Welcome to Debt Collection Basics!

Welcome to Debt Collection Basics.  If you’re looking for advice on how to get out of paying your debts or how to avoid debt collectors you’ve come to the wrong place.  Unlike most sites that paint collectors as villains and cater to corrupt individuals determined to beat the system, this blog is for honest people who are in over their heads, overwhelmed by letters and phone calls from collection agencies and law firms, but willing to take responsibility for their actions.  Face it, you did it to yourself.  You may have been blindsided by an illness or loss of a job, but the fact is you put yourself in this position by spending other people’s money.  If you took on credit with the intention of repaying it, your current hardship should not cause those good intentions to change.

There’s an industry joke that debt collection is the world’s second oldest profession, arising when services rendered by the world’s oldest profession went unpaid.  Despite this distinction, debt collectors have been much maligned going back as far as biblical times.  While some of this reputation is well deserved, debt collection is a respectable profession providing vital support to the credit industry.  Though nobody likes hearing from them, debt collectors serve to police the credit industry, holding consumers responsible for what they borrow.  Without them the risk of extending credit would be too great and the system could not function.  For the credit system to be there when you need it, borrowers must pay back what they owe. If too many people default on their obligations the whole system is jeopardized. We've all seen what can happen.  Debt collectors help ensure that interest rates stay reasonable, allowing honest people to use credit to obtain goods and services they would otherwise not be able to afford.

I have worked in the debt collection industry for nearly 20 years.  I have done 1st-party collctions and 3rd-party collections.  I have collected all types of debt:  retail, commercial, state & local taxes, medical, insurance subrogation, student loans, etc.  I have worked for collection agencies and for law firms specializing in debt collection.  Future postings will cover; the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, the difference between collection agencies and law firms, how to negotiate your payment, how to avoid going to collections and the benefits of doing so, and other topics per reader request.  Thank you for visiting Debt Collection Basics!