What To Say To A Collection Agent

Early in my career, I had the unenviable duty of calling customers who were behind on their payments.

I’ve collected bad debts for several different companies, from a deep-sea cargo storage facility to a company that sold inflatable packers for pressure testing oil wells.

I’ve heard a lot of sad stories, believe me. Some were probably true.

Sometimes I could tell the person was telling the truth and they really were in a bad situation.

It’s hard to be the bad guy in those circumstances, even though it’s your job. When they start begging you to give them more time, it's difficult to stick to the script and push harder.

Debt collection can feel so personal.

I’ve also been on the receiving end of collection calls several times in my life. It’s embarrassing and always made me feel like a loser.

It’s not a pleasant experience for either person, but you can make it easier.

I’m assuming you’re deeply in debt, at the stage where you’re fending off collection calls.

The pandemic has impacted your job and you’re trying to figure out new ways to make ends meet.

I’m also assuming you are firmly committed to getting back on track financially and you have made a plan to catch up on your payments.

Now you need to communicate with the creditors.

It’s tricky to explain that you can’t pay the amount you owe, but you don’t want them to cut off your power or send your bill to collections.

Communication is key.

If you avoid their calls or ignore them, they will assume you’re not going to pay your bill. They won't go away just because you want them to.

The person on the other end of the phone is only trying to do their job.

Their job is to get you back on track and collect the money you owe.

They don’t want you to default and they certainly don’t want to take your assets or take you to court. The best solution for everyone is for you to figure out how to make the payments.

Remember they’re a person too.

Be proactive. Call them back. Don’t wait for them to make their next call. They will be pleasantly surprised. They might not be nice, but they will be surprised.

Listen.

The first conversation will likely be you listening to them tell you what will happen if they don’t get all of the money you owe right now.

There’s a certain amount of frustration built up which needs to be vented. Also, the collections clerk likely has a script to follow and they need to say certain things.

Take notes. Get their name. Write down the amount and any dates they mention. Ask them to repeat information if you don’t get it the first time through.

Let them know you are making notes. This shows interest in what they are saying and also shows that you are serious about the debt.

When they give you a chance to talk, you want to do these three things.

• Apologize for missing the payments.
• Tell them you have a plan to catch up.
• Tell them how much you are able to pay every month.

Now you get to listen again. They might repeat their script. Remember they are doing their job, even if they get personal.

Now you can repeat what you just said.

If they insist on threatening, tell them you are going to stick to your plan and you will be happy to talk about it another time. Be polite.

Thank them for their time and end the call.

Now comes the difficult part. Follow through with your plan.

Make your payments on time.

And remember to communicate with the creditors if they contact you. They are people too.

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A version of this story also appears on Medium by Tree Langdon, the author.