Preventable Collections Lawsuits: What Does the Future Hold?

Partnering with Interactive Intelligence and Latitude Software, insideARM.com has published a free whitepaper on the future of compliance for the ARM industry. What follows is an excerpt from the paper.

Nick Jarman

Nick Jarman, Delta Outsource Group, Inc.

With 2012 on the horizon, the biggest topic in compliance will continue to be dealing with frivolous lawsuits that are filed against collection agencies. This should not be a problem for those collection agencies that collect by the book, going above-and-beyond to ensure complete compliance with all federal and state regulations. Adhering to ACA International’s Collector Pledge will also keep most agencies out from under the eyes of unscrupulous consumer attorneys who attempt to extort money from them by threatening a lawsuit without merit or any wrongdoing.

Collecting debt today is difficult enough in itself with the state of our economy. There is more debt to collect than ever before, equal only to the number of consumers unable to pay. Debt collectors continue to be perceived as the bad guys, even though more time, effort, and resources have been expended to ensure the opposite is true. The reality today is that any consumer attorney has the ability to threaten/file a lawsuit against a collection agency with or without a violation.

With collection agency insurance premiums and deductibles skyrocketing, the fact remains that it is significantly cheaper to settle the lawsuit rather than fight it in court — especially for smaller collection agencies with limited financial resources.

In order for collection agencies to mitigate this issue, they should start by agreeing to, and enforcing with their collection team, ACA International’s Collector Pledge. At some point, someone or some entity of government will intervene and find a way to deter frivolous lawsuits. In the meantime, for debt collectors we have to understand this is the world we now live in, we must adapt accordingly, and at the same time we must continue to make strides to protect collection agencies that do business the right way.

Download the free whitepaper that includes nine other industry voices on the future of compliance for the ARM industry by visiting http://www.insidearm.com/free-reports/thank-you/?freemium_id=34118.

Also, be sure to register for the complimentary webinar where Nick Jarman of Delta Outsource Group, Walter Steele of F.H. Cann & Associates, David Fletcher of Latitude Software, Adam Plotkin of Healthcare Outsourcing Network, and Jack Gordon of WebRecon will have a candid conversation about various compliance topics affecting the industry. Register for the webinar by visiting https://www1.gotomeeting.com/register/809907345.