'Debt Collecting' comes under the operation of a Mercantile license.
Debt's must generally be collected within 7 years, but the longer it is left the longer it will take. Some international jurisdictions permit 15yrs from the time an order is granted, to recover monies.
A debt is an amount owed by one party to another, and is usually a debt to be collected when the debtor fails to honour an agreement, or terms of trade, to repay monies. Small or Minor debts are equal to or less than $7,500. Commercial and Consumer debt is more than $7,500.
It has become obvious that many small businesses do not have the correct terms and conditions in place when offering credit. Many do not a have a procedure in place to recover outstanding amounts. This is an area where we may also assist.
As agents we are obliged to attempt negotiations and we will usually try to get the parties to agree to a repayment plan. If we have evidence of previous negotiation where the debtor has failed to negotiate in good faith, or when approached the debtor attempts to lie or displays other indications of lack of honesty and good faith we may progress straight to collection.
Some people who owe a debt are quite happy to pay, if shown a method by which they can repay over time. Some do not have the financial ability to meet all the debts they have incurred.
The clumsiest method is, unfortunately, recourse to the courts for minor/small debts. However, these may proceed without the added cost of a lawyer/solicitor.
It is more common to proceed to court for the recalcitrant debtor for commercial and consumer debt (A small tip here is to try and obtain a directors guarantee for debts involving companies, as the company is seen in law as a stand alone legal entity and may be the vehicle by which a person avoids a debt).
We try to keep our options open and aim to achieve the best outcome for our clients.
Debt Collection may be a matter of escalation to the point where a person is more comfortable paying the monies, than facing the alternatives.
Other options include the freezing of assets that may be disputed, searches (similar to criminal search warrant searches) for information of relevance to the assets - these use authorities granted by case law.
Debt collecting and repossessions can be unpleasant work. We aim to be firm but fair.