I will now rectify that.
What you have to do is firstly decide on how much of a price rise you need or want, remember the old adage cheap is not always best. Let’s say you decide to put your prices up by an average 10% you also recognise that some of your better performing clients won’t be happy. In which case you should have a two or three tier price structure for good customers and one for new customers or the bottom performing customers.
The next decision to make is when will the prices go up, let’s say for the purpose of this blog you opt for Aug 1st. Once decided take a long and honest look at your customer base and split them in to two categories. The first should contain those customers that pay you on or before the due date or where you have agreed special terms etc. The second group, which you will find is generally the largest and will contain all the customers that pay late, who make unreasonable demands or who are in your mind “Scum”.
You should send the 1st group an email explaining that while you have had to put up your prices by an average15% from August 1st you have decided that because you value their business and settle their invoices within the agreed terms you will hold the price rise to 10%. History shows that the majority will accept the price rise and for those that question it, you can always negotiate “more” favourable settlement terms.
For the second group send them an email explaining that due to circumstances beyond your control as of Aug 1st your prices for those wanting 30 days credit prices will raise by 15%. However for those who settle their accounts within 14 days of delivery the price rise will be 12%. For those who are prepared to pay on receipt of your invoice the prices will only rise by 10%. You’ll be amazed by the number that will agree to pay early.
The upside in adopting this strategy is by and large you will only loose the customers from the bottom of the pile and those that are left will be on average paying between 5 & 10% more. Another by product of this strategy is that your accountant will have more respect for you because you would have improved your profit margin during a recession.
To find out about David and the work of Deanem Collections Ltd, please visit our website: www.deanemcollections.co.uk.
Robert posed the question of how can you improve your profit margins? Do you A) raise your profits, B) cut your profits or C) cut your supplier costs. I still find it strange that most people still beleive that by cutting your prices you’ll become more profitable, especially when you consider the following.
If you raise your prices by 10%, you reach the same profit margin in 75% of the time. However, if you cut your prices by 10% you have to work up to 30% more or an average 2.5 days longer just to reach the same profit margin.
The question is then always asked “But some of my clients wont buy from me if I put my prices up” You know what that person is generally right, but what he/she neglects to take in to consideration is that the customer that quibbles is usually one of the bottom performing customers. You know the type, they do you a great favour by placing an order with you but are never happy with the colour, design, layout etc and then take the longest to pay their invoice.
What Robert didn’t explain was how to raise your prices without upsetting your customers hopefully I will now rectify that.
What you have to do is firstly decide on how much of a price rise you need or want, remember the old adage cheap is not always best. Let’s say you decide to put your prices up by an average 10% you also recognise that some of your better performing clients won’t be happy. In which case you should have a two or three tier price structure for good customers and one for new customers or the bottom performing customers.
The next decision to make is when will the prices go up, let’s say for the purpose of this blog you opt for Aug 1st. Once decided take a long and honest look at your customer base and split them in to two categories. The first should contain those customers that pay you on or before the due date or where you have agreed special terms etc. The second group, which you will find is generally the largest and will contain all the customers that pay late, who make unreasonable demands or who are in your mind “Scum”.
You should send the 1st group an email explaining that while you have had to put up your prices by an average15% from August 1st you have decided that because you value their business and settle their invoices within the agreed terms you will hold the price rise to 10%. History shows that the majority will accept the price rise and for those that question it, you can always negotiate “more” favourable settlement terms.
For the second group send them an email explaining that due to circumstances beyond your control as of Aug 1st your prices for those wanting 30 days credit prices will raise by 15%. However for those who settle their accounts within 14 days of delivery the price rise will be 12%. For those who are prepared to pay on receipt of your invoice the prices will only rise by 10%. You’ll be amazed by the number that will agree to pay early.
The upside in adopting this strategy is by and large you will only loose the customers from the bottom of the pile and those that are left will be on average paying between 5 & 10% more. Another by product of this strategy is that your accountant will have more respect for you because you would have improved your profit margin during a recession.
To find out about David and the work of Deanem Collections Ltd, please visit our website: www.deanemcollections.co.uk.
Sunday, 19 June 2011
Deanem Collections: Are you a professional?
Deanem Collections: Are you a professional?: "This week’s blog has been inspired by three people, Clive Mulligan of Simply Consulting and Mark Son of IOT, both are who I would classify a..."
Are you a professional?
This week’s blog has been inspired by three people, Clive Mulligan of Simply Consulting and Mark Son of IOT, both are who I would classify as “Professional Salesmen” and Mrs Sandra Field my collections manager at Deanem Collections Ltd.
What do I mean by “Professional Salesmen” and by the way a “Professional Salesman” can be male or female. A dictionary defines professional as “A person who engages in an activity with great competence”. While I define it as someone who takes the time to insure that he or she provides the best service or care that they can.
What makes Clive & Mark stand out is that they were both trained in the art of being a salesman, they have knowledge of not only their products and services but also the products and services of their competitors.
I still find it strange that eyebrows were raised and questions asked when I appointed Sandra Field as my collections manager. Sandra is a lady of mature years but over the course of those years she has acquired an encyclopaedic knowledge of debtors and debt collection. This knowledge has enabled her to overcome many objections that less knowledgeable people wouldn’t have been able to counter.
This week was a prime example of how her calm and professional approach defused a potentially difficult situation when Sandra was confronted by a debtor who was determined not to pay, because “He disputed the debt, as the work was not authorised”. Our client, runs a property maintenance company and he carried out some remedial works on a roof and windows on a block of flats in January. His terms are 30 days, but like many he didn’t want to upset his “client” by asking for his invoice to be paid. Eventually John* asked if we could collect his overdue invoice and six months after it had been raised it landed on Sandra’s desk.
When Sandra spoke to the debtor, they first claimed they hadn’t received the invoice and then after Sandra sent them a copy, they claimed that the invoice had not been settled because the windows leaked when it rained “last week”. Sandra calmly explained that if the windows hadn’t leaked until that point and had survived the winter snow etc, the work was hardly substandard. They then claimed that could not find a copy of the signed order. Obviously a copy was emailed and the “debtor” then started the usual game of chase the person. This is where a debtor will say “Oh I’m sorry Mr / Mrs Smith who signs the cheques isn’t in today, or in a meeting etc” After a day of this, Sandra spoke the debtor’s Managing Director and explained very calmly that if the debt was not settled our client would return to the site and remove his goods, as this included lead flashing, the tenants wouldn’t be very pleased when it next rained.
The gentleman then started to bluster that our client couldn’t do that, Sandra explained that according to our clients’ terms & conditions (which we created for him) he could. The gentleman then asked to see a copy as he could not recall reading them, even though they were printed on the reverse of the order form, which he had signed when he engaged our client. A half hour after receiving them, he phoned, apologised for his rudeness and said he would arrange an immediate BACS payment.
What happened next was fairly common as the debtor phone me and said “I’m very impressed with Sandra’s calm and professional attitude and would I like to come and have a chat about Deanem Collections looking after our credit control”.
Professional people like Sandra, Clive & Mark do not have to shout to make them selves understood or use empty rhetoric to get their way, they use the knowledge they have acquired.
If you would like to find out more about David andDeanem Collections please do not hesitate to contact them either by telephone +44 (0)208 446 7720 or email them at david@deanemcollections.co.uk or visit the website www.deanemcollections.co.uk.
What do I mean by “Professional Salesmen” and by the way a “Professional Salesman” can be male or female. A dictionary defines professional as “A person who engages in an activity with great competence”. While I define it as someone who takes the time to insure that he or she provides the best service or care that they can.
What makes Clive & Mark stand out is that they were both trained in the art of being a salesman, they have knowledge of not only their products and services but also the products and services of their competitors.
I still find it strange that eyebrows were raised and questions asked when I appointed Sandra Field as my collections manager. Sandra is a lady of mature years but over the course of those years she has acquired an encyclopaedic knowledge of debtors and debt collection. This knowledge has enabled her to overcome many objections that less knowledgeable people wouldn’t have been able to counter.
This week was a prime example of how her calm and professional approach defused a potentially difficult situation when Sandra was confronted by a debtor who was determined not to pay, because “He disputed the debt, as the work was not authorised”. Our client, runs a property maintenance company and he carried out some remedial works on a roof and windows on a block of flats in January. His terms are 30 days, but like many he didn’t want to upset his “client” by asking for his invoice to be paid. Eventually John* asked if we could collect his overdue invoice and six months after it had been raised it landed on Sandra’s desk.
When Sandra spoke to the debtor, they first claimed they hadn’t received the invoice and then after Sandra sent them a copy, they claimed that the invoice had not been settled because the windows leaked when it rained “last week”. Sandra calmly explained that if the windows hadn’t leaked until that point and had survived the winter snow etc, the work was hardly substandard. They then claimed that could not find a copy of the signed order. Obviously a copy was emailed and the “debtor” then started the usual game of chase the person. This is where a debtor will say “Oh I’m sorry Mr / Mrs Smith who signs the cheques isn’t in today, or in a meeting etc” After a day of this, Sandra spoke the debtor’s Managing Director and explained very calmly that if the debt was not settled our client would return to the site and remove his goods, as this included lead flashing, the tenants wouldn’t be very pleased when it next rained.
The gentleman then started to bluster that our client couldn’t do that, Sandra explained that according to our clients’ terms & conditions (which we created for him) he could. The gentleman then asked to see a copy as he could not recall reading them, even though they were printed on the reverse of the order form, which he had signed when he engaged our client. A half hour after receiving them, he phoned, apologised for his rudeness and said he would arrange an immediate BACS payment.
What happened next was fairly common as the debtor phone me and said “I’m very impressed with Sandra’s calm and professional attitude and would I like to come and have a chat about Deanem Collections looking after our credit control”.
Professional people like Sandra, Clive & Mark do not have to shout to make them selves understood or use empty rhetoric to get their way, they use the knowledge they have acquired.
If you would like to find out more about David andDeanem Collections please do not hesitate to contact them either by telephone +44 (0)208 446 7720 or email them at david@deanemcollections.co.uk or visit the website www.deanemcollections.co.uk.
Sunday, 5 June 2011
Deanem Collections: Are you prepared?
Deanem Collections: Are you prepared?: "This week’s blog has been inspired by the events that happened to me last weekend. As many know I’ve been training for The London Bikeathon ..."
Are you prepared?
This week’s blog has been inspired by the events that happened to me last weekend. As many know I’ve been training for The London Bikeathon in aid of Leukaemia Research, the ride is 52 miles long starting and finishing in Battersea Park and takes place on Sunday 26 June.
This will be the second time I’ve undertaken this ride, I realised during last years ride that I wasn’t fully prepared for the ride. By that, I mean that while I trained for the ride, none of my training rides were longer than 30 miles. Consequently, on the day I was exhausted by 40 miles and found the last 12 miles very hard.
This year I decided to make sure I could manage the ride and my training has included riding 40 – 50 miles and up until last Monday I was confident that I was preparing myself correctly and would be able complete the ride in relative comfort. Unfortunately, events in the shape of a Polish decorator seemed to have other ideas. After his car caught my bike, sending me crashing on to the A41, the driver claimed not to “have seen me”, funnily enough I had been aware of him at least 5 minutes before the incident. Fortunately, I was wearing a cycle helmet which split so I was very lucky only to suffer a large number of cuts and bruises, including my ribs and was able to walk away from the scene. According to my doctor once the cuts have healed I will be able to complete in the ride. I still feel confident that because I’ve been preparing myself I will be able to complete the ride.
However the driver’s comments made me question his abilities as a decorator, if he could not see me a 217lb cyclist wearing light coloured clothing with fluorescent cycle helmet would he notice misses or runs in his paint work?. When I was taught to drive it was drummed in to me that I was driving a vehicle that if not handled correctly I could kill someone. Consequently, thanks to those lessons I learnt to watch out for children running in to the road, cyclists, other drivers etc .
Another by product of those driving lessons is that I’ve taken the same approach to my work in running a debt collection agency. I’m sure you must be wondering what can possibly link learning to drive a car and collecting debts.
The simple answer is preparation being aware of what the consequences of your action can be. When driving if you do not take in to consideration the road conditions and other users and even pedestrians you’ll more likely to have an accident, if you’re lucky your actions will not result in a fatality.
When we’re instructed I never know until we speak to the debtor if there is a genuine reason for not paying. Such as the time when we were instructed by an accountant to collect £5,500 from a client, the invoice was nearly 9 months overdue. Before speaking to the debtor we carried out some research and discovered that while they had a good turnover and profit ration they were the subject of a large number of unsatisfied County Court Judgments and therefore I felt wouldn’t be worried about further legal action. When I spoke to them the debtor explained that the reason for not paying was one of principle as my client had been late in filing their tax return and they had been fined £450.00 but agreed if my client would credit them, they would settle the outstanding invoice. My client obviously agreed and they received the promised payment.
While I was speaking to the debtor I had to ask them why they had been hit with so many court actions, they explained that each was a matter of principle as they were unhappy with the quality of service or goods they received. Furthermore he wasn’t particularly worried by the Judgments as he never applied for credit, so he was quite happy for the Judgments to remain in place until they no longer counted.
He did say that we were the first collection agency that he had paid and that was because we had asked why he hadn’t paid.
If you would like to find out more about David and Deanem Collections please do not hesitate to contact them either by telephone +44 (0)208 446 7720 or email them at enquiries@deanemcollections.co.uk or visit the website www.deanemcollections.co.uk.
This will be the second time I’ve undertaken this ride, I realised during last years ride that I wasn’t fully prepared for the ride. By that, I mean that while I trained for the ride, none of my training rides were longer than 30 miles. Consequently, on the day I was exhausted by 40 miles and found the last 12 miles very hard.
This year I decided to make sure I could manage the ride and my training has included riding 40 – 50 miles and up until last Monday I was confident that I was preparing myself correctly and would be able complete the ride in relative comfort. Unfortunately, events in the shape of a Polish decorator seemed to have other ideas. After his car caught my bike, sending me crashing on to the A41, the driver claimed not to “have seen me”, funnily enough I had been aware of him at least 5 minutes before the incident. Fortunately, I was wearing a cycle helmet which split so I was very lucky only to suffer a large number of cuts and bruises, including my ribs and was able to walk away from the scene. According to my doctor once the cuts have healed I will be able to complete in the ride. I still feel confident that because I’ve been preparing myself I will be able to complete the ride.
However the driver’s comments made me question his abilities as a decorator, if he could not see me a 217lb cyclist wearing light coloured clothing with fluorescent cycle helmet would he notice misses or runs in his paint work?. When I was taught to drive it was drummed in to me that I was driving a vehicle that if not handled correctly I could kill someone. Consequently, thanks to those lessons I learnt to watch out for children running in to the road, cyclists, other drivers etc .
Another by product of those driving lessons is that I’ve taken the same approach to my work in running a debt collection agency. I’m sure you must be wondering what can possibly link learning to drive a car and collecting debts.
The simple answer is preparation being aware of what the consequences of your action can be. When driving if you do not take in to consideration the road conditions and other users and even pedestrians you’ll more likely to have an accident, if you’re lucky your actions will not result in a fatality.
When we’re instructed I never know until we speak to the debtor if there is a genuine reason for not paying. Such as the time when we were instructed by an accountant to collect £5,500 from a client, the invoice was nearly 9 months overdue. Before speaking to the debtor we carried out some research and discovered that while they had a good turnover and profit ration they were the subject of a large number of unsatisfied County Court Judgments and therefore I felt wouldn’t be worried about further legal action. When I spoke to them the debtor explained that the reason for not paying was one of principle as my client had been late in filing their tax return and they had been fined £450.00 but agreed if my client would credit them, they would settle the outstanding invoice. My client obviously agreed and they received the promised payment.
While I was speaking to the debtor I had to ask them why they had been hit with so many court actions, they explained that each was a matter of principle as they were unhappy with the quality of service or goods they received. Furthermore he wasn’t particularly worried by the Judgments as he never applied for credit, so he was quite happy for the Judgments to remain in place until they no longer counted.
He did say that we were the first collection agency that he had paid and that was because we had asked why he hadn’t paid.
If you would like to find out more about David and Deanem Collections please do not hesitate to contact them either by telephone +44 (0)208 446 7720 or email them at enquiries@deanemcollections.co.uk or visit the website www.deanemcollections.co.uk.
Saturday, 28 May 2011
Deanem Collections: How the Titanic is the story of most new businesse...
Deanem Collections: How the Titanic is the story of most new businesse...: "Is your company Jack or Rose? According to history when they designed the Titanic, the brief was to create the fastest and most luxurious..."
How the Titanic is the story of most new businesses.
Is your company Jack or Rose?
According to history when they designed the Titanic, the brief was to create the fastest and most luxurious liner of the day. From the end of the 19th century to the middle of the 20th century the liner that completed the fastest crossing between the Southampton & New York was awarded the coveted Blue Ribbon. Winning this coveted prize would increase the number of wealthy business people who would book passage just to cut half a day from the journey. As you can imagine the ship owners enjoyed the rise in their profits. Winning was the equivalent of winning the XFactor today. While a contestant will be crowned the winner and go on if they are lucky to enjoy chart success the real winners of XFactor as we know are ITV, Syco Records and of course Simon Cowell. As with the Blue Ribbon companies wish to be associated to the programmes success and flock to advertise their products and services to the millions who watch the programme.
Consequently The White Star Line, Titanic's owners were intent on winning the Blue Ribbon and set about finding a designer who could help them achieve their dream. They insured they had the best engines, the crew were trained to the highest standard, the 1st class passengers were provided with the best decor and furnishings, nothing was left to chance. Except according to historic records they apparently forgot to check if the watertight doors worked! This decision proved fatal when the Titanic met the iceberg. The rest as they say is history.
When we launch a business the intention is to launch the best company ever, you check the quality of the stock, spend money on marketing your company, services and products. Their business like Titanic is going to break records unfortunately, like Titanic they have a similar flaw in the blueprint. In the case of the Titanic it was those pesky watertight doors in business, it’s called poor credit control.
If you do not insure that your Terms & Conditions are fit for purpose, set up a proper credit control policy ensuring that your customers pay their invoices within the agreed terms, your business like the Titanic will sink to the bottom of the ocean. However, unlike Titanic there will be no romance about your business sinking.
A further analogy can be found in the film of Titanic and only you can decide which character your company is. You can either be like Jack, who despite being very brave & heroic ultimately ends up, like the Titanic at the bottom of the ocean. Or you can be like Rose who clings on to a piece of drift wood and was finally rescued by a passing life raft.
The bottom line is that with the correct credit control policy your company can be like Rose survive and grow to or you can chose to do nothing and ultimately be doomed like Jack.
To find out more about David or why Deanem Collections Ltd is known as “The life Raft in the sea of Debt” please visit www.deanemcollections.co.uk
Sunday, 15 May 2011
Deanem Collections: Missing vital signs
Deanem Collections: Missing vital signs: "This week I’ve been inspired by two things that happened to me, the first quite serious the second not so, just annoying. I had the pleasur..."
Missing vital signs
This week I’ve been inspired by two things that happened to me, the first quite serious the second not so, just annoying.
I had the pleasure in visiting a valued housing association client this week and met a charming lady, who for the purpose of this blog shall be known as Jane. Jane while only in her mid twenties is a very experienced collections officer and even though they have been a client for some time this was the first time we had met, we seemed to be getting on like old friends. My mistake was to forget the rules about what should and shouldn’t be discuss with a client if you don’t know each other well. As I said we seemed to be getting on really well, so much so that I said that if she was ever to leave her current employer I would want her to work for Deanem. Towards the end of our conversation, I mentioned the analogy between losing your virginity and becoming a credit controller. For those who follow my blog or who have heard me speak, will know the story. I left the meeting feeling that if I was lucky Jane could eventually come and work for Deanem Collections working on sales & collections. You can imagine my surprise when later I received a phone call from one of her bosses telling me that they felt that I had acted inappropriately towards Jane and that they were very unhappy. My only defence was to offer an immediate apology and explain that had I realised that the story was inappropriate I would not have said it. Obviously in this case I didn't read or see the signs that said I was crossing a line between acceptable and unacceptable behaviour and can only hope that this episode will not sour relations between my company and client.
The second incident happened this morning, I was taking part in a 40 mile charity bike ride for The North London Hospice. The Hospice, like all hospices it provides vital care and relief to both those who are suffering with terminal illness and their family. The event was well organised and attended with 190 cyclists taking part. The problem came after about 5 miles when there was some confusion as to the direction signs (or lack of) and you had the sight of a group of cyclists stopping to consult a map before moving on. At around 12 miles there was a fork in the road and the direction marker indicated that the riders should take the right fork. Unfortunately, this was a sign for an earlier ride which had not been taken down! This road took the riders up and down a testing course for a further 10 miles when once again all were seemingly lost. It was only when we checked the map that it dawned on us that the road we had been on ran parallel to the road we should have been on. By this stage, due to a sore back I decided to follow the map and head back to the start. What should have been fairly simple but challenging ride was made harder by the fact that a large number of the direction signs had been removed during the night. Once again by not seeing the correct signs I took a wrong turning and spoiled what should have been a fabulous and testing ride.
I can hear you asking what has the above got to do with credit control and debt collection, the answer is, it is about seeing and understanding signs. The skill of a credit controller or debt collector is the abilty to be able to srecognise the signs of when a debtor is or isn't telling the truth. Over the years I have lost count of the number of times a debtor will say “They dispute the debt”. When questioned, the dispute generally is down to either the over selling and under performing by our client or the debtor not having the money to pay what they owe. Occasionally, the debtor will have a genuine reason for not paying due to shoddy workmanship etc. I’m very fortunate in that my collectors are very experienced men & women whose life & business experience enables them to quickly work out if the debtor has a genuine grievance or just playing for time.
As a tip, if your debtor ever says they are not paying an invoice, ask them why? If it’s a genuine reason for say for poor quality goods or poor service and you agree with their assessment, offer them a discount or reduce the price on their next order. I’ve found that if the grievance is genuine and you can address it, not only will the client appreciate the gesture they are more likely to reorder from you. However if the debtor is playing for time you are left with only two options, you can either continue to press them to pay or pass the account to a third party debt collection agency, such as Deanem Collections. The agency should be able collect the debt without upsetting the relationship you would like to enjoy with your client.
If you would like to know more about the work of David or Deanem Collections please visit our website or if you prefer send an email to david@deanemcollections.co.uk
I had the pleasure in visiting a valued housing association client this week and met a charming lady, who for the purpose of this blog shall be known as Jane. Jane while only in her mid twenties is a very experienced collections officer and even though they have been a client for some time this was the first time we had met, we seemed to be getting on like old friends. My mistake was to forget the rules about what should and shouldn’t be discuss with a client if you don’t know each other well. As I said we seemed to be getting on really well, so much so that I said that if she was ever to leave her current employer I would want her to work for Deanem. Towards the end of our conversation, I mentioned the analogy between losing your virginity and becoming a credit controller. For those who follow my blog or who have heard me speak, will know the story. I left the meeting feeling that if I was lucky Jane could eventually come and work for Deanem Collections working on sales & collections. You can imagine my surprise when later I received a phone call from one of her bosses telling me that they felt that I had acted inappropriately towards Jane and that they were very unhappy. My only defence was to offer an immediate apology and explain that had I realised that the story was inappropriate I would not have said it. Obviously in this case I didn't read or see the signs that said I was crossing a line between acceptable and unacceptable behaviour and can only hope that this episode will not sour relations between my company and client.
The second incident happened this morning, I was taking part in a 40 mile charity bike ride for The North London Hospice. The Hospice, like all hospices it provides vital care and relief to both those who are suffering with terminal illness and their family. The event was well organised and attended with 190 cyclists taking part. The problem came after about 5 miles when there was some confusion as to the direction signs (or lack of) and you had the sight of a group of cyclists stopping to consult a map before moving on. At around 12 miles there was a fork in the road and the direction marker indicated that the riders should take the right fork. Unfortunately, this was a sign for an earlier ride which had not been taken down! This road took the riders up and down a testing course for a further 10 miles when once again all were seemingly lost. It was only when we checked the map that it dawned on us that the road we had been on ran parallel to the road we should have been on. By this stage, due to a sore back I decided to follow the map and head back to the start. What should have been fairly simple but challenging ride was made harder by the fact that a large number of the direction signs had been removed during the night. Once again by not seeing the correct signs I took a wrong turning and spoiled what should have been a fabulous and testing ride.
I can hear you asking what has the above got to do with credit control and debt collection, the answer is, it is about seeing and understanding signs. The skill of a credit controller or debt collector is the abilty to be able to srecognise the signs of when a debtor is or isn't telling the truth. Over the years I have lost count of the number of times a debtor will say “They dispute the debt”. When questioned, the dispute generally is down to either the over selling and under performing by our client or the debtor not having the money to pay what they owe. Occasionally, the debtor will have a genuine reason for not paying due to shoddy workmanship etc. I’m very fortunate in that my collectors are very experienced men & women whose life & business experience enables them to quickly work out if the debtor has a genuine grievance or just playing for time.
As a tip, if your debtor ever says they are not paying an invoice, ask them why? If it’s a genuine reason for say for poor quality goods or poor service and you agree with their assessment, offer them a discount or reduce the price on their next order. I’ve found that if the grievance is genuine and you can address it, not only will the client appreciate the gesture they are more likely to reorder from you. However if the debtor is playing for time you are left with only two options, you can either continue to press them to pay or pass the account to a third party debt collection agency, such as Deanem Collections. The agency should be able collect the debt without upsetting the relationship you would like to enjoy with your client.
If you would like to know more about the work of David or Deanem Collections please visit our website or if you prefer send an email to david@deanemcollections.co.uk
Monday, 2 May 2011
Deanem Collections: Osama Bin Laden and debtors
Deanem Collections: Osama Bin Laden and debtors: "This week I’ve been inspired by the events unfolding in Pakistan & the USA. According to the news the Americans raided Bin Laden’s’ hideout ..."
Osama Bin Laden and debtors
This week I’ve been inspired by the events unfolding in Pakistan & the USA. According to the news the Americans raided Bin Laden’s’ hideout in Pakistan and in the ensuing fire fight Bin Laden was shot and killed. According to the news reports there is jubilation in both New York & Washington and you can’t blame the American’s in taking great pleasure in the demise of the man who was responsible for their blackest day since Pearl Harbour.
Unfortunately, what many forget is that while Bin Laden has been number 1 on the most wanted list ever since 9/11 there are thousands more terrorists ready to take his place and as such the death of this man will not make the world a safer place.
In some small way these events are mirrored in everyday business life and while the majority of us do not deal with homicidal religious fanatics on a day to day basis, we do deal with people who if you are not vigilant will destroy your business.
I know this sounds a bit of an exaggeration but I feel that people who do not settle their accounts when they are due, are as bad if not worse that a religious fanatic. A religious fanatic will undertake their wanton destruction due to their strongly held but misguided religious beliefs. However, there are a small percentage of companies who take great pleasure in not paying their bills and will not lose any sleep if their supplier goes bust.
I would like to remind anyone who is reading this to be extra vigilant by making sure you carry out due diligence when dealing with new and existing customers. Fir those who are unaware of them, please find below a simple check list:
Terms & Conditions:
Are your Terms & Conditions adequate? Who designed them? What are your settlement terms: 7, 14, 21, 30 days?
Can you claim interest on overdue accounts? Can you charge your late payer for costs incurred in the collection of the overdue invoice?
Are you protected against damage caused in the fulfilment of your duties?
Are you protected if the customer interferes with your ability to carry out your work?
If the answer to these simple questions is NO, contact a specialist agency.
Account opening forms:
Do you know who is legally responsible for settling your invoice?
Is your client a sole trader, a partnership, a single Ltd company or part of a group? Where should you send your invoice?
If you don’t have a working account opening form, contact a specialist agency.
Authorisation & Satisfaction forms:
If you are providing an on site service, such as plumbing, electrical, equipment maintenance ask that the client sign an Authorisation form before starting work and then that they are happy with the service after the work is carried out.
The form should be on your company letterhead and should have two boxes.
Box 1) Should have spaces for the customer to write his/her name, property address, and authority to contract your services. There should be a space for the customer to sign that they agree for the work to be carried out as per your terms & conditions.
Box 2) Should have spaces for the customer to again write his/her name and that the work was carried out to their satisfaction or dissatisfaction. In addition, there should be a space for additional comments, good or bad.
If you don’t have an Authorisation & Satisfaction form. Contact a specialist agency.
If you would like to know more about David or Deanem Collections Ltd please visit our website www.deanemcollections.co.uk or if you are in London on May 5th David will be holding a workshop at the London Business Growth Show being held at the MWB Building 55 Old Broad St London EC2M 1RX.
Unfortunately, what many forget is that while Bin Laden has been number 1 on the most wanted list ever since 9/11 there are thousands more terrorists ready to take his place and as such the death of this man will not make the world a safer place.
In some small way these events are mirrored in everyday business life and while the majority of us do not deal with homicidal religious fanatics on a day to day basis, we do deal with people who if you are not vigilant will destroy your business.
I know this sounds a bit of an exaggeration but I feel that people who do not settle their accounts when they are due, are as bad if not worse that a religious fanatic. A religious fanatic will undertake their wanton destruction due to their strongly held but misguided religious beliefs. However, there are a small percentage of companies who take great pleasure in not paying their bills and will not lose any sleep if their supplier goes bust.
I would like to remind anyone who is reading this to be extra vigilant by making sure you carry out due diligence when dealing with new and existing customers. Fir those who are unaware of them, please find below a simple check list:
Terms & Conditions:
Are your Terms & Conditions adequate? Who designed them? What are your settlement terms: 7, 14, 21, 30 days?
Can you claim interest on overdue accounts? Can you charge your late payer for costs incurred in the collection of the overdue invoice?
Are you protected against damage caused in the fulfilment of your duties?
Are you protected if the customer interferes with your ability to carry out your work?
If the answer to these simple questions is NO, contact a specialist agency.
Account opening forms:
Do you know who is legally responsible for settling your invoice?
Is your client a sole trader, a partnership, a single Ltd company or part of a group? Where should you send your invoice?
If you don’t have a working account opening form, contact a specialist agency.
Authorisation & Satisfaction forms:
If you are providing an on site service, such as plumbing, electrical, equipment maintenance ask that the client sign an Authorisation form before starting work and then that they are happy with the service after the work is carried out.
The form should be on your company letterhead and should have two boxes.
Box 1) Should have spaces for the customer to write his/her name, property address, and authority to contract your services. There should be a space for the customer to sign that they agree for the work to be carried out as per your terms & conditions.
Box 2) Should have spaces for the customer to again write his/her name and that the work was carried out to their satisfaction or dissatisfaction. In addition, there should be a space for additional comments, good or bad.
If you don’t have an Authorisation & Satisfaction form. Contact a specialist agency.
If you would like to know more about David or Deanem Collections Ltd please visit our website www.deanemcollections.co.uk or if you are in London on May 5th David will be holding a workshop at the London Business Growth Show being held at the MWB Building 55 Old Broad St London EC2M 1RX.
Tuesday, 26 April 2011
Deanem Collections: Should all customers be treated as equal?
Deanem Collections: Should all customers be treated as equal?: "I’m grateful to the film Made in Dagenham for the inspiration for this blog. For those who haven’t seen it, the film is the true story of 18..."
Should all customers be treated as equal?
I’m grateful to the film Made in Dagenham for the inspiration for this blog. For those who haven’t seen it, the film is the true story of 187 women machinists who worked for Ford in Dagenham. While their job was an extremely skilled one, they were paid far less than the equivalent male workers. To achieve equal status they went on strike, halting production at Ford UK and eventually leading to the creation of the Equal Opportunity Act.
This has led me to once again raise the question that should all “customers” be treated equally the same. Much will depend on how you define a “customer”, is a “customer” someone who places your biggest order? Or is a company that places regular orders? Or is it the one who pays?
The current economic climate means that companies are looking at the ledgers and realising that their profit is often in unpaid invoices. As a debt collector, I receive instructions from clients to collect their overdue invoices, these clients include professionals such as solicitors, accountants, doctors, insurance agents and loss assessors. Other clients include social housing and private landlords, importers, exporters etc and regardless of their industry sector or turnover they all have problems with non-paying “customers”.
The most interesting fact is that a “professional” such as an accountant will have a far less realistic view about credit control, than say an IT consultant who depends on the accountant for advise as how to improve their profitability. As an example, earlier this year we were instructed by a fairly well known firm of accounts to “sort out their bad debts”. That problem was they were owed approximately £1m and the partners were getting a bit concerned as their overdraft was now £500,000 and their bank had wanted to know when they would start to reduce it.
After I looked at the ledger I asked the partners about a random number of invoices and why they hadn’t chased them, seeing that some were over 48 months overdue. The answer while not surprising did depress me, they said the reason that they hadn’t chased them was “That they were old clients and had always paid their debts late”. I then asked them if they would mind me speaking to a couple of their “clients” while I was in their office, they agreed as long as I promised not to be too aggressive!
Amazingly the first company I tried to call the phone was dead, however with a little bit of investigation I found they had moved 9 months previously! More importantly they claimed that they had written to the practice 18 months earlier stating that they no longer wanted them to act on their behalf and that they had included a cheque, which had not been banked. They explained that one of the reasons for their decision to look for another accountant was the lack of communication and agreed to make an immediate BACS payment.
Another was so unhappy with the lack of service they had received they refused to pay settle the invoice, I only had to make one more phone call for the penny to drop and they began to realise that we were not dealing with “clients” but DEBTORS and agreed to allow my very experienced team of collectors to do what they did best. The upshot was that the team collected or resolved nearly 75% of the invoices within 8 weeks. At our follow up meeting a couple of months later I was told by the partners that our actions had made them realise that only those that settled their invoices within an agreed period, in their case 12 weeks were worthy of being called a Client.
If you would like to find out more about David Baum and Deanem Collections please do not hesitate to contact them either by telephone +44 (0)208 446 7720 or email them at enquiries@deanemcollections.co.uk or visit the website www.deanemcollections.co.uk.
This has led me to once again raise the question that should all “customers” be treated equally the same. Much will depend on how you define a “customer”, is a “customer” someone who places your biggest order? Or is a company that places regular orders? Or is it the one who pays?
The current economic climate means that companies are looking at the ledgers and realising that their profit is often in unpaid invoices. As a debt collector, I receive instructions from clients to collect their overdue invoices, these clients include professionals such as solicitors, accountants, doctors, insurance agents and loss assessors. Other clients include social housing and private landlords, importers, exporters etc and regardless of their industry sector or turnover they all have problems with non-paying “customers”.
The most interesting fact is that a “professional” such as an accountant will have a far less realistic view about credit control, than say an IT consultant who depends on the accountant for advise as how to improve their profitability. As an example, earlier this year we were instructed by a fairly well known firm of accounts to “sort out their bad debts”. That problem was they were owed approximately £1m and the partners were getting a bit concerned as their overdraft was now £500,000 and their bank had wanted to know when they would start to reduce it.
After I looked at the ledger I asked the partners about a random number of invoices and why they hadn’t chased them, seeing that some were over 48 months overdue. The answer while not surprising did depress me, they said the reason that they hadn’t chased them was “That they were old clients and had always paid their debts late”. I then asked them if they would mind me speaking to a couple of their “clients” while I was in their office, they agreed as long as I promised not to be too aggressive!
Amazingly the first company I tried to call the phone was dead, however with a little bit of investigation I found they had moved 9 months previously! More importantly they claimed that they had written to the practice 18 months earlier stating that they no longer wanted them to act on their behalf and that they had included a cheque, which had not been banked. They explained that one of the reasons for their decision to look for another accountant was the lack of communication and agreed to make an immediate BACS payment.
Another was so unhappy with the lack of service they had received they refused to pay settle the invoice, I only had to make one more phone call for the penny to drop and they began to realise that we were not dealing with “clients” but DEBTORS and agreed to allow my very experienced team of collectors to do what they did best. The upshot was that the team collected or resolved nearly 75% of the invoices within 8 weeks. At our follow up meeting a couple of months later I was told by the partners that our actions had made them realise that only those that settled their invoices within an agreed period, in their case 12 weeks were worthy of being called a Client.
If you would like to find out more about David Baum and Deanem Collections please do not hesitate to contact them either by telephone +44 (0)208 446 7720 or email them at enquiries@deanemcollections.co.uk or visit the website www.deanemcollections.co.uk.
Sunday, 10 April 2011
Deanem Collections: In business should you do business with someone wh...
Deanem Collections: In business should you do business with someone wh...: "I’m grateful to Deanne Gold of Key Connectors for providing the inspiration for this blog. Apparently she was at a networking event and was ..."
In business should you do business with someone who recycles their business cards?
I’m grateful to Deanne Gold of Key Connectors for providing the inspiration for this blog. Apparently she was at a networking event and was introduced to a gentleman who had just set up his new business. On being given Deanne’s card, he handed her his card. He apologised went on to explain that he couldn’t afford to have cards printed and had decided to use up his old business card first. According to Deanne he had used a biro to blank out his old contact details and scribbled his new details.
The question must be asked that with the plethora of free business cards available on the net, why he couldn’t afford the cards. This got me thinking, would I want to do business with this gent or anyone who had this attitude. The question has to be asked if money was so tight that they couldn’t afford the business cards what other corners will they have cut?
Being a serial networker (or network tart as friends call me) over the years I’ve spoken to a large number of people who had just set up there business and the first thing they did was to get business cards printed. In fact, I remember when I set up Deanem Collections the first thing I did after the company was registered and I had decided where I was going to work from, was to order business cards from Vista print. I was delighted when they arrived and took great delight in passing them out at every opportunity, including at a funeral!
I realised after about six months that my cards looked and felt very much like a lot of other cards, the board used wasn’t very substantial and you could tell that they had been ordered from Vista Print. I decided that I had to bite the bullet and spend some money on having my business cards printed by a regular printer. I also decided that if I was going to do this I needed a company logo and instructed a graphic designer to come up with a design that could be used on all company literature, including the website. I remember the day I went to the printer to pick up my new business cards and letter head and the subsequent apprehension I felt the first time I handed out my new business card and the relief that I felt after being told that they looked very smart.
I have never regretted instructing the graphic designer and the invaluable advice he provided, for instance he recommend that back of the card should also be printed. He reasoned that this way if I put my card in to a hat or bowl for a prize draw, my details would be seen regardless of which way the card was placed in the hat or bowl.
The best advice I have been given about business cards is that if you have run out or worse forgotten them, apologise and explain that you’ve just run out and ask for their details so you can email them your contact details.
Please remember you only get one chance to make a first impression and if you look like your in a mess you’re unlikely to secure new business.
If you would like to know more about David or Deanem Collections please do not hesitate to send me an email or visit our website www.deanemcollections.co.uk
The question must be asked that with the plethora of free business cards available on the net, why he couldn’t afford the cards. This got me thinking, would I want to do business with this gent or anyone who had this attitude. The question has to be asked if money was so tight that they couldn’t afford the business cards what other corners will they have cut?
Being a serial networker (or network tart as friends call me) over the years I’ve spoken to a large number of people who had just set up there business and the first thing they did was to get business cards printed. In fact, I remember when I set up Deanem Collections the first thing I did after the company was registered and I had decided where I was going to work from, was to order business cards from Vista print. I was delighted when they arrived and took great delight in passing them out at every opportunity, including at a funeral!
I realised after about six months that my cards looked and felt very much like a lot of other cards, the board used wasn’t very substantial and you could tell that they had been ordered from Vista Print. I decided that I had to bite the bullet and spend some money on having my business cards printed by a regular printer. I also decided that if I was going to do this I needed a company logo and instructed a graphic designer to come up with a design that could be used on all company literature, including the website. I remember the day I went to the printer to pick up my new business cards and letter head and the subsequent apprehension I felt the first time I handed out my new business card and the relief that I felt after being told that they looked very smart.
I have never regretted instructing the graphic designer and the invaluable advice he provided, for instance he recommend that back of the card should also be printed. He reasoned that this way if I put my card in to a hat or bowl for a prize draw, my details would be seen regardless of which way the card was placed in the hat or bowl.
The best advice I have been given about business cards is that if you have run out or worse forgotten them, apologise and explain that you’ve just run out and ask for their details so you can email them your contact details.
Please remember you only get one chance to make a first impression and if you look like your in a mess you’re unlikely to secure new business.
If you would like to know more about David or Deanem Collections please do not hesitate to send me an email or visit our website www.deanemcollections.co.uk
Sunday, 20 March 2011
Deanem Collections: In business why we should cull dead wood be it non...
Deanem Collections: In business why we should cull dead wood be it non...: "I am grateful to both Jeremy Silverstone of Purple Marketing and Peter Sellers and Hal Ashby for the inspiration for this week’s blog. Jere..."
In business why we should cull dead wood be it non-performing customers or a non-perfoming website.
I am grateful to both Jeremy Silverstone of Purple Marketing and Peter Sellers and Hal Ashby for the inspiration for this week’s blog.
Jeremy and I were talking during breakfast at Key Connectors networking in Barnet last week, about the fact that most companies generally do not review their website more than once a year and wonder why they don’t have many hits. In fact there is one company I used to work for who is a prime example of this. If I recall it correctly they spent around £600 - £1000 developing their website, the price included the capacity to carry live streaming etc and at the time it was a very good and innovative website. They had embraced the modern age and very quickly they saw an immediate return for their investment. The number of hits on their website was amazing, they received enquiries and instructions from both the UK and abroad. Due to the stat counter they had installed on the website they knew that this increased level of work could be attributed to their new website.
Unfortunately, they didn’t listen to advice and 6 years down the road the website has not been changed or updated and is now looking very dated. I can only assume that the level of enquiries they receive has dropped to a mere trickle.
I’m sure you’re asking yourself “What has this got to do with Peter Sellers or Hal Ashby?” Well Jeremy reminded me that one of the great films of the later part of the 1970’s was Being There and how the film’s message should be adopted by all business owners.
For those who haven’t seen the film, Peter Sellers plays a middle-aged gardener who lives in the townhouse of a wealthy man in Washington. Chance appears to be a simple man with simple tastes and is perfectly happy living with his employer as long as he has his garden, television and food on the table. When the wealthy man dies he is forced to leave by the executors and leaves with only the clothes given to him by his late employer, a homburg hat, umbrella and a television remote and starts to walk aimlessly through Washington.
Due to a random act of misfortune he is knocked down by a car being driven by a wealthy businessman who feels so guilty that he takes Chance home with him to recover. During dinner he is asked his name and even though he says he is called Chance the Gardener, the other dinners think he says Chancy Gardener. When Chance is asked his opinion of the economic crisis that was then effecting America and the rest of the Western world and when he answered he used the only knowledge he had and that was the knowledge that came from gardening.
He explained that everything in nature is a cycle, that while in spring and summer there is growth, but in fall & winter things die down. It is in winter and early spring that we should cut back the dead wood to allow for the new growth to come through. His simplistic answers were interpreted as statements of deep wisdom and knowledge regarding business matters and the current state of the economy. The jaded guests and those he meets along the way declare Chance to be a genius.
While Being There is a work of fiction the sentiment is very true today. We are currently coming towards the end of a very hard financial winter and if we want our business to start to grow we have to start making some very hard decisions.
Start by looking at your website how long since you’ve received an enquiry, is it looking tired and old, can you almost see cobwebs. If the answer is yes to any of these questions then you need to invest some time and money and refresh it. Remember your website is your shop window and you are judged by it and like a garden it need constant upkeep to ensure that it offers the visitor a splendid impression of your business.
When you’ve done that review your customer base, especially the bottom performing 20%. You’ll have to decide if the reason that they are underperforming is due to your lack of communication. If it is, make some time and phone them and if possible arrange to visit them and find out why they are not your best customer. If after that they're still at the bottom of your chart, divorce them as they aren’t Roses but weeds that could be choking the life out of your business.
If you would like to know more about David or Deanem Collections please do not hesitate to visit www.deanemcollections.co.uk
Jeremy and I were talking during breakfast at Key Connectors networking in Barnet last week, about the fact that most companies generally do not review their website more than once a year and wonder why they don’t have many hits. In fact there is one company I used to work for who is a prime example of this. If I recall it correctly they spent around £600 - £1000 developing their website, the price included the capacity to carry live streaming etc and at the time it was a very good and innovative website. They had embraced the modern age and very quickly they saw an immediate return for their investment. The number of hits on their website was amazing, they received enquiries and instructions from both the UK and abroad. Due to the stat counter they had installed on the website they knew that this increased level of work could be attributed to their new website.
Unfortunately, they didn’t listen to advice and 6 years down the road the website has not been changed or updated and is now looking very dated. I can only assume that the level of enquiries they receive has dropped to a mere trickle.
I’m sure you’re asking yourself “What has this got to do with Peter Sellers or Hal Ashby?” Well Jeremy reminded me that one of the great films of the later part of the 1970’s was Being There and how the film’s message should be adopted by all business owners.
For those who haven’t seen the film, Peter Sellers plays a middle-aged gardener who lives in the townhouse of a wealthy man in Washington. Chance appears to be a simple man with simple tastes and is perfectly happy living with his employer as long as he has his garden, television and food on the table. When the wealthy man dies he is forced to leave by the executors and leaves with only the clothes given to him by his late employer, a homburg hat, umbrella and a television remote and starts to walk aimlessly through Washington.
Due to a random act of misfortune he is knocked down by a car being driven by a wealthy businessman who feels so guilty that he takes Chance home with him to recover. During dinner he is asked his name and even though he says he is called Chance the Gardener, the other dinners think he says Chancy Gardener. When Chance is asked his opinion of the economic crisis that was then effecting America and the rest of the Western world and when he answered he used the only knowledge he had and that was the knowledge that came from gardening.
He explained that everything in nature is a cycle, that while in spring and summer there is growth, but in fall & winter things die down. It is in winter and early spring that we should cut back the dead wood to allow for the new growth to come through. His simplistic answers were interpreted as statements of deep wisdom and knowledge regarding business matters and the current state of the economy. The jaded guests and those he meets along the way declare Chance to be a genius.
While Being There is a work of fiction the sentiment is very true today. We are currently coming towards the end of a very hard financial winter and if we want our business to start to grow we have to start making some very hard decisions.
Start by looking at your website how long since you’ve received an enquiry, is it looking tired and old, can you almost see cobwebs. If the answer is yes to any of these questions then you need to invest some time and money and refresh it. Remember your website is your shop window and you are judged by it and like a garden it need constant upkeep to ensure that it offers the visitor a splendid impression of your business.
When you’ve done that review your customer base, especially the bottom performing 20%. You’ll have to decide if the reason that they are underperforming is due to your lack of communication. If it is, make some time and phone them and if possible arrange to visit them and find out why they are not your best customer. If after that they're still at the bottom of your chart, divorce them as they aren’t Roses but weeds that could be choking the life out of your business.
If you would like to know more about David or Deanem Collections please do not hesitate to visit www.deanemcollections.co.uk
Saturday, 12 March 2011
Deanem Collections: How to raise your prices without upsetting your cu...
Deanem Collections: How to raise your prices without upsetting your cu...: "I’m grateful to Robert Craven of The Directors Centre and Dale Carnegie for the inspiration for this blog. One question I am regularly ask..."
How to raise your prices without upsetting your customers.
I’m grateful to Robert Craven of The Directors Centre and Dale Carnegie for the inspiration for this blog.
One question I am regularly asked when I’m speaking at events or running credit control workshops is “How can I increase my profit margin without upsetting my customers?”
At the moment it is probably easier to raise prices and justify it than it has been in the past. You only have to look at the price of petrol or shopping to realise that prices do go up but it doesn’t necessarily stop you buying petrol or food. The art of raising prices is fairly easy but needs to be managed.
The first thing you need to do is review your client base and see which of your customers pay on or before settlement date (80% on average) and those who do not.
Those customers who pay on or before the due date, phone them. Ask if they have a few minutes to spare as you would like their feedback on your products and services. You should conduct the conversation as if it were market research and your first question should be about improvements to your product and service they would like to see. You’ll be amazed how when asked, everybody has some criticism they would like to impart, no matter how satisfied they appear to be. If they make a suggestion that you feel could help your company, thank them and explain why. If on the other hand they make a suggestion that you beleive is wrong or unworkable don’t argue but thank them and say that you’ll look in to the possibility of implementing their suggestion. Either way your customer will be delighted to find that you consider them worthy of being asked for advice. You on the other hand have obtained some valuable insight and now know where your product and or services can be improved.
You should then mention that “unfortunately due to the fact that your manufacturing, or printing or petrol etc have gone up you are left with no alternative but to raise your prices by say 10% on a specified date”. However, because you value their custom and assistance you will be holding their price rise to say 5%. However, if they could improve their settlement terms to 7 days from the date of invoice, the price rise will be 2.5%.
To the late paying “customers” send them a letter explaining that due to circumstances beyond your control, as of say 1st May your prices will be going up by 10%. The majority will not question the rise, but some will and will call to question the rise. When this happens you have a golden opportunity to insure that you’re “customer” sticks to your credit terms by giving them an incentive. Tell them that if they can settle your invoices within 30 days the prices will only go up by say 7.5% but if they can settle within 14 days the price will only go up by 5%.
You may find one other advantage of a price rise in that you could loose the bottom performing clients will move to a fresh supplier. Remember by raising your prices you won’t have to work as hard to maintain your current turnover.
If you would like to know more about David please do not hesitate to ask or visit www.deanemcollections.co.uk
One question I am regularly asked when I’m speaking at events or running credit control workshops is “How can I increase my profit margin without upsetting my customers?”
At the moment it is probably easier to raise prices and justify it than it has been in the past. You only have to look at the price of petrol or shopping to realise that prices do go up but it doesn’t necessarily stop you buying petrol or food. The art of raising prices is fairly easy but needs to be managed.
The first thing you need to do is review your client base and see which of your customers pay on or before settlement date (80% on average) and those who do not.
Those customers who pay on or before the due date, phone them. Ask if they have a few minutes to spare as you would like their feedback on your products and services. You should conduct the conversation as if it were market research and your first question should be about improvements to your product and service they would like to see. You’ll be amazed how when asked, everybody has some criticism they would like to impart, no matter how satisfied they appear to be. If they make a suggestion that you feel could help your company, thank them and explain why. If on the other hand they make a suggestion that you beleive is wrong or unworkable don’t argue but thank them and say that you’ll look in to the possibility of implementing their suggestion. Either way your customer will be delighted to find that you consider them worthy of being asked for advice. You on the other hand have obtained some valuable insight and now know where your product and or services can be improved.
You should then mention that “unfortunately due to the fact that your manufacturing, or printing or petrol etc have gone up you are left with no alternative but to raise your prices by say 10% on a specified date”. However, because you value their custom and assistance you will be holding their price rise to say 5%. However, if they could improve their settlement terms to 7 days from the date of invoice, the price rise will be 2.5%.
To the late paying “customers” send them a letter explaining that due to circumstances beyond your control, as of say 1st May your prices will be going up by 10%. The majority will not question the rise, but some will and will call to question the rise. When this happens you have a golden opportunity to insure that you’re “customer” sticks to your credit terms by giving them an incentive. Tell them that if they can settle your invoices within 30 days the prices will only go up by say 7.5% but if they can settle within 14 days the price will only go up by 5%.
You may find one other advantage of a price rise in that you could loose the bottom performing clients will move to a fresh supplier. Remember by raising your prices you won’t have to work as hard to maintain your current turnover.
If you would like to know more about David please do not hesitate to ask or visit www.deanemcollections.co.uk
Sunday, 6 March 2011
Deanem Collections: Golden rules for Credit Control.
Deanem Collections: Golden rules for Credit Control.: "As a number of people will not be able to attend the Thursdays' Herts Business Expo (March 10) I thought you would like to read my thoughts ..."
Golden rules for Credit Control.
As a number of people will not be able to attend the Thursdays' Herts Business Expo (March 10) I thought you would like to read my thoughts on what I call the Golden rules for Credit Control.
One of the first questions I'm asked when people hear that I run a debt collection agency is
The answer is you can’t, but if you:-
A) Carry out due diligence on each and every order.
B) Have a firm credit control policy.
You can minimise your risks.
Terms & Conditions:
Are your Terms & Conditions adequate? Who designed them? What are your settlement terms: 7, 14, 21, 30 days?
Can you claim interest on overdue accounts? Can you charge your late payer for costs incurred in the collection of the overdue invoice?
Are you protected against damage caused in the fulfilment of your duties?
Are you protected if the customer interferes with your ability to carry out your work?
If the answer to these simple questions is NO, contact a specialist agency.
Account opening forms:
Do you know who is legally responsible for settling your invoice?
Is your client a sole trader, a partnership, a single Ltd company or part of a group? Where should you send your invoice?
If you don’t have a working account opening form, contact a specialist agency.
Authorisation & Satisfaction forms:
If you are providing an on site service, such as plumbing, electrical, equipment maintenance ask that the client sign an Authorisation form before starting work and then that they are happy with the service after the work is carried out.
The form should be on your company letterhead and should have two boxes.
Box 1) Should have spaces for the customer to write his/her name, property address, and authority to contract your services. There should be a space for the customer to sign that they agree for the work to be carried out as per your terms & conditions.
Box 2) Should have spaces for the customer to again write his/her name and that the work was carried out to their satisfaction or dissatisfaction. In addition, there should be a space for additional comments, good or bad.
If you don’t have an Authorisation & Satisfaction form. Contact a specialist agency.
Please remember if you have any concerns or questions about credit control or the collection of overdue accounts, please do not hesitate to contact David and the Deanem team either by email enquiries@deanemcollections.co.uk or by telephone +44 20 8446 7720
One of the first questions I'm asked when people hear that I run a debt collection agency is
How can I avoid debtors?
The answer is you can’t, but if you:-
A) Carry out due diligence on each and every order.
B) Have a firm credit control policy.
You can minimise your risks.
Due Diligence Check List.
Terms & Conditions:
Are your Terms & Conditions adequate? Who designed them? What are your settlement terms: 7, 14, 21, 30 days?
Can you claim interest on overdue accounts? Can you charge your late payer for costs incurred in the collection of the overdue invoice?
Are you protected against damage caused in the fulfilment of your duties?
Are you protected if the customer interferes with your ability to carry out your work?
If the answer to these simple questions is NO, contact a specialist agency.
Account opening forms:
Do you know who is legally responsible for settling your invoice?
Is your client a sole trader, a partnership, a single Ltd company or part of a group? Where should you send your invoice?
If you don’t have a working account opening form, contact a specialist agency.
Authorisation & Satisfaction forms:
If you are providing an on site service, such as plumbing, electrical, equipment maintenance ask that the client sign an Authorisation form before starting work and then that they are happy with the service after the work is carried out.
The form should be on your company letterhead and should have two boxes.
Box 1) Should have spaces for the customer to write his/her name, property address, and authority to contract your services. There should be a space for the customer to sign that they agree for the work to be carried out as per your terms & conditions.
Box 2) Should have spaces for the customer to again write his/her name and that the work was carried out to their satisfaction or dissatisfaction. In addition, there should be a space for additional comments, good or bad.
If you don’t have an Authorisation & Satisfaction form. Contact a specialist agency.
Please remember if you have any concerns or questions about credit control or the collection of overdue accounts, please do not hesitate to contact David and the Deanem team either by email enquiries@deanemcollections.co.uk or by telephone +44 20 8446 7720
Saturday, 5 March 2011
How an agency carries out a Trace.
As a Debtologist I am often asked what can be done if your debtor has disappeared or appears to have disappeared? How does an agency carry out a trace? What information can be obtained?
First thing that has to be recognised, is that not everyone can be traced. If someone has recently died or is in hospital, emigrated or even the subject of a custodial sentence. Other factors effecting if someone can be traced include that they have never been shown on the electoral roll or applied for any form of credit then the likelihood is they will not be found. However, if someone has any form of electronic identification or been shown on the electoral roll, their current location could be identified.
What cannot be guaranteed is that your debtor when found, will want to settle their debt. Before I explain how an agency carries out a trace, you will need to check that the agency data protection licence allows them to receive your information and that they can carry out a trace.
The first thing a tracing agent will do is to log on to one of the three main data providers. These are Experian, Equifax or First Credit and if sensible they will also log on to a secondary provider such as Checkit, Creditsafe or Tracesmart. Another useful tool is the UK Birth Marriage & Death register which is used to confirm a subjects’ full name, date of birth and where the birth was registered. However, due to Government changes to the register since 2006 there is now no central birth, marriage or death register.
If you can provide your debtor’s full details (first & last names) the first action will be to input the debtors’ name and last known address. Some sites will require more information than others, for example while Experian only requires the debtors first and last name and full address. If they are using Checkit they will also need the debtors’ title but only the house number and post code. The reason that the agency will use both a main & secondary data source is that the information contained within various reports will often differ between data providers. For example Experian may not provide much information on your debtor other than confirming a link between the debtor and their address, but Checkit may give previous addresses.
If you can only provide limited information such as an initial and surname as well as the address, the agency will utilise a data base such as Tracesmart. While Tracesmart does not provide credit information they can look at the details of people who were shown on the electoral roll and with luck the subjects’ first name will be provided.
What a tracing agent will be looking for apart from a current address will be if they made any credit applications thus confirming the new address or adverse information such as County Court Judgments or bankruptcies etc. This information is vital as it provides an insight in to whether the debtor will want to, or has the desire to settle their debts. If the debtor has no adverse information, then they are more likely to settle than a person who has one, two or more County Court Judgments.
As I stated at the start of this article, finding a debtor does not guarantee that your debtor will want to settle their indebtedness.
Useful contact details:
To check if a company is registered to provide credit information visit http://www.ico.gov.uk/tools_and_resources/register_of_datacontrollers.aspx
If you would like to know more about David or the services offered please visit our website www.deanemcollections.co.uk
First thing that has to be recognised, is that not everyone can be traced. If someone has recently died or is in hospital, emigrated or even the subject of a custodial sentence. Other factors effecting if someone can be traced include that they have never been shown on the electoral roll or applied for any form of credit then the likelihood is they will not be found. However, if someone has any form of electronic identification or been shown on the electoral roll, their current location could be identified.
What cannot be guaranteed is that your debtor when found, will want to settle their debt. Before I explain how an agency carries out a trace, you will need to check that the agency data protection licence allows them to receive your information and that they can carry out a trace.
The first thing a tracing agent will do is to log on to one of the three main data providers. These are Experian, Equifax or First Credit and if sensible they will also log on to a secondary provider such as Checkit, Creditsafe or Tracesmart. Another useful tool is the UK Birth Marriage & Death register which is used to confirm a subjects’ full name, date of birth and where the birth was registered. However, due to Government changes to the register since 2006 there is now no central birth, marriage or death register.
If you can provide your debtor’s full details (first & last names) the first action will be to input the debtors’ name and last known address. Some sites will require more information than others, for example while Experian only requires the debtors first and last name and full address. If they are using Checkit they will also need the debtors’ title but only the house number and post code. The reason that the agency will use both a main & secondary data source is that the information contained within various reports will often differ between data providers. For example Experian may not provide much information on your debtor other than confirming a link between the debtor and their address, but Checkit may give previous addresses.
If you can only provide limited information such as an initial and surname as well as the address, the agency will utilise a data base such as Tracesmart. While Tracesmart does not provide credit information they can look at the details of people who were shown on the electoral roll and with luck the subjects’ first name will be provided.
What a tracing agent will be looking for apart from a current address will be if they made any credit applications thus confirming the new address or adverse information such as County Court Judgments or bankruptcies etc. This information is vital as it provides an insight in to whether the debtor will want to, or has the desire to settle their debts. If the debtor has no adverse information, then they are more likely to settle than a person who has one, two or more County Court Judgments.
As I stated at the start of this article, finding a debtor does not guarantee that your debtor will want to settle their indebtedness.
Useful contact details:
To check if a company is registered to provide credit information visit http://www.ico.gov.uk/tools_and_resources/register_of_datacontrollers.aspx
If you would like to know more about David or the services offered please visit our website www.deanemcollections.co.uk
Saturday, 19 February 2011
Deanem Collections: Improving your credit file.
Deanem Collections: Improving your credit file.: "I read a fascinating article entitled “Healing a Wounded Credit Score” in todays New York Times by Tara Siegel Bernard and while the informa..."
Improving your credit file.
I read a fascinating article entitled “Healing a Wounded Credit Score” in todays New York Times by Tara Siegel Bernard and while the information is written for an American reader, I feel that similar information should be made available to those in the UK.
Once people find out that I run a debt collection agency, the one question I’m generally asked is how can I improve my credit score? Especially in light of numerous companies advertising “Credit Repair services” or “We can improve your credit worthiness”, the bottom line is that any improvement in your credit file takes time, hopefully the following will be of assistance.
Often the first time that someone realise that they have a problem, is when they have a credit application rejected. However upsetting this is, it should prove to be a welcome wake up call and your first action should apply to Equifax (www.equifax.co.uk) or Experian (www.creditexpert.co.uk) for a copy of your credit file.
The reason that you should check your credit file is that all credit providers will base their decisions on your “score” and what is shown in your file. Decisions are made by checking how many credit applications have been made in the previous 6 – 12 months,. These could be for a mobile phone or an insurance policy or a store card too many and you won’t be awarded credit. Likewise, too few will also count against you. They will then note if you are or have ever been in default and finally if you’re the subject of any County Court Judgments or the subject of an IVA or have been declared Bankrupt. If your file shows no adverse information, you should appeal the decision.
However, if you’re file shows wrong information, say that you are in arrears or defaulted on say an insurance premium your first action should be to contact the company concerned and ask that they correct the entry. If they won’t then contact Equifax & Experian and they can force the company to make the correction.
What should you do if the information is correct? Simple if it’s just the case that you’ve missed a payment the best you can do is make sure for the next 6 months is that you don’t miss any payments. If you haven’t missed a payment, check how many applications you’ve made and don’t apply for anything for say 6 months.
What should you do if you were declared Bankrupt or entered in to an IVA and your bankruptcy /IVA has been satisfied?
First thing that you must realise is that for your Bankruptcy /IVA status will be shown on your credit file for the next 6 years. However, once you have been discharged you can start the process of repairing your credit worthiness. The first thing you will need to do, if you haven’t got one is apply to a bank for an account. The account you’ll be offered is called by different names by each bank, it could be called an Easy Account or cash account or even a non-status account. Whatever it is called the bank will not offer you a current account that pays interest or provide you with a cheque book.
Once you have an account open, you will need to show that you can maintain a healthy account for at least 6 months. After that you should look at applying for a credit card which is aimed at people with a poor credit history, such cards are Vanquis, Granite or Capitol One. While you may be offered an account you will only be given a small credit limit of around £250. Please be aware that these cards charge a very high interest rate if you do not settle your account in full at the end of each month. Provided that you maintain a healthy use during the first 6 months, the card provider will generally increase your credit limit to say £500. This is your first sign that you have begun to repair your credit file.
I know that having been declared Bankrupt, a credit card is probably the last thing you want to have and if you feel this way then you should consider a pre-paid credit card. This card is not a credit card but works exactly like the credit cards that you would have known and abused over the years. The big difference is that before you can use it, you have to deposit money in to your card account. The good thing about these cards is that you are not credit checked when you apply, but they still count to improving your credit worthiness and look no different to a standard credit card.
I hope that this is of assistance but if you have any questions please do not hesitate to email me david@deanemcollections.co.uk. Or if you prefer make an appointment to see one of the advisors attached to the C.A.B.
For further details about David or Deanem Collections Ltd please do not hesitate to visit our website www.deanemcollections.co.uk
Once people find out that I run a debt collection agency, the one question I’m generally asked is how can I improve my credit score? Especially in light of numerous companies advertising “Credit Repair services” or “We can improve your credit worthiness”, the bottom line is that any improvement in your credit file takes time, hopefully the following will be of assistance.
Often the first time that someone realise that they have a problem, is when they have a credit application rejected. However upsetting this is, it should prove to be a welcome wake up call and your first action should apply to Equifax (www.equifax.co.uk) or Experian (www.creditexpert.co.uk) for a copy of your credit file.
The reason that you should check your credit file is that all credit providers will base their decisions on your “score” and what is shown in your file. Decisions are made by checking how many credit applications have been made in the previous 6 – 12 months,. These could be for a mobile phone or an insurance policy or a store card too many and you won’t be awarded credit. Likewise, too few will also count against you. They will then note if you are or have ever been in default and finally if you’re the subject of any County Court Judgments or the subject of an IVA or have been declared Bankrupt. If your file shows no adverse information, you should appeal the decision.
However, if you’re file shows wrong information, say that you are in arrears or defaulted on say an insurance premium your first action should be to contact the company concerned and ask that they correct the entry. If they won’t then contact Equifax & Experian and they can force the company to make the correction.
What should you do if the information is correct? Simple if it’s just the case that you’ve missed a payment the best you can do is make sure for the next 6 months is that you don’t miss any payments. If you haven’t missed a payment, check how many applications you’ve made and don’t apply for anything for say 6 months.
What should you do if you were declared Bankrupt or entered in to an IVA and your bankruptcy /IVA has been satisfied?
First thing that you must realise is that for your Bankruptcy /IVA status will be shown on your credit file for the next 6 years. However, once you have been discharged you can start the process of repairing your credit worthiness. The first thing you will need to do, if you haven’t got one is apply to a bank for an account. The account you’ll be offered is called by different names by each bank, it could be called an Easy Account or cash account or even a non-status account. Whatever it is called the bank will not offer you a current account that pays interest or provide you with a cheque book.
Once you have an account open, you will need to show that you can maintain a healthy account for at least 6 months. After that you should look at applying for a credit card which is aimed at people with a poor credit history, such cards are Vanquis, Granite or Capitol One. While you may be offered an account you will only be given a small credit limit of around £250. Please be aware that these cards charge a very high interest rate if you do not settle your account in full at the end of each month. Provided that you maintain a healthy use during the first 6 months, the card provider will generally increase your credit limit to say £500. This is your first sign that you have begun to repair your credit file.
I know that having been declared Bankrupt, a credit card is probably the last thing you want to have and if you feel this way then you should consider a pre-paid credit card. This card is not a credit card but works exactly like the credit cards that you would have known and abused over the years. The big difference is that before you can use it, you have to deposit money in to your card account. The good thing about these cards is that you are not credit checked when you apply, but they still count to improving your credit worthiness and look no different to a standard credit card.
I hope that this is of assistance but if you have any questions please do not hesitate to email me david@deanemcollections.co.uk. Or if you prefer make an appointment to see one of the advisors attached to the C.A.B.
For further details about David or Deanem Collections Ltd please do not hesitate to visit our website www.deanemcollections.co.uk
Sunday, 13 February 2011
The Mayan Calendar
What can business learn from the Mayan Calendar?
There a couple of things I’ve discovered over the last few months. The first is that according to the Mayan calendar, the world as we know it will cease to exist in 2012. The second thing is that all substances be it animal, mineral or vegetable are really billions & billions & billions of molecules vibrating at very high speed and the way we get our shapes is by the speed that these molecules vibrate.
While interesting as these facts are I can hear you ask what have they got to do with credit control. On the face of it, not a lot, but if you look a bit deeper the Mayan Calendar you’ll find the answers too many of your everyday cash flow problems.
As I mentioned, according to the calendar the world as we know it will end in 2012, the question is what can we learn from this. Well if the world as we know it does end, will it be that the world stops turning and all the molecules stop vibrating, in which case go out and enjoy yourselves and don't worry about your unpaid invoices. I prefer to think that when they worked out the calendar they couldn’t think past 2012.
However, just in case I’m right and the world continues in to 2013 and beyond and you intend to remain in business, then you are going to have to make sure that you have a firm credit control policy. I heard this week from “John” who had attended one of my credit control workshops. I was delighted to hear that since he has put in to practice the advice I gave, his debtor days had dropped to zero and more people are now paying early.
I had explained that if you wanted to improve your debtor days, the best way was to notify your clients that on ex day prices would be going up by say 10%. However, if they could settle their invoices within 7 days then the price rise would be held at 5%. If they could pay on delivery, the old price would remain. "John" was concerned that he would lose his customers if he put up his prices, but decided to do it as the majority of his "customers" took 60 days + to settle. He was amazed that no only didn't the clients object, the majority took advantage of the lower rate and now pay on delivery.
For those who haven’t yet attended one of my workshops the next ones are being held on Thursday 10 March at the Herts Business Expo being held at the Ramada Jarvis Hotel. To attend you will need to register by visiting www.thehertfordshirebusinessexpo.co.uk and follow the link.
If you would like to learn more about David and or Deanem Collections Ltd visit www.deanemcollections.co.uk and find out why we are "The Liferaft in the sea of Debt"
While interesting as these facts are I can hear you ask what have they got to do with credit control. On the face of it, not a lot, but if you look a bit deeper the Mayan Calendar you’ll find the answers too many of your everyday cash flow problems.
As I mentioned, according to the calendar the world as we know it will end in 2012, the question is what can we learn from this. Well if the world as we know it does end, will it be that the world stops turning and all the molecules stop vibrating, in which case go out and enjoy yourselves and don't worry about your unpaid invoices. I prefer to think that when they worked out the calendar they couldn’t think past 2012.
However, just in case I’m right and the world continues in to 2013 and beyond and you intend to remain in business, then you are going to have to make sure that you have a firm credit control policy. I heard this week from “John” who had attended one of my credit control workshops. I was delighted to hear that since he has put in to practice the advice I gave, his debtor days had dropped to zero and more people are now paying early.
I had explained that if you wanted to improve your debtor days, the best way was to notify your clients that on ex day prices would be going up by say 10%. However, if they could settle their invoices within 7 days then the price rise would be held at 5%. If they could pay on delivery, the old price would remain. "John" was concerned that he would lose his customers if he put up his prices, but decided to do it as the majority of his "customers" took 60 days + to settle. He was amazed that no only didn't the clients object, the majority took advantage of the lower rate and now pay on delivery.
For those who haven’t yet attended one of my workshops the next ones are being held on Thursday 10 March at the Herts Business Expo being held at the Ramada Jarvis Hotel. To attend you will need to register by visiting www.thehertfordshirebusinessexpo.co.uk and follow the link.
If you would like to learn more about David and or Deanem Collections Ltd visit www.deanemcollections.co.uk and find out why we are "The Liferaft in the sea of Debt"
Wednesday, 9 February 2011
Deanem Collections: Bankruptcy versus IVA or CVA
Deanem Collections: Bankruptcy versus IVA or CVA: "I'm grateful for the following article published in Debt Management Today and the Insolvency Service for revealing that over 135,000 people ..."
Bankruptcy versus IVA or CVA
I'm grateful for the following article published in Debt Management Today and the Insolvency Service for revealing that over 135,000 people were declared insolvent in 2010.
Neil Morrissey recently opted for an individual voluntary agreement rather than bankruptcy when his investments in a property company resulted in him falling into financial difficulties, while the Eastenders actor Joe Swash opted for bankruptcy rather than an IVA when he also found himself with debt problems. So, which is the best option if you find yourself with money troubles?
Credit-rating agencies such as Experian do not really differentiate between bankruptcies and IVA’s, but there are still some crucial differences to be considered when weighing up the two options.
Bankruptcy is discharged after a year but stays on one’s credit file for five years, which could result in difficulties getting credit and contracts. IVA’s also affect one’s credit rating and may also lead to difficulties getting jobs in financially sensitive positions.
If you have no assets and no income then bankruptcy is probably the best option. However, depending on your profession, such a declaration could threaten your career: solicitors and accountants would be fired, so for them an IVA would be the better option.
Also, bankruptcy will be in the public domain. It could be printed in newspapers and you won’t be able to control who finds out about it, whereas an IVA is a much more private affair, which - while it might be published on the Insolvency Service’s website - won’t be printed in papers. But then, bankruptcy offers an escape from creditors that an IVA cannot match. You can keep your house and enough to live on and in many cases the rest of your debts may be written off after one year, as long as you haven’t concealed your ability to repay creditors during that period. However, there are some debts - like student loans and court fines – which will never be written off. With an IVA however, you may well have to pay an upfront fee and you can only take out an IVA if you have the ability to pay back your creditors.
In business an IVA is called a CVA however the effect is the same.
The key is to get advice early. These options should be seen as a last resort. Talk to a specialised debt advisor. If you are unsure who to speak to please contact me at david@deanemcollections.co.uk and I’ll be delighted to point you in the right direction.
If you would like to find out more about David and Deanem Collections ltd, please do visit the website www.deanemcollections.co.uk
Neil Morrissey recently opted for an individual voluntary agreement rather than bankruptcy when his investments in a property company resulted in him falling into financial difficulties, while the Eastenders actor Joe Swash opted for bankruptcy rather than an IVA when he also found himself with debt problems. So, which is the best option if you find yourself with money troubles?
Credit-rating agencies such as Experian do not really differentiate between bankruptcies and IVA’s, but there are still some crucial differences to be considered when weighing up the two options.
Bankruptcy is discharged after a year but stays on one’s credit file for five years, which could result in difficulties getting credit and contracts. IVA’s also affect one’s credit rating and may also lead to difficulties getting jobs in financially sensitive positions.
If you have no assets and no income then bankruptcy is probably the best option. However, depending on your profession, such a declaration could threaten your career: solicitors and accountants would be fired, so for them an IVA would be the better option.
Also, bankruptcy will be in the public domain. It could be printed in newspapers and you won’t be able to control who finds out about it, whereas an IVA is a much more private affair, which - while it might be published on the Insolvency Service’s website - won’t be printed in papers. But then, bankruptcy offers an escape from creditors that an IVA cannot match. You can keep your house and enough to live on and in many cases the rest of your debts may be written off after one year, as long as you haven’t concealed your ability to repay creditors during that period. However, there are some debts - like student loans and court fines – which will never be written off. With an IVA however, you may well have to pay an upfront fee and you can only take out an IVA if you have the ability to pay back your creditors.
In business an IVA is called a CVA however the effect is the same.
The key is to get advice early. These options should be seen as a last resort. Talk to a specialised debt advisor. If you are unsure who to speak to please contact me at david@deanemcollections.co.uk and I’ll be delighted to point you in the right direction.
If you would like to find out more about David and Deanem Collections ltd, please do visit the website www.deanemcollections.co.uk
Sunday, 6 February 2011
Deanem Collections: Moral Dilemma
Deanem Collections: Moral Dilemma: "In todays Mail on Sunday, I read in Tony Hetheringtons’ column (page 82) that Philips Collection Services Ltd one of my business rivals is c..."
Moral Dilemma
In todays Mail on Sunday, I read in Tony Hetheringtons’ column (page 82) that Philips Collection Services Ltd one of my business rivals is currently trading without a Consumer Credit Licence. According to the article “Their licence ran out last September. The company is allowed to stay in business as long as officials are considering a renewal application. But the fact that this process has dragged on for more than 5 months may indicate that you and I are not the only people to have qualms about the way this debt collector acts.”
At the moment it is a legal requirement for any debt collection agency that collects their clients’ money must be registered.
The moral dilemma was, should I pass this information on to prospective clients who I know use this agency, or should I not. If I did pass on this information would it make me look petty and enjoying another’s misfortune or would the prospective client appreciate hearing this news?
I decided that it was worth the risk and sent out an email to the various people working at companies who I believed are currently using or have used that agency. I did blind copy and attach a copy of the column to back up my comments.
For those reading this blog I must point out that the nearly all debt collection agency are registered and legal. However if would like to know what makes a debt collection agency not only legal but moral and ethical please do not hesitate to contact me at www.deanemcollections.co.uk
At the moment it is a legal requirement for any debt collection agency that collects their clients’ money must be registered.
The moral dilemma was, should I pass this information on to prospective clients who I know use this agency, or should I not. If I did pass on this information would it make me look petty and enjoying another’s misfortune or would the prospective client appreciate hearing this news?
I decided that it was worth the risk and sent out an email to the various people working at companies who I believed are currently using or have used that agency. I did blind copy and attach a copy of the column to back up my comments.
For those reading this blog I must point out that the nearly all debt collection agency are registered and legal. However if would like to know what makes a debt collection agency not only legal but moral and ethical please do not hesitate to contact me at www.deanemcollections.co.uk
Saturday, 22 January 2011
Business tips for 2011
Now that we are almost at the end of January, scary I know and most resolutions have now been forgotten it’s time to take stock and review your business plans for the year. I hope that the following 5 tips will be of assistance.
1) Always carry out a credit check on a new client. Barclays Bank Credit Focus is an excellent product for most limited company credit checks. If your potential client is a non-limited entity, please call our referencing team.
2) Raise your prices: It is a common misconception that you will lose your customers if you raise your prices, wrong. If you raise them by 10% on average you will lose no more than the bottom 10% performing customers, 90% will accept it.
3) Have a variety of pricing structures, after raising your prices you can A) If someone is prepared to pay on receipt of your invoice, offer them 5% discount. B) If someone wants to a longer settlement period, up the price by a further 5%.
4) Make sure you continue to spend as much as you can on marketing yourself. The company that will come out strong from the recession will be the one that is seen or heard.
5) Make sure that you reward your loyal clients with special offers or a discount if they buy or use a specific service.
I hope these tips help, but if you're still unsure and want some advice please do not hesitate to email me david@deanemcollections.co.uk
1) Always carry out a credit check on a new client. Barclays Bank Credit Focus is an excellent product for most limited company credit checks. If your potential client is a non-limited entity, please call our referencing team.
2) Raise your prices: It is a common misconception that you will lose your customers if you raise your prices, wrong. If you raise them by 10% on average you will lose no more than the bottom 10% performing customers, 90% will accept it.
3) Have a variety of pricing structures, after raising your prices you can A) If someone is prepared to pay on receipt of your invoice, offer them 5% discount. B) If someone wants to a longer settlement period, up the price by a further 5%.
4) Make sure you continue to spend as much as you can on marketing yourself. The company that will come out strong from the recession will be the one that is seen or heard.
5) Make sure that you reward your loyal clients with special offers or a discount if they buy or use a specific service.
I hope these tips help, but if you're still unsure and want some advice please do not hesitate to email me david@deanemcollections.co.uk
Sunday, 16 January 2011
Golden rules for Credit Control.
Having been asked on numerous occasions to reprint the Golden rules of credit control, I've decided that this being my first blog of 2011, I should re-post it the blog I wrote at the beginning of 2010. Hopefully, if you read this it will help you avoid the need for a debt collector.
I’m often asked as a consultant Debtologist just what are the golden rules for good credit control?
How can you avoid debtors?
The answer is you can’t, but if you:-
A) Carry out due diligence on each and every order.
B) Have a firm credit control policy.
You can minimise your risks.
Due Diligence Check List:
Terms & Conditions – Are your Terms & Conditions adequate? Who designed them? What are your settlement terms: 7, 14, 21, 30 days.
Can you claim interest on overdue accounts? Can you charge your late payer for costs incurred in the collection of the overdue invoice?
Are you protected against damage caused in the fulfilment of your duties? If the answer to these simple questions is NO, contact a specialist agency.
Account opening forms:
Do you know who is legally responsible for settling your invoice?
Is your client a sole trader, a partnership, a single ltd company or part of a group? Where should you send your invoice? If you don’t have a working account opening form, contact a specialist firm.
Simple 30 day credit control rules:
If your terms are 30 days, on day 14 phone the client and ask two questions.
Question 1: Are they happy with the order. If they say they weren’t, you have time to put it right. If they are happy, ask Question 2: When am I going to receive the payment.
Slow paying Accounts.
Never be afraid to ask for your MONEY, remember a non payer is not a customer, they are a drain on your bank account.
Day 21 Call the client on a pretext it could be to find out if they wanted to place their next order before the price goes up, while your talking say “Mary” in credit control is nagging you to be firm this year and ask if they can confirm payment date. Some prefer not to call for the fear of upsetting "the client", if you decide not to make the call send a final demand. If your client calls and moans about receiving a letter blame “Mary” in accounts!
Day 37: If payment has not been mreceived, PHONE the client, say “Mary in accounts wants to send the account to the collection agency but you wanted check what the problem was”
Day 40: If payment still has not been made, write to the DEBTOR stating that if payment is not made within 7 days the account will be passed to your preferred collection agency. The letter should be sent by “Mary”
Day 45 send a third party debt collection letter.
Day 55 send a Final Demand.
Day 65 send the account to a firm of debt collectors
I’m often asked as a consultant Debtologist just what are the golden rules for good credit control?
How can you avoid debtors?
The answer is you can’t, but if you:-
A) Carry out due diligence on each and every order.
B) Have a firm credit control policy.
You can minimise your risks.
Due Diligence Check List:
Terms & Conditions – Are your Terms & Conditions adequate? Who designed them? What are your settlement terms: 7, 14, 21, 30 days.
Can you claim interest on overdue accounts? Can you charge your late payer for costs incurred in the collection of the overdue invoice?
Are you protected against damage caused in the fulfilment of your duties? If the answer to these simple questions is NO, contact a specialist agency.
Account opening forms:
Do you know who is legally responsible for settling your invoice?
Is your client a sole trader, a partnership, a single ltd company or part of a group? Where should you send your invoice? If you don’t have a working account opening form, contact a specialist firm.
Simple 30 day credit control rules:
If your terms are 30 days, on day 14 phone the client and ask two questions.
Question 1: Are they happy with the order. If they say they weren’t, you have time to put it right. If they are happy, ask Question 2: When am I going to receive the payment.
Slow paying Accounts.
Never be afraid to ask for your MONEY, remember a non payer is not a customer, they are a drain on your bank account.
Day 21 Call the client on a pretext it could be to find out if they wanted to place their next order before the price goes up, while your talking say “Mary” in credit control is nagging you to be firm this year and ask if they can confirm payment date. Some prefer not to call for the fear of upsetting "the client", if you decide not to make the call send a final demand. If your client calls and moans about receiving a letter blame “Mary” in accounts!
Day 37: If payment has not been mreceived, PHONE the client, say “Mary in accounts wants to send the account to the collection agency but you wanted check what the problem was”
Day 40: If payment still has not been made, write to the DEBTOR stating that if payment is not made within 7 days the account will be passed to your preferred collection agency. The letter should be sent by “Mary”
Day 45 send a third party debt collection letter.
Day 55 send a Final Demand.
Day 65 send the account to a firm of debt collectors
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