Career Details :: Bill and Account Collectors
Description
Locate and notify customers of delinquent accounts by mail, telephone, or personal visit to solicit payment. Duties include receiving payment and posting amount to customer's account; preparing statements to credit department if customer fails to respond; initiating repossession proceedings or service disconnection; keeping records of collection and status of accounts.
Experience
Some previous work-related skill, knowledge, or experience may be helpful in these occupations, but usually is not needed. For example, a drywall installer might benefit from experience installing drywall, but an inexperienced person could still learn to be an installer with little difficulty.
Education
These occupations usually require a high school diploma and may require some vocational training or job-related course work. In some cases, an associate's or bachelor's degree could be needed.
Training
Employees in these occupations need anywhere from a few months to one year of working with experienced employees.
Tasks
- Mails form letters to customers to encourage payment of delinquent accounts.
- Notifies credit department, orders merchandise repossession or service disconnection, or turns over account to attorney if customer fails to respond.
- Receives payments and posts amount paid to customer account, using computer or paper records.
- Drives vehicle to visit customer, return merchandise to creditor, or deliver bills.
- Sorts and files correspondence and performs miscellaneous clerical duties.
- Persuades customer to pay amount due on credit account, damage claim, or nonpayable check, or negotiates extension of credit.
- Confers with customer by telephone or in person to determine reason for overdue payment and review terms of sales, service, or credit contract.
- Records information about financial status of customer and status of collection efforts.
- Traces delinquent customer to new address by inquiring at post office or questioning neighbors.
Related Careers
- Adjustment Clerks
- Credit Checkers
- Insurance Adjusters, Examiners, and Investigators
- Licensing Examiners and Inspectors
- Order Clerks
- Purchasing Agents, Except Wholesale, Retail, and Farm Products
- Welfare Eligibility Workers and Interviewers
Important Abilities
General Work Activities
- Performing for/Working With Public
- Resolving Conflict, Negotiating With Others
- Selling or Influencing Others
- Communicating With Persons Outside Organization
- Getting Information Needed to Do the Job
Important Skills
Frequent Work Context
- Job-Required Social Interaction
- Deal With External Customers
- Objective or Subjective Information
- Persuade Someone to a Course of Action
- Frustrating Circumstances
Related Majors
| Major | Add to XapPack |
|---|---|
| Administrative Science |  [ add ] |
| Administrative Secretary | [ add ] |
| Administrative Systems | [ add ] |
| Banking | [ add ] |
| Banking/Finance | [ add ] |
| Bankruptcy | [ add ] |
| Business Administration/Finance | [ add ] |
| Business Financial Management | [ add ] |
| Business Management/Banking | [ add ] |
| Business/Finance | [ add ] |
| Business/Management/Finance | [ add ] |
| Business/Public Administration | [ add ] |
| Clerical Studies | [ add ] |
| Commerce/Finance | [ add ] |
| Corporate Financial Management | [ add ] |
| Economics/Finance | [ add ] |
| Farm Business Management/Finance | [ add ] |
| Finance | [ add ] |
| Finance/Banking | [ add ] |
| Finance/Business | [ add ] |
| Finance/Economics | [ add ] |
| Finance/Financial Services | [ add ] |
| Finance/Insurance | [ add ] |
| Finance/International Business | [ add ] |
| Finance/Investments | [ add ] |
| Finance/Marketing | [ add ] |
| Finance/Pre-Law | [ add ] |
| Finance/Real Estate | [ add ] |
| Finance/Real Estate/Law | [ add ] |
| Financial Management | [ add ] |
| Financial Planning/Services | [ add ] |
| Financial Services | [ add ] |
| Financial Services/Planning | [ add ] |
| Financial Services/Risk Management | [ add ] |
| General Office Procedures | [ add ] |
| Insurance/Finance | [ add ] |
| International Business Finance | [ add ] |
| Office Technology | [ add ] |
| Quantitative Methods/Finance | [ add ] |
| Secretarial | [ add ] |
| Secretarial Science | [ add ] |
| Secretarial/Office Studies | [ add ] |
Institutions Offering Related Majors
No institutions found.