Collections & Credit Risk articles from February 2005

Collections & Credit Risk archives from February 2005

Growing Pains: Debt Sales Market Challenges Abound.
February 1, 2005... Debt buyers - or more exactly, their purchasing patterns - are the subject of this month's cover story, "Alternative Assets," which starts on page 27. As the price of credit card paper increases and the supply diminishes, debt buyers are...

Letters To The Editor.(Letter to the Editor)
February 1, 2005... Pushing Credit To the Editor: So many people are being laid off, etc., but even so creditors are pushing credit your way and those that want the credit are going to accept the interest - whatever it is. Many creditors don't take into...

Survey Results.(Credit & Collections World, Collections & Credit Risk)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2005... An unusual situation affected last month's survey results. For details, see My Take on page 6. Here's how visitors to Credit & Collections World, Collections & Credit Risk's website, voted on last month's Instant Survey: ...

Bankruptcies Down, Still at Record Highs.(filings )
February 1, 2005... U.S. bankruptcy filings dropped 2.6% to 1,618,987 for the 12 months ending September 30, according to data from the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts. The total for the previous 12-month period, ending Sept. 30, 2003, was 1,661,996. ...

Debt Collector 'Gone Wild'.(Capital Acquisitions and Management Co.)
February 1, 2005... Rockford, Ill.-based Capital Acquisitions and Management Co.'s alleged abuses of debt collections laws reveal a company "gone wild," according to the Federal Trade Commission. The FTC shut down the debt collector and debt buyer in December,...

Credit Card Debt Burdens Consumers.(Consumer credit)
February 1, 2005... Studies by two different organizations found that consumers are carrying high credit card balances and becoming increasingly concerned about their debt levels. A study conducted by non-profit credit counseling organization Myvesta found...

Checks Usage Wanes.(writing checks)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2005... Consumers increasingly are saying "no" to paper checks thanks to perceived disadvantages associated with using them, a study by Synergistics Research Corp. reports. Two-thirds of the 1,000 respondents reported that the need to carry a...

What's New.(Business management software)
February 1, 2005... Aceva Releases Software Suite Aceva Technologies Inc., a San Mateo, Calif.-based provider of enterprise software applications for revenue and receivables management, releases Aceva Revenue and Receivables Management Suite, version 5.0,...

Ontario to Sell Comtronic.(Ontario Systems Corp., Comtronic Systems )
February 1, 2005... Ontario Systems LLC, Muncie, Ind., agreed to sell its Comtronic Systems division in Cle Elum, Wash., to a new company headed by Jeff Dantzler, Comtronic's founder and president. No significant operational changes are planned. At press time,...

Collecting in Cyberspace: With call-blocking technology and government rules making communicating with debtors difficult, how has the Internet come into play?
February 1, 2005... For better or worse, the Internet has revolutionized everything from the way people communicate to how they manage money. Now, many people are more comfortable using the Web than they are using the mail and telephone. Collections agencies...

Debt Buyers 'Safari'.(Calendar)
February 1, 2005... Debt Buyers' Association 8th Annual DBA Conference Feb 8-10, 2005 The Mirage Casino-Hotel Las Vegas, Nevada Agenda Tuesday, February 8, 2005 6:45 a.m. Golf Tournament, Shuttles Depart Shuttle Sponsor:...

Alternative Assets: As competition heats up, debt buyers cast their nets into new waters.
February 1, 2005... A dramatic run-up of credit card chargeoff prices may be the biggest reason why bad-debt buyers are seeking alternative debt classes to purchase, but it's certainly not the only one. Debt buyers also are looking elsewhere because of a...

Making the Best Match: Finding a compatible agency partner can be a tough task. But, like the dating game, those who are sure what they're looking for can strike up a solid, long-lasting relationship.
February 1, 2005... Selecting a commercial collections agency is easy. Selecting a good one is not. While many credit executives have a formal and objective process for selecting agencies, the very best executives add something else to the mix - their intuition....

Home Is Where the Money Is: Commonality in clientele between collections firms and subprime mortgage lenders makes business partnerships attractive, but due diligence is key to creating successful relationships.
February 1, 2005... Rarely a week goes by that a collections agency or collections attorney does not receive a solicitation from a mortgage lender proposing a partnership. The lender's pitch is that they can help debtors who are home owners bring their account...

Debtor Scams: Money Protestors: Through twisted logic, some credit card debtors claim in court that they, not the card issuers, lent themselves the money in their revolving line of credit. Is there an expedient defense against such bogus claims?
February 1, 2005... Recently I appeared at a court hearing on a credit card collections case. After I identified myself and my client, the judge looked out into the nearly empty courtroom and read off the defendant's name, saying to the other individual there,...

Maneuvering Through the Maze: Tracking down debtors who've moved or prefer to "disappear" can be like navigating through a labyrinth, with all its blind alleys. What are the latest tools and techniques to locate elusive debtors?
February 1, 2005... Skip tracing is all about finding the debtor so creditors and collectors can collect the money owed. "After all, you can't serve process if you don't have an address," says Kenneth McMaster, president, Excel Investigation Inc., Tinley Park,...

Asset & Debtor Location Vendors.(Directory)
February 1, 2005... Company Accurint American Research Bureau Inc. Aries Data Corp. Austin Logistics ChoicePoint Inc. DataServe Datalure DebtWatcher Inc. DirectoryNET Estate Information Services Estate Recoveries...