Commission

The costs of collection are either paid for by the creditor (the person owed the money) or the debtor (the person who owes the money).

The liable party for these fees is determined by two things:

1. A provision/ clause
If a clause is present and agreed to by the debtor then the creditor can chose to make the debtor liable for costs. If this clause is not in the contract then the creditor is automatically liable for these costs.

2. Instructions
The creditor or acting creditor is responsible for instructing the collection agency as to the amount to collect. If a debt collection clause was present it is still the creditors decision as to what they instruct the agency to collect.

If the debtor signed a tenancy/finance/other contract that contained a debt collection clause, they can contact the creditor or acting creditor and negotiate the liability of these costs.

If the creditor agrees to pay these costs then they will need to contact the debt collection agency with further instructions as to the liability of these costs.  

Commission charges

NZ Collections charges 20% of the debt total. 

Cancellation of debt

If the creditor cancels a debt lodged with NZ Collections a cancellation fee may apply.  

Change of creditor

A fee of $75+GST will be charged to the creditor by way of disbursements. 

Exclusivity

The creditor agrees that once the debt has been lodged with NZ Collections that they will not contact the debtor or interfere with the debt collection process.

Pay-outs

Pay-outs are made every three months in March, June, September, and December. Pay-outs within New Zealand cost $5.00+GST, whereas pay-outs to bank accounts outside New Zealand will incur a fee of $100 per payment.

Disbursement

Disbursements that are paid for and recovered through the collection process are tracking fees, District Court attachment order fees, lawyer fees and loading fees.

Direct payments

If a debtor pays either an the creditor directly, by way of voluntary payment, or as a result of court enforcement or by any other means, after the debt has been lodged with NZ Collections, full commission is payable by the creditor to NZ Collections. NZ Collections may issue an invoice for this commission.

General

NZC takes no responsibility for the unsuccessful collection of a debt.

Reports

NZ Collections reports are offered in good faith and are based on historical data but they do not warrant or guarantee a successful collection of a debt and should not be interpreted as warranting any particular outcome.

Default payments

NZ Collections reserves the right to pass on the cost of defaults to the debtor. NZ Collections may charge the debtor a default fee, this fee will be deducted from money paid in that pay-out period. NZ Collections takes all steps to minimise the number of defaults that occur.

Incorrect information

NZ Collections works based on the information provided by the creditor. The creditor agrees that the information they have provided is accurate.

Overpayments

Where any overpayment is made and such overpayment is paid out to the creditor, then any consequential refund shall be made direct to the debtor by the creditor. 

Reinstatements of plans

Plan reinstatements on direct debits attract additional time and cost to facilitate. Reinstatements of cancelled direct debits are charged to the debtor.

Repayment plans

NZ Collections reserves the right to work with debtors to set up a repayment plan that fits with the debtors financial means.   

GST

GST is the liability of the creditor and charged to the creditor at the time of pay-outs. 

Transaction costs

Direct debit transactions from debtors to NZ Collections will incur a $0.60 transaction fee, payable by the debtor.

Court and Tracking Costs

NZ Collections may cover costs such as court filing fees, lawyer’s fees or tracking fees in order to recover a debt. Some or all of these costs may be the liability of the debtor and charged as disbursements by NZC before making pay-outs to the creditor.  

Administration charge

A $5+GST administration charge may apply to all debts at each pay-out. This amount is not charged to the debtor as it is not a fee associated with the collection of the debt, but a fee associated with the cost of paying creditors. It covers administrative work completed during the pay-out process.  

Debt Enforcement

If the debtor is located and they refuse to pay the debt voluntarily, NZ Collections reserves the right to enforce the debt in the District Court.  

Credit history

All debtors are loaded into the Centrix Credit Bureau.

New information

If NZ Collections obtains new information in the course of our duties, NZ Collections will not disclose that information to any person or organisation.