Sometimes the cleanest option is to sell the debt
For some commercial debts we will make an offer to buy the debt outright. You take an agreed sum now and close the matter; we take on the debt, the cost and the risk of recovering it.
What this involves
An agreed sum, now
A single payment for the debt rather than a share of whatever eventually comes in. The uncertainty stops being yours.
No set-up fee
Where we buy a debt there is no $120 file set-up fee and no commission. The purchase price is the whole arrangement.
The risk transfers with it
Once the debt is assigned it is ours. If it recovers slowly, partially, or not at all, that is our exposure to carry, not yours.
The file leaves your desk
No monthly reporting to read, no decisions to make about escalation, and nothing sitting in your ledger ageing quietly.
Commercial and trade debt only
We buy business-to-business debt. We do not buy consumer debt, which carries obligations that belong with the original creditor.
An honest comparison first
If we think you would net more by having us collect on your behalf, we will tell you that instead of making an offer.
Selling a commercial debt outright
Most of our work is recovery on commission. But some debts are not really a collection problem — they are a decision you have been putting off. An invoice that has been sitting in the ledger for a year, from a customer you will never trade with again, that you have already mentally written off and would rather simply be rid of.
For some of those, we will make an offer to buy the debt outright.
You are paid an agreed sum. The debt is assigned to us, the debtor is told to pay us instead, and the matter is finished on your side. Whatever happens after that — quick payment, a long arrangement, or nothing at all — is ours.
Whether we can is genuinely case by case
This is not a standing offer on any invoice. Buying a debt means putting our own money against an uncertain outcome, so we look at each one properly before saying anything.
What makes a debt more likely to be purchasable:
- Documented. An invoice, your terms of trade, and something showing the goods or services were supplied and accepted.
- Undisputed. No live argument about quality, quantity or entitlement, and no counterclaim sitting behind it.
- A debtor who still exists. Trading, contactable, and at a known address.
- Within time. Comfortably inside the six-year limitation period that applies to most contract debts in New Zealand.
The further a file sits from that, the more likely we are to say no — or to suggest we collect it on your behalf instead, which costs you nothing unless it works.
What we pay, and why it is a discount
The price is quoted per file and it will be less than the face value, usually by a meaningful margin. That is the nature of the transaction: you are converting an uncertain amount arriving at an uncertain time into a fixed amount arriving now, and the discount is what that certainty costs.
We will not publish a percentage. Any number quoted before seeing the file would be either useless or misleading, and the honest answer is that a well-documented six-month-old debt against a trading company and a four-year-old debt against someone who has gone quiet are not remotely the same asset.
There is no set-up fee and no commission on a purchased debt. The price we agree is the entire arrangement.
When you should not sell
We would rather say this on the page than in a meeting after you have got your hopes up about a lump sum.
If the debt is strong, selling it is usually the worse deal. A well-documented invoice against a solvent, contactable debtor has a high probability of being recovered in full. Having us collect it at 20% will very often leave you better off than selling, because a purchase price has to be discounted for a risk that, on that file, was never especially large.
Selling earns its keep in the other cases — where the debt is old, the documentation is thin, the debtor is difficult, or the amount is small enough that you would rather have a clean end than an optimal one. Certainty has real value. It is just not free, and it is not always worth buying.
Send us the file and we will tell you which of those we think it is. If we think you should instruct us to collect rather than sell, we will say so, and you are under no obligation either way.
What we do not buy
Consumer debt. We buy business-to-business debt only. When a consumer debt changes hands the buyer takes on the obligations the original creditor owed to that customer, and those sit far better with the business that entered the contract in the first place. If you have consumer debt to recover, we will collect it on your behalf instead.
Debts already in proceedings, unless we have discussed the position first.
Debts we have not seen the paperwork for. No exceptions to this one.
Common questions
Do you buy every debt?
No, and most enquiries end with us collecting on your behalf instead. Buying a debt means taking the whole risk onto our own books, so we only do it where the paperwork is solid and the debtor's position is reasonably clear. It depends entirely on the situation, and we will give you a straight answer quickly either way.
How much will you pay for a debt?
It is quoted per file, and it is a discount to the face value — often a substantial one, because we are buying an uncertain outcome for a certain price. The age of the debt, the quality of the documentation, whether it is disputed, and the debtor's apparent ability to pay all move the number. We will not quote a percentage in the abstract because any figure we gave you would be meaningless until we have seen the file.
Would I be better off just having you collect it?
Very often, yes. On a well-documented debt against a solvent debtor you will usually net more by instructing us to collect at 20% than by selling the debt, because you are not paying us to absorb a risk that was never very large. Selling makes sense when you want certainty, when the debt is old or awkward, or when you simply want the matter finished. We will say which we think applies to your file.
What kinds of debt do you buy?
Commercial and trade debt — unpaid invoices between businesses, breached payment arrangements, and defaulted trade accounts. We do not buy consumer debt. When a consumer debt is sold the buyer steps into the shoes of the original creditor and takes on obligations that sit better with the business that entered the contract.
What makes a debt more likely to be purchasable?
A clear paper trail — the invoice, your terms of trade, and evidence the goods or services were accepted. No genuine dispute or counterclaim. A debtor who is still trading and locatable. And a debt that is comfortably within the six-year limitation period. The further a file is from that description, the more likely we are to suggest collecting it on your behalf instead.
How does the sale actually work?
The debt is assigned to us by a written agreement, and the debtor is notified in writing that the debt is now owed to us. From that point we are the creditor. You are paid the agreed sum and your involvement in recovering it ends.
Do I have to do anything after the sale?
Usually nothing. The one exception is that if the debt is later litigated and the debtor challenges whether the goods or services were actually supplied, you may be asked to provide documents or give evidence about the underlying transaction — because you are the one who was there. It is uncommon, but you should know it before you sell rather than after.
What if the debtor pays you more than you paid me?
We keep it, in the same way that we wear the loss if they pay nothing. That is the trade you are making when you sell rather than instruct — you are exchanging the upside for certainty. It is worth being clear-eyed about that before deciding.
Will this affect my relationship with the customer?
Consider it carefully if you intend to keep trading with them. Selling a debt is a more final step than instructing a collector, because you no longer control how it is pursued and you cannot call it off. Where the relationship matters, collection on your behalf is usually the better route.
Tell us about the debt
No obligation, and the assessment is free. We will come back to you the next business day with an honest view of your chances.
Owed money? Let us take it from here.
Send us the details and we will tell you honestly what we think is recoverable — before you commit to anything.