Client

Set up your operations the best way right from the start, and you'll minimize your frustration and enjoy using Collect!. This is especially true when you enter Clients and their Debtors into your working database. The right way to do this is to start from the Client form.

Make sure you set up your Company Details, Dunning letters, Operators, Transaction Types and a Contact Plan, if applicable, before you begin to enter Client and Debtor information. If these areas are taken care of first, all their settings and information are readily available to you when you enter your clients and debtor accounts.

The Client form shows Client information and the accounts listed by the Client.

Client

Some of the information displayed on this form is Read Only. These fields are grayed out and you cannot use the Client form to alter this information.

Several tabs at the bottom of the Client form enable you to access related information. All Debtors listed for this Client are displayed by selecting the tab labeled Debtors. This list includes Debtors with both ACTIVE and CLOSED Modes. Notes, associated parties, invoices, contacts, banks and payments are also accessible through tabs on the Client form.

*** IMPORTANT ***

The Client Settings form contains many settings that will determine how Debtors, Payments, Invoices and Credit Bureau Reporting are handled for this Client. After you have entered your basic personal information for this Client, select the ADVANCED button to open the Client Settings form. It is very important to set up this information correctly right from the start. The information you set will be automatically entered into all related forms - Debtors, Payments, Invoices and CBR. This will save a considerable amount of time and reduce errors.

Client #

This is the Client ID number as assigned by Collect!. This number may hold only digits and is used by Collect! whenever the Client is referenced. If you have another ID that you would like to use, please enter it in the field labeled Alt Client #.

This field has additional functions when used with Account Access Control and Operator Security.

This field is INDEXED.

Alt Client #

This field is for your own use. You may enter an alternate Client Number to reference on reports. Perhaps your Client has given you an alphanumeric code to use. This field is indexed.

Owned By Client

This field is for your own use. You may enter the Client Number for a "master" client. This enables you to group client accounts for account security, for auditing and for reporting.

The Browse Find By functionality is also tied to a hierarchical client ownership system. This enables you to set a Client # in this field that will then be used when applying Account Access Control.

Clients and operators restricted to a particular Client # will be able to freely search for records in your database. However, they will only be able to find records within the Client # or client ownership hierarchy to which they belong. For instance, clients who own other clients will be able to see all records in their hierarchical tree, but no others.

You should not set the "Owned By Client" to the same Client # as the Client itself. This might cause details to be hidden erroneously for accounts that should be visible to the Operator. For example, Client #94 should not have "94" entered in its "Owned By Client" field.

This field has additional functions when used with Account Access Control and Operator Security.

If you using the Client Group feature in Web Host, this field will control which clients that the "master" client can view. Please refer to Help topic, How to Add a User to Web Host, for details.

Name

This is the actual name of the Client or company. This field is indexed.

D.B.A.

This is an alternate name that you may use in reports. Perhaps the Client has requested that you refer to them with a pseudonym.

Contact

The name of the contact person or Representative for this Client.

Address

First line of the mailing address of the company. All invoices will be sent to this address, by default. This is first line to begin typing the address.

Address 1

Second line of the mailing address of the company. All invoices will be sent to this address, by default. This is another line to type the address.

Street No

Use this field to enter a Street Number for the Client's address.

City

Use this field to break out the City from the Client address.

State

Use this field to break out the State from the Client address.

ZIP

Use this field to break out the Postal Code from the Client address.

Country

Use this field to break out the Country form the Client address.

Phone

The phone number of the Client. Enter the phone number as you would manually dial it.

You can switch ON 'Only numerics in phone fields' in Screens and Messages to remove any non-numeric data from your phone fields.

Phone Extension

The phone extension. Enter the extension as you would manually dial it.

Fax

The fax number of the Client. Enter the fax number as you would dial it manually.

You can switch ON 'Only numerics in phone fields' in Screens and Messages to remove any non-numeric data from your phone fields.

Fax Extension

The fax extension. Enter the extension as you would manually dial it.

Other

Another phone number for the Client. Enter the phone number as you would manually dial it.

You can switch ON 'Only numerics in phone fields' in Screens and Messages to remove any non-numeric data from your phone fields.

Other Extension

The other extension. Enter the extension as you would manually dial it.

Cell

The cellular or other phone number of the Client. Enter the number as you would dial it manually.

You can switch ON 'Only numerics in phone fields' in Screens and Messages to remove any non-numeric data from your phone fields.

Cell Extension

The cell extension. Enter the extension as you would manually dial it.

Email

This is the Client's email address. Select the Email icon to the right of this field to open the Send Mail window which allows you to create an email and send it to the Client.

User 1

This field is for your own definition and use. This field is indexed.

User 2

This field is for your own definition and use.

FOR CBR: If you are reporting to Credit Bureaus by client, Trans Union codes go here. With the 'Report by Client' feature, you can send CBR Settings specific clients instead of your own. This is useful if you have a client that wants you to report with their Credit Bureau Account in addition to yours. Please refer to How To Run A Credit Bureau Report for details.

User 3

This field is for your own definition and use.

FOR CBR: If you are reporting to Credit Bureaus by client, Experian codes go here. With the 'Report by Client' feature, you can send CBR Settings specific clients instead of your own. This is useful if you have a client that wants you to report with their Credit Bureau Account in addition to yours. Please refer to How To Run A Credit Bureau Report for details.

User 4

This field is for your own definition and use.

FOR CBR: If you are reporting to Credit Bureaus by client, Equifax codes go here. With the 'Report by Client' feature, you can send CBR Settings specific clients instead of your own. This is useful if you have a client that wants you to report with their Credit Bureau Account in addition to yours. Please refer to How To Run A Credit Bureau Report for details.

The format for the codes is: control_number,grantor_code, center_code,area_code

Operator

Select an Operator from the Operator pick list to assign to this Client.

This field uses the same pick list as the Debtor does for Operators. If you have Operators who only work Clients, simply add them to the list of Operators.

Status

Select a Status from the Debtor Status code pick list to apply to this Client.

This field uses the same pick list as the Debtor does for Status Codes. If you have codes that apply specifically to your clients, simply add them to the list of Debtor Status Codes.

Inactive

Switch this ON to mark a client as Inactive. Inactive clients are excluded from client lists like the Debtor Client, Master, Legal, and Forward fields.

Client Listed Date

When you enter a new Client in your system, Collect! fills this field with the current date. You can modify this field manually if desired, or use it to store the date you entered the Client.

Listed Date

This field is updated whenever the Client is Recalculated. It shows the most recent Listed Date found in the debtors scanned.

Worked Date

This field is updated whenever the Client is Recalculated. It shows the most recent Worked Date found in the debtors scanned.

Date 2

This is a date field for your own definition and use.

Active Accounts

The number of debtors attached to this client whose Mode is ACTIVE. This is a Read Only field and may not be edited. The value is taken from the Debtor forms.

Closed Accounts

The number of debtors attached to this client whose Mode is CLOSED. This is a Read Only field and may not be edited. The value is taken from the Debtor forms.

Other Accounts

User defined field.

Total Accounts

The total number of debtors attached to this client. This is a Read Only field and may not be edited.

Commission To Date

This field shows the total commission calculated on all accounts for this client. You may need to recalculate the Client to see a value in this field. The commission amount will be updated whenever you recalculate the Client.

If you want Collect! to calculate this total from Payment type transactions only, then switch ON 'Only payments for comm to date' in the Client Settings form.

Success Rate

This is a percentage ratio of Paid to Listed accounts and may be calculated using ALL accounts or only CLOSED accounts, as set in Client Settings.

The success rate is calculated as

All Paid X 100 / All Listed

Where All Paid is the client's Paid field, All Listed is the client's Listed Field, All Fees is the sum of all the Fees fields of the client's debtors, and Adjustments is the sum of all the Adj fields of the client's debtors.

Time Zone

This field holds a POSITIVE or NEGATIVE integer indicating the Timezone of this Client.

Timezones are standard integer values calculated from GMT (Greenwich Mean Time).

When the timezone is not "Local Time," the title bar displays the Client's current time.

The control file that manages Debtor timezones is called setzone.ctf and is stored in your "\Collect\masterdb\control" folder.

As of version Collect.6.2.1, control files to set timezones for Associates/Other Parties and record items stored in the Phone tab are available for download from the Member Center. They are DCsetzone.ctf and PHsetzone.ctf, respectively. If you are not currently a Member, contact Administration at 250-391-0466 option 3 for pricing.

Type

This field contains a pick list of choices that can be used to classify your clients by Type.

FOR CBR: If you are using METRO 2 format, it is required that you enter a valid "creditor classification" in this field. The list of choices given is a standard CBR list of creditor classifications.

If you are not reporting to credit bureaus, this field is for your own definition and use.

Click the arrow to see the default pick list attached to this field.

FOR CBR: If the choice you need is not included in the list, you can add it to the pick list. Please check with your credit bureau to ensure that it is a valid creditor classification and let us know too, so we can add it to the default list.

If you are not reporting to credit bureaus, you can add your own entries to this pick list, as you choose.

Class

This field is for your own definition and use.

Click the arrow to see a default pick list attached to this field. You can use it or create your own.

Category

A user defined category. This is used to indicate Client records that represent third parties, such as other agencies, attorneys or client prospects. You can add additional types to this pick list.

Listed

The sum of the Principal and Original Interest fields of all of the client's debtors. If the debtor has a judgment, then the Judgment Balance and Interest fields are used for the calculation instead, IF no original principal is found.

Paid

The sum of the Paid fields of all of the client's debtors.

Closed

The sum of the Owing fields of all of the client's debtors with Mode CLOSED.

Owing

The sum of the Owing fields of all of the client's debtors with Mode ACTIVE.

Principal

The total dollar value of Principal for all accounts listed by this Client.

Interest

The total dollar value of Interest for all accounts listed by this Client.

Fees

The total dollar value of Fees for all accounts listed by this Client.

Legal Fees

The total dollar value of Legal Fees for all accounts listed by this Client.

Miscellaneous

The total dollar value of Misc Fees for all accounts listed by this Client.

Other Charges

The total dollar value of Other Charges for all accounts listed by this Client.

Adjustments

The total amount of adjustments to debtors belonging to this Client.

Run Plan

Enter a Contact Plan to run on this Client. You can press F2 to view the list of available plans.

This field uses the same pick list as the Debtor does for Contact Plans. If you have plans that apply specifically to your clients, simply add them to the list of Contact Plans.

Debtors

Select this tab to display the list of all debtors listed by this Client. All Debtors with ACTIVE or CLOSED mode are displayed. To enter a new debtor, select the NEW button at the bottom of the window, or select YES when prompted to create your first Debtor for this Client.

The new Debtor record will automatically display the default settings for this Client, such as Name, Client # and settings from the Client Settings.

When in this list you may scroll through the Debtors associated to this Client. Pressing enter or selecting a highlighted line will bring the Debtor screen up for you.

Invoices

Select this tab to display the list of Invoice/Statements generated for this Client.

When in this list you may scroll through the Invoice/Statements for this Client. Pressing enter or selecting a highlighted line will bring the Invoice/Statement screen up for you.

Payments

Select this tab to display the list of Client Payments attached to this Client. To enter a new payment, select the NEW button at the bottom of the window, or select YES when prompted to create your first Client Payment.

When in this list you may scroll through the Payments for this Client. Pressing enter or selecting a highlighted line will bring the Client Payment screen up for you.

Notes

Select this tab to display this Client's notes or add a new line.

Contacts

Select this tab to display this Client's contacts or add a new one.

To enter a new contact, select the NEW button at the bottom of the window, or select YES when prompted to create your first Client Contact.

When in this list you may scroll through the Contacts for this Client. Pressing enter or selecting a highlighted line will bring up the Client Contact screen for you. For help, press F1 when the Client Contact form is displayed.

This tab is visible only if the Client Management option is enabled in Collect! Features.

Attachments

Select this tab to display this Client's attachments or add a new one.

To create a new attachment, select the NEW button at the bottom of the window, or select YES when prompted to create your first Client Attachment.

When in this list you may scroll through the Attachments for this Client. Pressing enter or selecting a highlighted line will bring up the Client Attachment screen up for you. For help, press F1 when the Client Attachment form is displayed.

This tab is visible only if the Client Management option is enabled in Collect! Features.

OK

Selecting this button will save any information you may have changed and return you to the previous form.

<<

Selecting this button will take you to the previous Client in the database.

>>

Selecting this button will take you to the next Client in the database.

Recalc

Selecting this button will recalculate all the totals of this Client's Debtors, payments and transactions, and will recalculate the totals shown on this form.

When you create new Debtors through the Debtor list, the Client totals are not automatically adjusted. Click the Recalc button to update the Client totals, or choose Tools menu, Recalculate, and recalculate Client totals to update all Clients in the system.

Print

Selecting this button will take you to the reports list where you can select a report to run on this Client.

Advanced

Selecting this button will take you to the Client Settings form where you can add or edit data that will be used when creating Debtors, payments, invoices and other similar functions. This information can be used as default data, automatically entered for you when you create new Debtor records for this Client.

Cancel

Selecting this button will ignore any changes you have made and return you to the previous form.

Help

Press this button for help on the Client form and links to related topics.