drumster:

What say you VAPOUR RUB?

I say that Red Army doesn't need any help in making his posts look any more infantile and that replying to them continues to be a wasted effort. "id be up for 12 3 minute rounds and il even let vic wear head gear,something i wont be needing..lol"... Boy does SHE sound tough goading an online forum fight LOL!!!! The bottom line is, pretty much everything throughout the posts by Red is bull, not very useful and telling a naughty child to not do something gets the opposite reaction.

The author of a post should stick to commenting on something they know at least a little bit about; especially where they claim to do so. So far, since October 2007, I've yet to see much - although there has been a few moments of genius from Red which I duely gave praise for at the time. Despite actually giving Red the benefit of the doubt when people were seemingly 'ganging up' on him, to the point where I even 'stuck up' for him to Big G by e-mail, I'm not so sure he deserves my respect anymore. This topic RE Banking v Insurance has been exhausted throughout this thread and, so far, Red has still yet to say anything remotely sensible! I could very easily counter-argue the comments written by Red but this, too, would be one step forwards and two steps back (besides which, I think some people are probably best left to their own devices and their own words usually 'talk themselves out of a deal'). The bottom line is, my advice and comments on the matter (as invited) have already fallen on deaf ears and quite frankly the posts in their entirety, by this author, are written with Crayola whereas mine Graf von Faber-Castell; just for the sake of credibility.

So, Collections Banking Red, how about a little dissertation on: 'the large banks write off X-Billions of debts due to the credit crunch, the knock-on effects from the US to the UK, the effect it has had on the FTSE/Stock Exchange, the effect on house prices, mortgages, Credit Unions (& you in Collections) and the UK economy:BoE (brief, but touching on the NHS and Private Medical Healthcare); and how this will affect UK insurers and their premiums' - TIP: everything is relative and for every action there is a reaction. Your b3 status, and your professing knowledge in both banking and insurance should enable you to answer this with ease. Although the subject is pretty mundane and dull, I'm absolutely certain the answer will be to the contrary (!)

vic are you blind or somat??

how many lols did you see in me last post,the bit about a boxing match was said in jest and if you are taking it seriously then so be it,not my fault

as for your serious question,im afraid you got wrong end of stick,i never professed to have been a insurance professional and freely admit i never knew everything honestly unlike some who profess to be king of all insurance.

Collections is much more that just that where i working,,i tend to think its more like account management with collections being one of the main duties being performed ,aswell as working on customers accounts,looking at direct debits and loans etc ,much more to it than standard payment plans.

i dont profess to be a banking professional ethier,onyl been there 2 BLOODY WEEKS GIVE ME A CHANCE!!,as ive said in another thread im no where near clued up about the whole operation in collections,im on what i would call close supervison now for the nexrt four weeks and cant wait to finally get on the phone and starting recovering the money

As far as the credit crunch goes,the knock on effect is gonna be felt in most industrys as people have less money to spend after morgage rates are going up,food prices also increasing and the lack of credit availabale is also effecting markets such as property,motor trade and general retails,as for my role,i am joining agt a great time,people are going overdrawn because they cant manage money properly and if i can help them,i get good performance figures so the credit crunch suits me fine at the moment.

RED ARMY: RED ARMY post at Mon, May 12 2008 9:19 PM:

as for your serious question,im afraid you got wrong end of stick,i never professed to have been a insurance professional and freely admit i never knew everything honestly unlike some who profess to be king of all insurance.

Who are these 'some' professing to be King of all insurance?

Collections is much more that just that where i working,,i tend to think its more like account management with collections being one of the main duties being performed ,aswell as working on customers accounts,looking at direct debits and loans etc ,much more to it than standard payment plans.

Collections agents are not there to dictate how and where money is and isn't meant to be spent. You cannot tell the customer that they shouldn't have spent £X on XXX-TV or that their weekly spend on shopping is far too much for them. This would be stepping over a line unless you have been employed by the customer to give such advice as an account manager. From the information they tell you, you can come to an agreement about the payments they can make to you/the bank.

i dont profess to be a banking professional ethier,onyl been there 2 BLOODY WEEKS GIVE ME A CHANCE!!,as ive said in another thread im no where near clued up about the whole operation in collections,im on what i would call close supervison now for the nexrt four weeks and cant wait to finally get on the phone and starting recovering the money

As far as the credit crunch goes,the knock on effect is gonna be felt in most industrys as people have less money to spend after morgage rates are going up,food prices also increasing and the lack of credit availabale is also effecting markets such as property,motor trade and general retails,as for my role,i am joining agt a great time,people are going overdrawn because they cant manage money properly and if i can help them,i get good performance figures so the credit crunch suits me fine at the moment.

--

Ok Red, well I'll leave your reply and it's content for others to come to their own conclusions. I won't maul apart the majority that's open to it. However, I refer to: "im no where near clued up about the whole operation in collections,im on what i would call close supervison now for the nexrt four weeks". As somebody who is "no where near clued up about the whole operation in collections", and the same person who started the thread to seek advice on the subject, surely you can appreciate the advice being given to you from those who are clued up? I had a couple of years experience in dealing with abusive customers that couldn't understand the concept of money, and to those 'persons arriving from alternative terra firma' who would be given (quite stupidly) a credit card, making no attempt to make any repayment then leave 'the area' again.

Also, REF: "and cant wait to finally get on the phone and starting recovering the money". I remember that feeling quite well. But mark my words, there will be a day when it all changes and you will be screaming to get a new job! The staff turnover in collections is usually higher than those in Customer Services. I have no idea why because Customer Services is equally as frustrating when you get some imbecile shouting down the phone about her/his account (usually 'her') when they would get a much more helpful response if they just spoke normally. At our discretion, we were allowed to refund OD/DD charges to a certain percentage. If the person had the ass-ache with me, they'd get nothing in return apart from silence - which wound them up even more!

Quite remarkably, I'll have you know, that I was the 'Collector of the Month' from May-November one year, and my PTP (Promise to Pay) to Payments Made ratio was pretty much spot on. The trick is to be friendly, but not too friendly. If you are required to obtain a payment or a promise to pay, you must be a little courteous but more assertive and confident that you will take futher action unless this PTP is made. Let them offer a time frame, then express that it will be too late and that a minimum payment of £X is to be paid by XX:XX. Their time frame will usually be a date in the future where the min payment could be met earlier but they don't want to commit. If you let them commit to their own date, they will not pay it. If you tell them they must, they usually do! There is a fine line that you must stand on, but not cross or step back from. Once you've found the line, you'll have the knack! If you are in it for the long haul and you are too friendly, there will be a broken PTP, your % will be dismal and you will be walked over.

Finally, little bit disappointed in the meagre attempt at the dissertation. That said, however, I admire your attitude towards helping those in need of it (REF: Re: Barclays bank questions anyone??) (although I probably would have worded it slightly better in this thread REF: 'if I can help them, I get good performance figures' LOL... maybe 'if I can help them, it will be rewarding and be the job satisfaction I need'). I hope your 'buddying up' with the experienced member of staff goes well but remember that his/her style might not be as effective as your own once you find your own feet. Your heart's in the right place, get your brain in gear and give whatever you choose to do, 100% of everything you've got!

Good luck mate! (Note: I won't be dictated to as to when and where I can use the term 'mate') :oPPP !! E-Mail me anytime if you get stuck or want to know some more tricks to the trade! ;o)

V

Collections agents are not there to dictate how and where money is and isn't meant to be spent. You cannot tell the customer that they shouldn't have spent £X on XXX-TV or that their weekly spend on shopping is far too much for them. This would be stepping over a line unless you have been employed by the customer to give such advice as an account manager. From the information they tell you, you can come to an agreement about the payments they can make to you/the bank.

vic for the record we maybe collectors in the job title but our role is more like a account manager,we can and we will discuss customers spending habits especially if they are behind on loan repayments and going overdrawn whilst spending money needlessly elsewhere,

i was on the phone myself today discussing a plan on a loan,the guy had spent £180 which was 1 month loan repayment on his ladbrokes account,basically the guy was gambling his loan repayment ,then obviously fell into arrears when his gamble didnt pay offf,are you seriously telling me we can challenge that!!,obivously i was tactfull in my approach to it but he knew in no uncertain terms that he was wrong in gambling his loan repayment.

When a customer cant pay a contractual payment,before we refer them to the cab or the css ,we aslike other loan companys and bank,go through customers expenditure to see if we sort out a temporay plan or to see if we can offer a consolidatation loan but that is always as a last resort,banks and finance companys appreciate people can get into difficulty so rather than let the cab handle it,banks have a moral right and also a legal one to explore every opputunity to help the customer,so if that means going through a financial income and expsense form then so be it.

Banks are allowed to challenge customers spending,if a customer cant pay £150 per month on a loan yet they spend £400 per month on shopping as a single person when the average spend is barely half that,then banks have every right to tell the customer they need to cut back in order to pay the loan,cos thats all the cab or the css will tell them.

How long ago was it you worked in collections vic,the role as you know it completely differs from this one,maybe its got a bit more intense nowadays.

Finally, little bit disappointed in the meagre attempt at the dissertation. That said, however, I admire your attitude towards helping those in need of it (REF: Re: Barclays bank questions anyone??) (although I probably would have worded it slightly better in this thread REF: 'if I can help them, I get good performance figures' LOL... maybe 'if I can help them, it will be rewarding and be the job satisfaction I need'). I hope your 'buddying up' with the experienced member of staff goes well but remember that his/her style might not be as effective as your own once you find your own feet. Your heart's in the right place, get your brain in gear and give whatever you choose to do, 100% of everything you've got!

Good luck mate! (Note: I won't be dictated to as to when and where I can use the term 'mate') :oPPP !! E-Mail me anytime if you get stuck or want to know some more tricks to the trade! ;o)

Cheers vic,maybe i was wrong to start that advice thread maybe i should have limited the questions to debt advice only.

Ive had guys listening in to me today and ive done ok,setup 8 plans in the space of 3 hours or so and if they all workout ill have collected over £3000 in just 1 day,not bad for someone who isnt experianced

vic for the record we maybe collectors in the job title but our role is more like a account manager,we can and we will discuss customers spending habits especially if they are behind on loan repayments and going overdrawn whilst spending money needlessly elsewhere,

Hmm. You can ask about the spending habits and work out a repayment plan on it, but you can't tell somebody that they are buying too much food to eat (as an example only) but this is not exhaustive. Be very careful if you think otherwise.

i was on the phone myself today discussing a plan on a loan,the guy had spent £180 which was 1 month loan repayment on his ladbrokes account,basically the guy was gambling his loan repayment ,then obviously fell into arrears when his gamble didnt pay offf,are you seriously telling me we can challenge that!!,obivously i was tactfull in my approach to it but he knew in no uncertain terms that he was wrong in gambling his loan repayment.

You're not there to preach the whys and wherefores or to be the teacher telling the student not to spend his pocket money on sweets. If we take the £180 as an example of something that isn't a necessary spend, you can disclude it from the outgoings to free up more money that can be spent repaying the loan. On the other hand, you have to appreciate that the customer may be depressed, remembering that excessive gambling can be an illness in itself. Tactfully or not, you should be very careful how you approach the subject with this 'case study'. You could be the person to 'push him over the edge' and you could actually be held liable if your advice or manner assisted in an 'incident' involving him. If you catch my drift.

When a customer cant pay a contractual payment,before we refer them to the cab or the css ,we aslike other loan companys and bank,go through customers expenditure to see if we sort out a temporay plan or to see if we can offer a consolidatation loan but that is always as a last resort,banks and finance companys appreciate people can get into difficulty so rather than let the cab handle it,banks have a moral right and also a legal one to explore every opputunity to help the customer,so if that means going through a financial income and expsense form then so be it.

Absolutely correct. There is nothing wrong with what you have just said there, and nothing wrong with going through expenditure in order to assess where the person is at and which action to take. I do think that offering a consolidation loan is more than a little irresponsible in certain situations, so I'd be careful on that one (if you are caring about the customer, rather than the bank).

Banks are allowed to challenge customers spending,if a customer cant pay £150 per month on a loan yet they spend £400 per month on shopping as a single person when the average spend is barely half that,then banks have every right to tell the customer they need to cut back in order to pay the loan,cos thats all the cab or the css will tell them.

No, they really don't. You can challenge the £400 as a single person as you will have guidelines that give an estimation on how much a typical person in that category will spend. You may even be able to cap this to the £200 (as half) depending on Barclays cap. But you, as a representative of the creditor, can't tell the debtor to cut back in order to pay the loan!!! It's far from ethical.

How long ago was it you worked in collections vic,the role as you know it completely differs from this one,maybe its got a bit more intense nowadays.

In actual fact it's got a lot more relaxed these days post credit crunch!

Hmm, certainly a bit eager but either way it was quite a 'nice' thing to do. You will probably manage to help a fair few people on here as there are often posts on debt.

Ive had guys listening in to me today and ive done ok,setup 8 plans in the space of 3 hours or so and if they all workout ill have collected over £3000 in just 1 day,not bad for someone who isnt experianced

8 plans, and collected £3000 in one day? Please tell me each one of those have promised to pay £375? EEeek! A little bit keen considering you had to put them on a payment plan because they couldn't afford minimum payments??

Absolutely correct. There is nothing wrong with what you have just said there, and nothing wrong with going through expenditure in order to assess where the person is at and which action to take. I do think that offering a consolidation loan is more than a little irresponsible in certain situations, so I'd be careful on that one (if you are caring about the customer, rather than the bank).

The consoladation loan is only a last resort,its actually called a resolve loan on BARCLAYS debt only,when we get a customer who cant afford to pay arrears on top of their normal payment or even just pay a normal payment,a resolved loan can work out for the best as it brings them out of collections,reduces banks bad debt provision and also improves their credit file slightly as the debts they are consoladating are paid off.

No, they really don't. Vic i promise you they do,i went through the css once before i sorted debts outmyself,and they told me all the areas i need to cut back in,one was shopping,another was luxury buys such as newspapers etc,other areas such as entertainment spending were also looked at for reduced spending,

that is literally all the cab and the css do,work out a expenditure plan then offering the creditors reduced payment,whilst doing that they indentify areas for cutbacks and advise the customer to make these cutbacks in order to pay their debts.

You can challenge the £400 as a single person as you will have guidelines that give an estimation on how much a typical person in that category will spend. You may even be able to cap this to the £200 (as half) depending on Barclays cap. But you, as a representative of the creditor, can't tell the debtor to cut back in order to pay the loan!!! It's far from ethical.

Vic like i just said and you sort of said,the bank can tell the customer to cap or cut their spending if it means they will meet repayments,id say its FAR FROM ETHICAL for a customer to spend £400 per month on shopping or gamble £180 to ladbrokes and then turn round and say they cant afford to pay their debts!!.

In actual fact it's got a lot more relaxed these days post credit crunch! it depends on the company really,most major high street banks have got more intense post credit crunch,they are trying every possible legal avenue more intensley,barclays and other banks are on a recruitment drive for collectors because they are so busy,the training we have been given is pretty intense with a lot of info to take in.

Hmm, certainly a bit eager but either way it was quite a 'nice' thing to do. You will probably manage to help a fair few people on here as there are often posts on debt. Yeah Maybe il just stick to that.

8 plans, and collected £3000 in one day? Please tell me each one of those have promised to pay £375? EEeek! A little bit keen considering you had to put them on a payment plan because they couldn't afford minimum payments??

No vic you mis read the post,i said if they worked out,il have successfull collected £3000 cash from 1 days working on plans setup,some of them were long and some were short term arrangement,i thought i did well on one getting a promise to reduce a £1600 temporay limit on a overdraft back down to the orginal agreed limit of £100 within 2 months.

While we're waiting for the bus would you two like to sit together? That Gordon Brown eh... bit of a mess...

Oh shut up drumster... Well vic something we immediately agree on... Fancy a pint? Don't mind if I do... I'll pay I get more wedge... You had to spoil it... you just had to spoil it.

{No, they really don't. Vic i promise you they do,i went through the css once before i sorted debts outmyself,and they told me all the areas i need to cut back in,one was shopping,another was luxury buys such as newspapers etc,other areas such as entertainment spending were also looked at for reduced spending,}

>Yes, precisely my point! You, as the customer, approached CSS for their help and expertise. They are also not your creditors. To put this in the simplest of terms... "Howard from the Bank cannot tell Mrs Obese Jones (who happens to be unemployed and in £20k debt) that she cannot spend her entire benefits and income support on food". I can't say put it in any other easier way.

{8 plans, and collected £3000 in one day? Please tell me each one of those have promised to pay £375? EEeek! A little bit keen considering you had to put them on a payment plan because they couldn't afford minimum payments??

No vic you mis read the post,i said if they worked out,il have successfull collected £3000 cash from 1 days working on plans setup,some of them were long and some were short term arrangement,i thought i did well on one getting a promise to reduce a £1600 temporay limit on a overdraft back down to the orginal agreed limit of £100 within 2 months.}

>No Red, you worded it badly then! You won't have collected £3000 in one day if they all work out, you'll have collected over £3000 over the length of the agreed term (providing they keep up with their re-payments ;o)). How much did you take over the telephone in form of payment towards their debt? How many said they would pay by the end of the month and how many do you think will pay you? These are the things you will be assessed on too. I suppose it's a bit like a sales job. You have to sell yourself in order to be taken seriously so that the customer/ex-customer will make the payment when you tell them to. You did do well with the overdraft customer though !! :)

drumster:

While we're waiting for the bus would you two like to sit together? That Gordon Brown eh... bit of a mess...

Oh shut up drumster... Well vic something we immediately agree on... Fancy a pint? Don't mind if I do... I'll pay I get more wedge... You had to spoil it... you just had to spoil it.

LOL... absolute nuts !!