Where to Find Bankruptcy Records

It’s your right to follow your debtor’s bankruptcy case. Do you know where to look for info? 

Set up an account with the federal bankruptcy court through the U.S. Bankruptcy Court’s website: www.uscourts.gov. Click “Electronic access to courts,” and follow the instructions to set up a PACER (Public Access to Court Electronic Records) account. Access to court records through PACER is simple, fast, and cheap, and allows you to easily determine if a bankruptcy was filed and its current status. In less than five minutes, you can log in and learn about any bankruptcy filing. Use the notice from the bankruptcy court, or ask your debtor what name was used for the bankruptcy and what case number it was assigned. PACER will give you the rest.

Similarly, bankruptcies are tracked by internet credit report providers such as Accurint (www.accurint.com) and Autotrack (www.autotrack.com), and may appear in their reports. Although they charge fees, setting up an account with either company will give you access to a great deal of information.

Learn more in our latest article.

Struggling to Collect Debt in Michigan?

Are you struggling with an uncommunicative debtor?

Take the burden off your shoulders and give it to our Michigan debt collection experts. Muller attorneys can help you from start to finish! To get started or ask questions, call (248) 645-2440 or submit a contact form.

Why is it Important to Create Urgency?

Have you sent a reminder to your debtor, and they’re still not paying?

Imagine yourself forgetting to pay a couple of bills before you take a long vacation. One bill is from your doctor, and the other is from your credit card company. When you come home, you’ll probably find two or three reminders – in your mailbox or email and on your voice mail – from your credit card company. Each reminder is sterner than the last, transitioning from polite to insistent. In contrast, your doctor probably hasn’t contacted you at all or perhaps has sent you another statement. By the time your doctor warns you that your account may go to collections, you may have already heard from your credit card company’s law firm.

Credit card companies figured out a long time ago that urgency works. If you’re like most people in this situation, you’ll respond predictably: you’ll pay your credit card bill before you pay your doctor.

Debtors who have more debt than money (most of them) have to set priorities. You are competing with other creditors, and you need to make payment of your bill the debtor’s priority. 

Learn more in our latest article.

Michigan Collection Services You can Rely On

If you’re tired of trying to get ahold of your debtor and you’re looking for reliable collection services in Michigan, you’re in the right place. To get in touch with a collection firm that prioritizes you and your money, call (248) 645-2440 or submit a contact form here.

Beginner's Guide to Payment Reminders

How do you craft effective payment reminders?

When you follow up with your newly delinquent customers, you want to grab their attention. Common techniques for creating urgency include:

• Interest and penalties: Consistent with your credit agreement and state laws, add interest, late fees, or both. Give your debtor the unambiguous message that the consequence of dragging out payment is that they’ll end up having to pay more money.
• Attention-getting words and “big red letters:” It’s corny, but it works. Send notices more often with notations like “urgent” and “past due” on them in red ink. (If you’re dealing with consumer debtors, keep any red ink that suggests the communications for debt collection inside the envelope. You can mark the envelope “urgent,” but save words like “past due” for the printed invoice that you put inside.)
• Frequent reminders: Use a series of collection letters. For pointers on this, check out our guide to writing demand letters.
• Multiple modes of contact: Use different forms of communication to keep your reminders in front of your debtor: email, overnight delivery, telegram, hand delivery, fax, text messages, and even social networking websites – whatever works.
• Making a phone call: If collection letters and similar contacts don’t result in payment, sometimes a phone call will bring in the money.

Learn more in our latest article.

Michigan Collection Services You Can Rely On

If you’re tired of trying to get ahold of your debtor and you’re looking for reliable collection services in Michigan, you’re in the right place. To get in touch with a collection firm that prioritizes you and your money, call (248) 645-2440 or submit a contact form here.

Dealing with Problem Checks, Part 2

How do you do business with a customer whose check has bounced?

If your customer admits the check isn’t going to clear, even if you deposit it a second time, tell them to send a cashier's check or drop off cash. They can contact an overnight courier (such as UPS or FedEx) and instruct it to pick up the cash or cashier’s check at the appointed time. When you employ a courier, a cashier’s check is preferable to cash.

Don’t forget to tell your staff about the change in the customer’s credit status: anybody who interacts with the offending customer, both at the sales desk and in the credit department, must know that the customer is on cash or its equivalent only.

When a customer makes good on a bad check, you may choose to be forgiving, but only the first time. A repeat offender should be notified that their checks will no longer be accepted. Restrict repeat offenders to cash, money orders, or cashier’s checks.

Read more in our latest article.

Customer refusing to pay? Get help from a Michigan collection service!

If you’re fed up with a customer refusing to pay, the Mullers can help. Our collection services are based in Michigan, but we can help you no matter where you are in the U.S. We can even help internationally! For more information, call (248) 645-2440 or submit a contact form here.

Dealing with Problem Checks, Part 1

What do you do if a customer’s check bounces?

Although you’re filled with joy (and maybe a tiny bit of skepticism) when you hear “the check is in the mail,” you know that checks don’t always clear the bank. You must be diligent and monitor the flow of checks through your business. Everybody receives a bad check now and then, but how you handle it can make a big difference in your cash flow and bottom line.

Receiving a bad check isn’t a small infraction. It’s a major breakdown of the financial relationship and in your ability to trust your customer. Because the extension of credit is based on trust, bouncing a check goes to the core of the business relationship.

Communicate with your customer immediately upon receipt of a bounced check. 

Express in no uncertain terms that the check must be replaced with real money within 24 hours, or you’ll take further action.

Read more in our latest article.

Customer refusing to pay? Get help from a Michigan collection service!

If you’re fed up with a customer refusing to pay, the Mullers can help. Our collection services are based in Michigan, but we can help you no matter where you are in the U.S. We can even help internationally! For more information, call (248) 645-2440 or submit a contact form here.

Writing a Demand Letter

How do you craft a demand letter to your debtor?

It may vary depending on the situation, but here are a few pointers you can always count on:

Demand letters should be personal; that is, they should be directed to a specific person and personally signed. Whenever possible, identify a person in the debtor’s company who has the authority to pay you, and send your letter directly to that person; sending letters to the wrong people doesn’t get you anywhere. If your demand letter looks like a form letter or isn’t directed to a real person, it will be treated like a form letter (thrown in the garbage). “To whom it may concern”? If your debtor doesn’t want to pay, nobody’s concerned (except you).

Read more in our latest article.

Take Care of Debtor Communication with Michigan Debt Collection Services

When you use our Michigan-based debt collection services, you don’t have to worry about doing all the communication yourself. We take care of it for you! To get started or ask questions, call (248) 645-2440 or submit a contact form here. We look forward to hearing from you!

Intro to Communicating with Debtors

How do you remind a debtor to pay without making them angry?

Effective communication with debtors is hard work. It involves both the art of persuasion and a creative imagination. Think about it: who really wants to pay a debt? Obstinate debtors are a tough audience, yet your job is to persuade them to pay up. So how do you draw your debtor’s attention to your past-due bill and create the desired sense of urgency?

Your demand letter should convey in the clearest possible way that the bill must be paid. The initial demand letter should come across as a friendly reminder so you maintain customer goodwill, and at the same time help you get paid. Remember to make it easy for your debtor to reach you. Include the name and phone number or email address of a contact person at your company so any questions or comments can be easily raised by the debtor and quickly addressed by your company.

Read more in our latest article.

Take Care of Debtor Communication with Michigan Debt Collection Services

When you use our Michigan-based debt collection services, you don’t have to worry about doing all the communication yourself. We take care of it for you! To get started or ask questions, call (248) 645-2440 or submit a contact form here. We look forward to hearing from you!