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 [Certification] [Requirements] [Certification Process] [Recertification] [Information for Agencies]

Certification Requirements

Part One
An applicant agency must meet the following requirements on part one of the application to be considered for certification:

• Member of IACC
  
• Minimum of one attendance at an IACC meeting in the previous year
  
• A minimum of $50,000 in bonds. In states requiring a statutory bond of less than $50,000, agencies will need both their state’s statutory bond and a blanket client bond. These two bonds would need to equal at least $50,000. In states that do not have a statutory bond requirement, agencies would need a $50,000 blanket client bond. No more than two bonds can be submitted to meet this requirement.
  
• The agency must meet all state requirements for licensing (if any) in the state(s) in which it has offices.
  
• The agency shall not co-mingle finds. The agency must maintain a trust bank account for the purpose of clearing monies collected and a separate operating account. The agency must have detailed records showing collections and remittances.
  
• The agency must demonstrate that it has an accounting system and the supporting records in place to appropriately collect debts and remit the appropriate amount to clients. The agency shall furnish three months of trust/bank account statements and three months of trust liability statements.
  
• If an agency has multiple offices, all locations must be compliant with agency certification.
  
• The agency’s commercial collection manager must be an IACC Certified Commercial Collector.
  
• The agency agrees to abide by IACC’s complaint handling procedure: All complaints will be: (a) Heard, (b) Reviewed, (c) Corrective action will be taken if and when necessary and (d) Reported back to the complainant.
  
• The agency must have a disaster recovery plan and procedures in place.
  
• The agency must have a dedicated commercial collection staff (i.e. collectors dedicated to collecting commercial accounts).

Part Two
Upon meeting the above requirements, an agency must submit the following for a specified three-month period to the independent certified public accountant (CPA) firm hired by the IACC:

• Financial statements including balance sheet, income statement (profit and loss) and trial balances for specified months.
  
• Bank statements for all trust accounts including any money market or savings accounts and any other bank accounts that trust funds flow through during the collection or payment process.
  
• Reconciliation from the bank balance to the book balance for all trust accounts including all system reports used for reconciliation purposes. Summary level totals are included for all items including outstanding checks to clients.
  
• A written procedure of how the fee is calculated and subsequently transferred from trust account.
  
• A copy of a detailed daily deposit posting report for a specified period.
  
• A written procedure of when clients are paid.

After receiving the above documents, the CPA firm requests three dates from the specified period to test in detail. For these three dates, the agency must provide:

• A copy of the debtor’s check that was posted.
  
A copy of the entire deposit ticket showing the total for that day and detailing the specified transaction.

• A client statement where that transaction was shown to the client.
  
• A cancelled check where the client cashed that check.
  
• A copy of the corresponding bank statement that will show both the debtor’s deposit being entered and the client’s check clearing the account.

An agency that successfully completes the above process is awarded the designation of IACC Certified Commercial Collection Agency. Annual recertification is required. Visit the recertification requirements page for details.