COLLECTION EFFICIENCY IN BILLING DEPARTMENT
The Billing Department is the one who provide the necessary billing issues about their customers that includes the pricing of their bill, the added information, breakdown and retrieval of their account among others. They may also be the department to handle customer’s complaints and most of all they can be the one to collect the bills of their respective customers. Some companies may be faced with billing complexity and problems they may encounter a lot or risk such as Credit Card Companies like HSBC, Standard Chartered and Citibank.
They are faced constantly with delinquent card holders no matter what kind of prevention and risk management they have been developing their customers seems to prevent the payment that they have incurred, some may even falsify their documents just to get their services and later runaway from their obligations. Most Credit Card Companies have hired separate legal entity and they also established additional agency that is a part of their billing and collection department. First and foremost they must made it clear that the company has evaluated their customers and they are well informed about their responsibility to pay before they are qualified but that does not guarantee that there will be no problem that may arise.
In the case of non- payment from their customers usually there are reconciliation and settlement for the first month, for the second month they may be given another collective agreement measures that only the company and the Card Holder could stipulate to establish the balance of payment and encourage the customers to perform their obligations. But on the third month they may be restrained to visit the customers to settle the issues, there will also be a frequent reminders including phone calls, company calls, emails and other means not to disturb the customers but to alarm and warn them.
Within the span of 6 months to one year if they still have not settled their bills there will be a forcible legal document or subpoena that the Credit Card Company may need to issue, this may create inconvenience on both parties especially on the part of the company but then again, everything can be cleared upon payment of their bills. Such companies may need to do such resolution to protect their organizations from liquidity and bankruptcy. This can also happen in many financial industries including banks, credit cooperatives and others. This can also happen from Medical institution such as clinics and hospitals and probably any other company that required billing and collections through regular monthly period.
In the case of Company Services that caters to the basic needs including Telephone, Water and Electricity Company their billing system is not that problematic and customers are likely to pay since they cannot prevent to lose such services because it is a part of their basic needs and customers are self regulated to obliged themselves to pay or lose the services which they themselves highly required. There may also be some isolated cases of non- payment of such bills and the collection and billing department may also give them time within the maximum of two to three months grace period to settle their accounts depending on the amount of their bills.
In the case of billing and collections that arises from acquisition of assets and liabilities or payment from Land, Building or Cars some companies have learned to obtain Credit Insurance, Credit Guarantees or Guarantor, a Surety Bond or a Time Deposit as a part of their Collection Efficiency and Risk Reduction Scheme. All this payment scheme and protection system has helped companies generally in their collection problem. They may also offer a discount and some sort of bonuses for early payments. Additionally they have also made sure that their billing statements are clear and concise so that customers can highly trust their services, this can also eliminate some billing questions on the part of their customers and finally the company should employ billing officers in their offices and on the field that are knowledgeable about the companies billings and charges.
If they have collection representative who are not familiar with basic questions of their customers such as how to update their accounts, or what are the additional requirement for settlements of accounts? Or if they have given the wrong information, this could probably lead to a more trouble and dispute from their transactions. The recording of their balances especially among the most efficient customers are required, the billing system should be properly monitored and stored in their computer for easy standard database updating and error checking, they can use various cost effective software’s to help them out.
One of the most efficient billing systems nowadays is the online payment, mobile payment and bank payment that eliminates the expenses of most companies and it is now being practiced. It is also convenient in their customers and to the company themselves. Companies can also build a collection and policy manual or book that they can give to the customers to remind them their collection history and methods of payment that is needed by their customers. Considerably all these undertakings should help the company and their billing department cost efficiency in their collection.
Credit:ivythesis.typepad.com
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