The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) is an independent federal agency responsible for maintaining the safety of customers who interact with financial businesses. Because they create and enforce the regulations that govern the credit and collection industry, debt collection agencies know this organization well. But do you know the best way to handle a CFPB complaint about your business filed …
Dispute Resolution Processes for Debt Collection
What happens if the consumer you speak to doesn’t agree that they owe a bill or debt? What if a consumer leaves your company a bad review on the internet? What policies and procedures does your debt collection agency have in place to ensure compliance and a dispute resolution process? In the past, PDCflow partnered to cover a California Association …
10 Examples of Great Debt Collection Websites in 2024
In the debt collection industry, if you haven’t updated your website to meet today’s consumer expectations, you’re probably already losing revenue. A user-friendly debt collection website is a necessity if you want to stay competitive and effectively engage consumers. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s (CFPBs) Regulation F attempted to clarify many aspects of compliant debt collection like text messaging and …
Skip Tracing Tools and Techniques for Collections
Between 2017-2020, PDCflow partnered with the California Association of Collectors (CAC) to share in-depth advice on running a successful, compliant debt collection agency. The subjects, ranging from day-to-day operations such as best practices for telephone communications with consumers to high-level topics like creating debt collection settlement campaigns, first appeared as the curriculum of the CAC’s Collection Boot Camp courses. Our …
Navigating Federal and State Call Recording Laws for Debt Collectors
Each year, the California Association of Collectors (CAC) provides insight to debt collection professionals through a series of educational courses. They touched on topics ranging from responding to disputes to tips for creating compliant collection letters, to best practices for handling call baiting. PDCflow has partnered with the California Association of Collectors (CAC) in the past to cover many operational …
Expert Tips for Creating Debt Collection Letters
Debt collection letters are a central part of a collection agency’s compliance management system. However, the California Association of Collectors (CAC) 2017 Collection Boot Camp panel, Courtney Reynaud, Shawn Suhr, Kelly Parsons-O’Brien (agency owners) and June Coleman (attorney), recognize the potential liabilities inherent in drafting collection letters. Their combined expertise and Coleman’s legal know-how as the CAC’s MAP attorney provided …
Guide to Credit Card Chargebacks for Collection Agencies
Every business comes with obstacles. A high-risk operation like a debt collection agency is full of especially unique team management and compliance challenges. Along with industry-specific rules, collection agency owners and managers must also comply with Regulation E, understand PCI compliance rules, and maintain a compliance management system as a whole. While balancing these responsibilities, agencies need to keep a …
Consent Management for Electronic Communications: Best Practices for Creditors and Collectors
Regulation F and reaching consumers through electronic communications is now a reality. Debt collection agencies have prepared as best they can and have implemented new compliance policies and procedures. But what about creditors? All creditor clients that use a third-party agency should know about Regulation F. Are you (and more importantly, are your clients) ready for data maintenance and handoff …
Guide to Emailing Model Validation Notices
If your debt collection agency doesn’t use email to talk to consumers, you’re never going to reach your full recovery potential. Phone calls are less effective than ever in making consumer contacts and traditional mail can be costly. Sending the model validation notice by email: Encourages more consumer engagement Is a compliant option Saves money Is faster than mail Still, …
How to Plan for Your Best Tax Refund Debt Collection Season
For many consumers, a tax return is the perfect opportunity to take control of outstanding debts. That’s why tax refund season is one of the busiest times of the year for debt collection agencies. Does your agency take advantage of tax refund season to boost revenue and close more accounts? Lots of companies might want to establish a tax time …
Chargeback Prevention Tips for High Risk Businesses
Your staff works hard during the busy tax season and throughout the year to settle past-due accounts and collect payments for your debt collection agency. Without measures in place to prevent chargebacks, though, many of your payments could end up being disputed by consumers. Agencies and other high-risk businesses can go months or years without experiencing the stress caused by …
A Strategic Approach to Debt Settlement Campaigns for Tax Season
Debt settlement campaigns are initiatives where debt collection agencies offer a discount to consumers to boost collection on old or unresponsive accounts. Tax refund season is the best time to consider a debt settlement campaign within your debt collection agency. A debt settlement campaign can help your agency: liquidate inventory more quickly increase revenue for you and your clients increase …
