A | B | C | D E | F | G | H I | J | K | L M | N | O | P Q | R | S | T U | V | W | X Y | Z	GLOSSARY...   A Account Executive A member of the NCO Receivables Management Solutions service fulfillment team having responsibility for analyzing a client's receivables and making recommendations to enhance a client's internal and external collection recoveries. NCO Receivables Management Solutions account executives are trained to perform a detailed receivables analysis prior to making recommendations to clients. Activator A form designed to enable NCO Receivables Management Solutions clients to transmit information about a debt to NCO Receivables Management Solutions to begin the collection process. By using the activator to transmit debt information, the client does not need to submit (or copy) original debt information to begin the collection process. With paper-based NCO Receivables Management Solutions systems, the activator resembles a check in a one-write accounting system. With the electronic Tandem Online program, the activator is completed online and immediately transmitted to NCO Receivables Management Solutions for collection. Alienation Harsh tactics used by conventional collection agencies in an attempt to salvage and collect bad debts. Those tactics cause the debtor to get mad at the credit grantor, and the credit grantor loses any future business from that debtor/customer. NCO Receivables Management Solutions uses collection tactics designed to educate debtors regarding their payment responsibilities to prevent alienation and to get the customer back into the credit grantor's business (if the creditor wishes them to return).     B Bankrupt Accounts (see also Bankruptcy) Accounts that are listed within a bankruptcy filing and, thus, cannot be pursued by the credit grantor or a third-party agency. Bankruptcy A federal law that enables debtors with severe delinquency problems to get "forgiveness" on that debt. Once debts are included in a bankruptcy filing, it is a violation of federal law for either the credit grantor or any third-party collection source to pursue those debts. During qualifying and while determining the amount of debt a prospect has, bankruptcy amounts must be excluded from debt amount totals.     C Call Campaign A series of three attempts by collectors to contact a debtor by telephone. Calls are typically made on weekdays, weekday evenings, and weekends. Collection Charges Charges added to the delinquent account balance to offset (all or in part) the cost of outside collection activity. Collection charges can only be added when the document creating the debt advised the debtor that collection charges will be added if the account must be sent to an outside collection source for resolution. Contingent Fee A collection charge based on a percentage of the amount collected. This is how most conventional collection sources charge for their services. Conventional Collection Sources Collection agencies, attorneys, or credit bureaus that charge for their services on a contingent-fee basis (i.e., they keep a percentage – typically 33 to 50 percent of what they collect).     D Delinquency Cycle The cycle a credit grantor's accounts goes through – advancing through the various aging periods (30 days delinquent, 60 days, 90 days, etc.). Typically, when credit grantors focus their internal recovery efforts on the older delinquent accounts (120 days or more), many of the accounts in the earlier stages of the delinquency cycle (e.g., 30- to 60-day accounts) are missed and they begin to age. If the credit grantor focuses on the early accounts, the older ones just get older. The delinquency cycle develops because most credit grantors do not have the internal resources required to pursue all of their aged delinquencies.     F Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA) The federal act that regulates the collection industry and all members of that industry. This act provides, among other things, regulations specifying what a collection source may or may not do in the pursuit of a debtor. Much of the act pertains to collection agency activities relating to consumer debtors. Fixed Fee Paying a specific amount per collection, as opposed to a contingent fee. NCO Receivables Management Solutions offers fixed-fee collection services. This is typically the most cost-effective way to recover delinquent accounts. Fixed Fee Philosophy NCO Receivables Management Solutions unique solution to accounts receivable management. The fixed fee philosophy focuses on the early referral of delinquent accounts and the resulting highest possible recovery ratios. The cornerstones of the NCO Receivables Management Solutions fixed fee philosophy are a low, fixed-fee-per-account, preserving the creditor's image, and assisting credit grantors to maintain a healthy cash flow. Full-service Collections A third-party collection source that utilizes a full range of collection tactics including written debtor contacts and multiple calls from professional collectors using predictive dialing equipment (see also Predictive Dialer) throughout the collection cycle. Those agencies that are not classified as full-service agencies may not make any phone calls to the debtor whatsoever, or may make phone calls only at the end of the collection cycle (and often at an additional fee).     L Letter-writing plus Percentage Agencies Collection sources that use only letters during the service's prepaid phase, and then, make telephone calls only when the account is being worked on a contingent-fee basis – as opposed to NCO Receivables Management Solutions full-service collection strategy at all times. Litigation Using legal action to recover a debt. NCO Receivables Management Solutions Tandem Program offers full follow through to litigation forwarding, when warranted. Litigation is most often used as the final remedy after all other collection efforts have failed. Litigation is at NCO Receivables Management Solutions option and may not be a cost-effective solution on low-balance accounts.     N Negotiation Collection Strategy The collection technique utilized by NCO Receivables Management Solutions wherein the collector works with the debtor to get a debtor's "buy-in" to the repayment plan. This is comparatively different from the more conventional, confrontational collection strategy. The negotiation strategy gets substantially higher numbers of fulfilled debtor payment commitments. Net Back The best and truest measurement of collection effectiveness. Net back is calculated by taking the dollar amount collected and subtracting the cost of those collections.     P Power Dialer A high-speed telephone dialing system that dials telephone numbers in rapid succession. At one time, power dialers were recognized as state-of-the-art equipment in any large collection agency, but the power dialer's usefulness has been eclipsed by the predictive dialer. Predictive Dialer The newest generation of high-speed telephone dialing systems. The predictive dialer, in addition to dialing calls, also monitors the length of each call and develops an average call length. Once the system knows the average call length, the predictive dialer can make the next call and "hand it off" to the collector as soon as the first call has ended. This system maximizes the on-phone time of each collector, and the overall result is, more debtors are contacted in a shorter period of time. All NCO Receivables Management Solutions facilities utilize predictive dialers. Preventive Maintenance (see also Fixed Fee Philosophy) The concept of using NCO Receivables Management Solutions collection services early in the bad debt delinquency cycle to prevent serious bad debts before they occur.     R Receivables Analysis A service provided by NCO Receivables Management Solutions account executives to determine the collection needs of a prospective client. The receivables analysis includes an in-depth examination of a credit grantor's credit and collection policies, the development of a current aged analysis, and making recommendations to enhance the creditor's internal and external recoveries. There is no charge for the analysis, and it is performed at the credit grantor's place of business.     S SCRD (Secondary Contingent Recovery Division) The Secondary Phase of NCO Receivables Management Solutions Tandem Program. It is a "workout division" specializing in second placement, hard-core debtors. NCO Receivables Management Solutions charges a contingent fee when clients elect to transfer accounts that did not pay in the service's Primary Phase into this part of the Tandem Program. Litigation, when warranted, is offered as a remedy in the Secondary Phase-at NCO Receivables Management Solutions option. NCO Receivables Management Solutions pays all court costs and filing fees (and is reimbursed from the first monies received from the debtor). Second Placement (or seconds) Accounts assigned to a collection agency for collection that were previously worked by another agency. Skiptracing Finding hard-to-locate debtors known as skips (i.e., accounts submitted with invalid addresses and/or telephone numbers). Skiptracing is included in the Tandem Program's Secondary Phase (SCRD). Accounts found to have invalid addresses or telephone numbers in the Primary Phase will automatically be transferred to the Secondary Phase where skiptracing may be employed. Status Reports to Credit Bureaus On selected Tandem systems, non-responsive debtors will be reported to national credit bureaus during the service's Secondary Phase. Placing a notation in the credit bureau report on a non-paying debtor can be an effective collection technique.     T Tandem The name of NCO Receivables Management Solutions two-phase collection program. The Tandem Program consists of a primary phase collection program followed by an optional, secondary (or SCRD) phase. Tandem Online The Internet-based Tandem Program enables clients to place accounts directly over the Internet, to update account balances and account statuses, and review their accounts on the Internet 24 hours a day, seven days a week. The service eliminates the delays and expense associated with telephone calls and mail, and generally, produces higher results.