Guys, I work at a collection agency.

I work for a collection agency in the US using their online portal for debt collection for medical bills, mostly hospitals and collection firms that buy debt. This is a legit company and I am employed using Upwork. When I get hired it was all over the phone. I had to verify who I was with my SSN and drivers license. I had to do a background check and was fingerprinted. <br><br>I use this app that has all of the customer info and calls and texts are recorded. The salary is $15 an hour plus commission. Commission is $2 to $5 per collection depending on the amount and type of account. I work 20 hours a week and make close to $500 per week. <br><br>Here's what pisses me off about this system. I have accounts that are decades old. They buy and sell debt. They charge interest and fees. Most of these accounts are worthless. The customers can't pay or are in "payment plans" to pay $5 to $20 a month for the rest of their lives. <br><br>A lot of accounts are in collection for years and the customers have never been contacted. Some customers don't owe the debt or have already paid it. Most of the accounts are from 2019 or later. <br><br>If you are contacted by a collection agency, don't ignore them. Make them prove you owe the debt and only pay it if you owe it. The debt can affect your credit score so its in your best interest to settle it. <br><br>Also note that the calls are recorded and any representative that works for the company is forbidden to admit that the company is a collection agency. We are to only say that we are calling to collect a debt. <br><br>I don't like doing this but I need to make a living. At least I am not in a boiler room with 20 other collectors. I work from home and it's a quiet environment. <br><br>All of these calls and texts are recorded so be careful what you say. If you say you are going to pay something, be prepare to send in the payment asap because if you lie about paying, the next representative will harass you until you pay. <br><br>One guy was rude on the phone and hung up on a rep. He said he would only talk to a supervisor. I called him back and he was super angry, yelled at me, and threatened to get physical. I calmly told him I am in another state and there's no way he can find me since I work from home. He was furious and I disconnected the call since he was being threatening. I kept calling him and eventually he answered. He was still angry and told me "you guys are ruining my life". I wanted to tell him that he should "pay his fucking bills" but I bit my tongue. I told him that I understand that he is frustrated but I need him to calm down. I offered him an interest free payment plan and he calmed down. He was super nice after that and he made a payment the next day. I go the $2 commission.<br><br>Another guy said he likes to wait for 7 years to pay collection debts because he thinks they go away after 7 years. I told him that the SOL varies by state and the clock may have stopped and then restarted. Another rep may contact him in the future. Also the account may affect his credit score for 7 years. He said "who cares about credit" then said he pays cash for everything. I told him he better never need to buy a house or get a loan for a car.<br><br>Another guy said he doesn't answer calls from numbers he doesn't know . I told him he should answer calls from unknown numbers more often. He said he only answers calls from friends and family. I asked him if all of his friends and family have saved his number in their phones. He said some of them don't. I said "so you miss calls from friends and family that you don't have programmed in your phone". He said "not my problem". <br><br>A lot of people say "you guys are scammers" but they will say some racist and homophobic shit. <br><br>One guy hung up on me twice. I called him back and he answered. He was going away for 30 days. This was his last day home. I told him that I was going to keep calling until he paid and he paid me $60. <br><br>That's my experience as a debt collector.<br><br>Edit: I am going to stop working for these people at the end of January. I am going to start working full time for another company that I have worked for for 8 years. I make more money doing IT consulting and cybersecurity work plus I can bill for my gas and travel expenses. It's not a remote job and I have to be on the road. <br><br>It's not worth my time collecting debt when I can make more money doing what I am good at.