Debt Collector
What the work is
Collects consumer, commercial, insurance and other forms of debt for clients, makes arrangements to settle overdue accounts, formalises payment arrangements, and follows up until accounts are fully paid.
Would you enjoy the work?
These are the main tasks in the official description. Mark how each one sounds to you.
- Liaises with clients, credit staff, accounts receivable departments, process servers, Private Investigators, Barristers, Solicitors, trustees, liquidators and other insolvency professionals to find solutions to payment problems
- Identifies, locates and notifies debtors of overdue accounts in writing, by telephone and in person, and arranges for payments to be made
- Traces addresses of debtors who have moved
- Arranges new repayment plans for debtors having difficulties making existing repayments, including identifying and assisting customers experiencing financial hardship
- Refers debtors' disputes to creditors
- Issues instructions for the commencement of legal action and enforcement to recover money
- Arranges for money and goods collected to be transferred to creditors, and prepares statements of account for creditors
- Records amounts collected and notes any further action required, including identifying and reporting suspicious matters under legislation
- Maintains accurate and compliant records for overdue accounts under collection, ensuring all relevant debtor information is obtained, verified and updated
Try it
A simulation and a case study from this kind of work, set in a collections team at a credit agency, and a betting counter at a country racecourse. They are fictional.
The kind of days you could have
Good days
- Someone who was dreading your call says thank you after you agreed a plan together
- A debt that seemed impossible is paid off, step by step
- You help a customer step back from a bet they were about to place in a bad moment
Hard days
- A person is angry and frightened and you are the voice on the other end
- A debtor cannot be found, and the file has to be kept moving
- Being asked to push harder on someone when you think a gentler way will work
Written by Career Calling as a general guide. Real roles vary by employer and place.
Work a mission
Step into a simulated workplace in this field, with a brief from your manager.
Description and tasks: Australian Bureau of Statistics, Occupation Standard Classification for Australia, 2024, Version 1.0 (opens another site), occupation 549133, used under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 licence. The skill guide above is our plain English summary.