Mums: The best weapon for collecting overdue debts?

It’s always a thorny issue for anyone: asking for money. Whether it is money lent by you to a friend or a purchase made from your business, you have a right to any money that is due to you. Humans are compassionate creatures and often give people the benefit of the doubt, especially where money is concerned. "They’ll pay when they can" or "They are having a hard time just now" are only two of the countless reasons used to avoid conflict, or the thought of being pushy, or perhaps even the possibility ruining a friendship.

An age-old adage says ‘Mum knows best'. However, mums possess an inherent skill-set that can stand them in good stead in the ruthless world of debt collecting.

For example, one of the skills used by both mums and debt collectors is teaching. As a debt collector, there may need to teach and explain to a debtor what, why and when certain things will happen as a result of non-payment: perhaps a reference on the debtor’s credit file, or letters and telephone calls to their home or place of work. Perhaps even that the debtor may end up in court! As a mum, you spend time each day teaching your child that there are consequences for everything we do – or don’t do!

Collectors, working for companies such as CapQuest Debt Recovery for example, need to be sensitive towards debtors. When contact is initiated, the debtor is likely to become angry and embarrassed over a phone-call or letter. However, by being understanding and helpful, it is far more likely you will have a positive effect on the debtor and encourage them to pay. Similarly, as a mum, you understand and help your children when they have a problem at home that they might be embarrassed to share with you.

Mums also know how to extract information from even the most tight-lipped child. By taking charge of a given situation and by asking detailed, simple questions, mums often have the child telling them everything - sometimes before the child realises that they are doing so! As a debt collector, being able to take charge of a telephone call and asking simple questions can often gain the information you are looking to obtain from a debtor and can be a more successful approach than being confrontational.

Often, male debtors will try to patronise a female collector, perhaps calling them pet-names like ‘honey’ or ‘darling’. In some cases, male debtors will refuse to deal with a female collector, perhaps thinking that they aren’t serious and will make attempts at collection into a joke.

However, mums know that the best way to deal with a belligerent child is not to rise to the bait and stay focused on the job at hand. By continuing with collection efforts, doing everything you say you will do and sticking to the game-plan despite a debtor’s attempts to throw you off track, it is often possible to turn a non-paying debt into a paying one.