Frequently Asked Questions
Why use a collection agency?
Many debtors perceive an assignment of debt to a third party as a serious action that might lead to credit damage or possibly expensive litigation. Therefore, although they might never cooperate with the original creditor, it is often possible for the agency to collect.
Do we need to sign a contract with the agency or make any kind of initial or annual payment?
There are absolutely no pre-payment requirements or long-term commitment relative to the use of our services. We simply furnish you with our standard collection kit which includes a brochure with our rates and terms. Thereafter, to place a claim for collection you fill out a simple claim form and email, fax or mail the form to our office. After a claim is assigned, the actual contract with Network Commercial Service Inc. is the Network Commercial Service Inc. website information or our printed brochure which details rates and terms.
How long will it take before we can expect results?
The status of almost all claims can be determined within sixty (60) days. However, the status can vary from balance collected in full to paying on account or litigation is required. Not all claims are collectible as some debtors may skip, discontinue their business or file bankruptcy.
What happens to the debtor's payments?
All funds collected are deposited into a client trust account and remitted to our clients within 14 days.
How can we keep track of assigned claims?
Our office will contact you by phone or mail and advise of any payments received or changes to the status of the assigned claim. In addition, at the end of each quarter or immediately upon your request, we will send a full debtor status report which reflects all open claims, the amount assigned, the total collected, the current balance and the current status.
What if the debt is disputed or the debtor is clearly unwilling to pay?
Our office is very experienced in dispute resolution and we will work closely with our client to provide all necessary information and documents to the debtor to fully resolve any dispute. If the debtor is unwilling to pay your debt on any acceptable basis, we refer the claim to our legal department for pre-legal research and their legal recommendation.
What debts can we place for collection?
Our office accepts claims regardless of how old or how small. However, we do ask our clients to note that if a debtor will not cooperate on a small claim, we will eventually reassign the claim back to our client because suit will not be practical on small balance accounts. In most states the "statute of limitations" varies between 3 to 6 years. For us to proceed with litigation, we must receive the claim within the time span of the local "statute of limitations."
Does the agency report unpaid claims to a credit bureau?
We can report unpaid consumer claims to the consumer division of Experian, TransUnion or Equifax with the your approval.
Does the agency process it's own lawsuits and judgments?
For over thirty years (30 years) we have had our own legal section including attorneys and paralegals. We are experienced in all types of collection litigation including pre-judgment procedures such as writs of attachment and summary judgment motions. In addition, we handle all areas related to execution of judgment.
What if a lawsuit needs to be processed in Federal Court or outside California?
Our attorneys work closely with the Commercial Law League of America (CLLA). The CLLA is the major attorney association across the United States and Canada. Our California attorneys work closely with their correspondent attorneys to process and control litigation whenever the debtor is located outside California.
What is the procedure if we wish to cancel a claim?
Any claim can be canceled sixty (60) days after assignment to our office unless we are in "hot pursuit" of the collection. Hot pursuit is defined as a collection on which there is an ongoing payment program, the debtor has made a promise of payment, a lawsuit has been initiated, or a claim has been filed in an escrow, probate proceeding, insurance settlement, etc.