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UNDERSTAND THE BASICS OF COLLECTIONS -

YOU MAY BE ABLE TO COLLECT DEBTS OWED TO YOU

PO BOX 6022 - ANN ARBOR, MICHIGAN 48106-6022

PHONE: (734) 645-6441 - FAX: (734) 661-0856

CALL NOW! (734) 645-6441

Call today for assistance with collecting money owed to you.

People Who May Have Money Owed to Them:

Architects

Attorneys

Business owners

Builders

Computer programmers

Contractors

Entrepreneurs

Landlords

Property owners

Real estate brokers

Real estate developers

Web designers

And...people like you!

Where they come from:

Ann Arbor

Birmingham

Brighton

Canton

Chelsea

Dexter

Howell

Plymouth

Saline

Whitmore Lake

And...your hometown!

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DEBT COLLECTIONS

TODAYS TOPIC - Collecting from the Dead?

(New York Times) The banks need another bailout and countless homeowners cannot handle their mortgage payments, but one group is paying its bills: the dead. Dozens of specially trained agents work on the third floor of DCM Services here, calling up the dear departed’s next of kin and kindly asking if they want to settle the balance on a credit card or bank loan, or perhaps make that final utility bill or cellphone payment. The people on the other end of the line often have no legal obligation to assume the debt of a spouse, sibling or parent. But they take responsibility for it anyway.

“I am out of work now, to be honest with you, and money is very tight for us,” one man declared on a recent phone call after he was apprised of his late mother-in-law’s $280 credit card bill. He promised to pay $15 a month.

Dead people are the newest frontier in debt collecting, and one of the healthiest parts of the industry. Those who dun the living say that people are so scared and so broke it is difficult to get them to cough up even token payments. Collecting from the dead, however, is expanding. Improved database technology is making it easier to discover when estates are opened in the country’s 3,000 probate courts, giving collectors an opportunity to file timely claims. But if there is no formal estate and thus nothing to file against, the human touch comes into play.

New hires at DCM train for three weeks in what the company calls “empathic active listening,” which mixes the comforting air of a funeral director with the nonjudgmental tones of a friend. The new employees learn to use such anger-deflecting phrases as “If I hear you correctly, you’d like...”

“You get to be the person who cares,” the training manager, Autumn Boomgaarden, told a class of four new hires. For some relatives, paying is pragmatic. The law varies from state to state, but generally survivors are not required to pay a dead relative’s bills from their own assets.

  1. -By David Streitfeld, Yahoo! Finance, March 1, 2009.

  2. -Contact Us to find out if you are obligated to pay the debt of your loved one.

Do not Delay! Our attorneys may be able to help your business with many legal issues!

There is no cost for the initial telephone consultation.

Call today to speak with Mr. Suino (734) 645-6441 or email us at bossman@suinolaw.com