As a community service, the Law Offices of Karen M. Riggio, LLC publishes a complimentary e-newsletter designed for business owners and independent contractors. Each month, we offer valuable tips and practical, real life answers to today’s common contract issues and collection problems. Feel free to e-mail us your suggestions for future articles.

Karen M. Riggio

One of the keys to collecting debt successfully is using a credit application form. The application should contain crucial customer information such as the name, address, phone number, social security number, employment information, and credit references. Complete names and addresses will assist your attorney in obtaining a judgment and ease collecting a delinquent account in the future. For business to business transactions, the application should list the owners of the company, federal ID number, trade references, banking information as well as the authorization to run credit about the business.

The credit application can also contain terms and conditions of doing business. For example, you may include wording so that your company has the right to collect interest (18% per annum) when accounts are paid late as well as collection costs, and even reasonable attorney fees, if incurred. In addition, a credit application can ask for personal guarantees of the individuals behind corporate customers or the guarantees of the customer's partners or spouse. This enables you to collect the debt from these other individuals if the customer does not pay it.

During the debt collection process, this vital information is critical to your attorney... to use as leverage with the debtor, present in court to obtain high interest rates and legal costs for you, enforce a judgment, and ultimately collect your unpaid receivable.