The ABCs of Skip Tracing and Skip Tracing and Collections

by Drew Tyrrell

Octber 13, 2010

Learning the Trade

“You are about to become a debt You are about to become a debt collector, making attempts to collect debts and any information obtaineddebts, and any information obtained hereafter will be used for that purpose.”

Qualities of a Good Debt Collector

Good computer skills

Good communication skills(listening is the most important)

Creative

Self-confident

Motivated Motivated

Problem solver

Great attitude

Objectives

Skip Tracing

Definition and types

Collections

Voluntary Involuntary Definition and types of “skips”

Best practices/techniques

Voluntary, Involuntary and Unable to Collect

Employing a strategypractices/techniques

Best, most economical tools

What to say and how to say things for better results

ACT Strategies ACT Strategies

Types of “Skips”

Not trying to hide (aka Unintentional) Not trying to hide (aka Unintentional)

Trying to hide from you (Intentional) Trying to hide from you (Intentional)

Trying to hide from everyone (Fraud) Trying to hide from everyone (Fraud)

The Unintentional Skips Likely relocated for a job

Unemployed and living with friends or relatives

U f th d bt Unaware of the debt

Unsure of their options Unsure of their options

Low on cashLow on cash

The Intentional Skips

Aware of the debt and can’t/won’t pay

Likely have excessive other debts

Friends and relatives helping them hide

Bigger problems than simply debt

The Fraudulent Skips

Never had any intentions of paying

Hiding from law enforcement/child support

Friends and relatives have lost contact

Requires “hardcore” collections

Get Organized to Skip Trace Establish a skip tracing plan as part of your collection strategy

Schedule a specific time each day or week to skip

Skip tracing by phone: Friends, Relatives, Neighbors, Landlords, Employers, Colleagues, Former Employers, Pastors, and ex-spouses

Skip tracing with letters: Helps verify an address and may provide a forwarding address

Skip tracing online: Use search engines, free websites including phone/address directories, public record searches e.g. bankruptcy filings, marriage/divorce records, birth and death records, inmate searchesinmate searches

Skip Tracing Themes

Be proactive

Identify what you are looking for

Work the good information to obtain the missing

Leave yourself a trail then retrace your steps

Utilize a variety of strategies Utilize a variety of strategies

Be creative, Sherlock Holmes!

Economical Skip Tracing Tools Your Internal Tools

Admission application Entrance/exit interviews Other university/college departments Other university/college departments

World Wide Web Web-based search engines (e.g. Google, Yahoo) Phone/address directories Phone/address directories Public records (marriage, divorce, civil/criminal actions, foreclosures) The “free” sites

Credit Bureaus Credit Bureaus Current addresses and phone numbers Employment information Spouse information

Ability to pay Ability to pay

Skip Tracing by Phone Don’t be afraid to dial, dial, dial – and ask a ton of questions!

Be prepared – know what to expect

Be professional

Record everythingy g

Challenge the lies and call screeners

Avoid “Yes/No” questions Avoid Yes/No questions

Avoid being deceptive/misleading

The hold button secret

Skip Tracing Using Letters Send letters and keep record of what you sent and

the cost (recover your costs on Federal debts) Letters may generate a new address Send a letter to the on-campus address and the

permanent addresspermanent address Obtain a physical address from a PO Box Skip letters are no longer the normp g

The Best Sources of Information Parents & relatives Neighbors & landlord

E l Employers Colleagues Former employers Former employers Former colleagues Ex-spouse – Personal Favorite!p Pastor Other acquaintances

“Right-Phrase” Your Questions

NO YES

Is Johnny working? Is Johnny at work? Where does Johnny work? Is he still working at ____? Allow the person the complete your question?complete your question?

Does Johnny have a cell phone? What is Johnny’s cell phone number?

Is Johnny at work right now? What shift is Johnny working t d /t i ht?today/tonight?

What is Johnny’s address? His address is _____ ? Allow the person to complete the address for you.

What time will Johnny be home? I am available to call back at ____, which is the best time slot to deliver this important message?

Does Johnny have an email address? I understand Johnny is busy so where should I send him an email?

Free Skip Tracing Resources Basic Demographics

www.411.com; www.whitepages.com; www.zabasearch.com; www.skipease.com; www.skip-tips.com

Public Records County Court Websites; State Department of Corrections; County Recorders; www.rootsweb.com,

www.ancestry.com; Government Employees (e.g. State of California – State Telephone Directory); Bankruptcy courts

Professional Licenses Secretary of State; Chamber of Commerce; Medical Boards, State Bar; Teacher Credentials

Governing Body (e.g. State of California Teacher Credentialing Commission -https://teachercred ctc ca gov/teachers/PublicSearchProxyhttps://teachercred.ctc.ca.gov/teachers/PublicSearchProxy

Social Networking www.facebook.com; www.myspace.com; www.twitter.com; www.linkedin.com; www.classmates.com

http://en wikipedia org/wiki/List of social networking websiteshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_social_networking_websites

Online Search Engines

“Google it!” – www.google.com

Great for uncommon names Enter your subject + area = FOUND! Use quotes to avoid partial or wrong party information

Other search engines Other search engines www.dogpile.com; www.altavista.com; www.bing.com;

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_search_engines

International Skip Tracing

Is the balance sufficient to warrant the expense?

Identify the country of origin

Identify common languages in the country

Contact the ESL department at your institution

Student sponsors and/or embassy Student sponsors and/or embassy

Check VISA & Immigration Status (USCIS – www.uscis.gov/)

Types of Collections Voluntary

Demand for payment by phone and letter Lump sum payment(s) Installment payments Installment payments Compromise/settlements

Involuntary Reporting to credit Reporting to credit Tax/treasury offset Private collection agencies Holds on University/College services

Unable to Collect Private collection agencies Write-offs

Litigation Litigation

Best Practices on the Phone Update the file in every conversation

Avoid sounding robotic

Adapt to where you are calling

Sound like a friend or relative but don’t lie

Be courteous but not a pushover, firm but not aggressive, p , gg ,factual but on a need to know only basis

Talk to the bill payer in the family (with permission)

Borrower Information is Power!

The Strategy:

Obtain demographics

Require the following:

Current address Obtain demographics

(in every contact) Social security number Date of birth Place of employment

Work phone number

Discover ability and sources of payment

Work phone number Cell phone number Email address Spouse’s information

Communicate the urgency of payment

Spouse s information Household income & expenses Assets: Real property, money

market accounts, 401kurgency of payment

Negotiating with the Borrower Use an informal tone to identify the borrower Verify location information

Identify yourself and your intentions Identify yourself and your intentions Make no demands if the borrower doesn’t understand the debt Stress urgency by explaining benefits and consequences of

i t ipaying or not paying Ask for the balance Psychological pause: 1st person to speak loses Take a financial statement if BIF is not possible Document, reiterate and follow up on all arrangements

Tricks When Negotiating Make your offer and be willing to compromise

Don’t bid against yourselfo t b d aga st you se

Don’t give up anything for nothing

Identify what motivates the borrower

Use empathy but not emotion

Have a backup plan and be patientp p p

Committing Questions What are your intentions about paying this debt in full, today?

Which method of payment do you want to use to pay this amount in Which method of payment do you want to use to pay this amount in full today?

If you understood why you owe this debt you would pay it in full todayy y y y p y ycorrect?

Are there any other debts you have which you consider more important than this one today?

If I created an affordable payment plan, would you commit today?

ACT’s Skip Tracing and Collection Logic and Strategies Using a computerized collections case management

system

Storing data on all agency placements

Manage the progression of each account through the g p g gcollections process

Debtor demographicsParticulars of the debt Particulars of the debt

Status indicators Queue level indicators Account action and result codes

Analyzing Debtor Demographics Name Address City State Zip Code Home phone

POP!*

Work phone Cell phone SSN *Probability of PMT!

Driver’s license Place of employment Credit reports and scoring

Probability of PMT!

p g

Particulars of DebtP l d il Pre-placement account details

Debt type Debt type

Placement Level

Date of last payment, if any

Deliquency date

Prior collection activity Prior collection activity

Status Indicators Denotes the stage of the

collection process

Status Description

NEWNew account

L l ti t k

Helps the monitoring of an account or groups of accounts

LEGLegal action taken

BKBankruptcy identified or filed

accounts

Helps filter accounts ith i l d

HOTBorrower has ability; out to raise money

PDCPending consolidation

with special needsDEC

Borrower may be deceased; obtain death certificate

INCBorrower is incarcerated need booking infoneed booking info

Action and Result Codes

Details of how an account has progressed through the collection process

Action Result

Borrower called and promised payment

Setup for payment arrangement

h d l d f d fcollection process

Identifies specific collection activity

scheduled for date of payment

Borrower’s attorney called

Attorney status; no calls to borrower

B d i d St t h d tactivity

Provides collector and manager directions for what

Borrower advised cease and desist

Status changed to cease and desist; no further borrower contact

Called borrower and f

Notes message and manager directions for what to do next

left a message schedules account out 3 days

Skipped with the Department of Education

Updated new address and phone number in account

Queue or Bin Level Indicators Helps ACT identify when a collector should work a particular

account or group of accounts and provides a filtering mechanism

Examples:

Specific time zones Business classes

High scoring accounts High scoring accounts Bankruptcy Death

In e tion Incarceration

Agency Fee Based Tools www.Accurint.com www.Experian.com www.Transunion.com www.Equifax.com

B k www.Banko.com www.MerlinData.com www InsightAmerica com www.InsightAmerica.com www.theWorkNumber.com

The Agency AdvantageEver wonder how the Agency made it happen?

Significant investments in the following:

Industry professionals Industry professionals Employee training and development Information technology Skip tracing databases Compliance, compliance, compliance

Questions/Comments?

Thank you for your time and participation!

Drew Tyrrell(887) 403-7770 Ext 6589(88 ) 03 0 t 6589

Atyrrell@accountcontrol.com