Constant Development of tracehunter

Since tracehunter was initially developed 10 years ago the system has been continuously developed to keep up with the demanding and ever changing requirements of the debtor trace industry.

Owing to the fact we’re not tied to any one data set or source, tracehunter offers unique functionality. tracehunter can be integrated with most of the key data sets and sources and records a comprehensive audit trail of all trace agent activities.

Over the decade tracehunter has seen many developments within the debtor trace industry, from a time of bulk mail trace campaigns to a period now where electronic contract has taken over with an increased emphasis on dialler campaigns.  

tracehunter

If you're interested in finding out more about tracehunter and how the system can help to enhance your trace department:

Visit us at: http://www.tracehunter.co.uk

Or

Ring us on: 0161 713 2213

Interpretation of the CSA Guidelines

The CSA Code of Practice outlines how debtor trace should be undertaken, below is an extract from the Code of Practice from the section on debtor trace:

“5. Trace Guidelines

Each member [of the CSA] shall:

a) In all contact, be circumspect and act with full regard to the Data Protection principles.

b) Take all possible steps to verify that the person traced is in fact, the debtor.

c) Verify data relating to a debtors whereabouts via one or more of the following methods:

I. Public databases.

II. Sending soft letters.

III. Contacting other people.

IV. Investigative/Field enquiries.

d) Cease contact should it become apparent that the located person is not the debtor, and carry out further checks.” (CSA Code of Practice, 2009)

These guidelines for trace are very open to interpretation, for example what is really meant by ‘take all possible steps’? Surely this implies undertaking numerous tracing methods and collecting several pieces of validation data of where the debtor maybe.

Point C also raises an interesting point ‘verify data relating to a debtors whereabouts’. This could be interpreted as, if a case has gone to trace, it needs tracing and confirming and the confirmation needs verifying via a second source. This would mean that all trace departments would need two sources of data to confirm a trace. However, a number of firms begin the collection process in some cases with only one piece of trace data.

Trace Technology and Business Development

There is a growing importance on the use of technology within all aspects of business; this is no different for the debt collection and recoveries industry. A recent survey carried out between CCR Magazine and Transcom, showed 61.9% of the responding debt collection and recovery firms have increased technology investment over the previous 12 months. 45.4% also said over the coming 12 months they were going to increase their investment in technology further.  tracehunter offers some key technological benefits to the trace industry, which are really worth considering if you want the performance of your trace department to be enhanced in the coming year.

tracehunter allows you to:   

·         Reduce human error

·         Increase efficiency

·         meet rules and regulations

·         Have absolute transparency

·         Control every aspect of trace agents working criteria  

Debtor Trace Case Management Software

One of the main issues from research in to the debtor trace industry is the software that is currently being used to manage the debtor trace case process. Research suggests that all trace firms or departments have systems in place to manage their trace process, however, in many cases these are legacy collection systems or simple Spreadsheet databases. The main reason for more complex software systems not being in place is due to there not being much need.

However, substantial growth in the industry as well as increased rules and regulations, have lead to many trace case management software systems becoming outdated, inefficient and unsuitable for the job.

A recent survey titled ‘Debt Collection and the Recovery Industry’ illustrated that 73% of Collections firms thought increased regulations had added to their costs of debt collections, with 39% of these believing new regulations were adding upwards of 10% on their collections costs. Although it doesn’t detail the areas the increased costs have came from, it wouldn’t be a surprise if issues with trace and trace software had a big part to play.

The Recovery & Trace Industry

There are a number of terms that have become synonymous with the debt recovery and trace industry. Listed below are four of these terms that have been brought to the forefront of debtor trace over recent years:  

1.    Treating Customers Fairly – Treating customers fairly is not only important for compliance reasons, it also allows for good relationships to be built with debtors, good relationships lead to better payment rates. 

2.    Compliance – The issue of compliance has become ever more important, as rules and regulations around the trace industry have grown and become more complex over recent years.

3.    Productivity – There has been a considerable push post ‘credit crunch’ to maximise productivity, whether through increased collection rates or reduced down time, as the costs of doing business have risen.

4.    K.P.I’s – Key Performance Indicators are a simple way of quantifying success, there are many different K.P.I’s which can be used to measure collections and trace success. tracehunter, allows easy access to the K.P.I’s that matter most to you and your firm.

tracehunter is a trace case management tool designed specifically for the trace industry, unlike any other system on the market tracehunter has been developed to help meet the demanding needs of a trace department. Rather than trace departments having to work within the limitations of their legacy systems or in-house collection system.

As far as trace is concerned, tracehunter is at the forefront of productivity, designed to maximise trace agents time, and reduce the time they spend with each case.