296 – Dealing with Collection Calls in COVID-19: Debt Negotiations, Deferrals, and Credit Report Impact

On episode 295 last week, Ted Michalos and Doug Hoyes said that collection agents are not making as many phone calls as they used to due to COVID-19. While that's true, there are still calls being placed. So what can you do in this crisis if you get a collection call on overdue debt? Are collectors open to a deal in these times? Enter Blair Demarco-Wettlaufer, COO at Kingston Data and Credit. On today's podcast, Blair explains how collection agencies are operating during the lock-down and shares advice for how you can negotiate realistic debt repayment. He also discusses how debt deferrals will potentially impact our credit reports and gives insights on how the collections industry will change going forward. Lots of practical tips & advice in this show so tune in!

Helpful Links:

Stop The Collection Calls: https://www.hoyes.com/blog/stop-the-collection-calls-advice-from-blair-demarco-wettlaufer/

Collection Agents: How Did They Find Me? https://www.hoyes.com/blog/collection-agents-how-did-they-find-me/

How to Negotiate with a Collection Agent, Episode 264: https://youtu.be/ZgNWpKfBUwU

Blair Demarco-Wettlaufer's Blog: https://receivableaccounts.blogspot.com/2020/04/covid-19-what-will-this-do-to-credit.html

How to get your free credit report from Equifax https://www.consumer.equifax.ca/personal/products/credit-report/​

And TransUnion https://secure-ocs.transunion.ca/secureocs/credit-agree.html