Soundoff: Collection Strategies For Tough Times

The age-old problem of collections takes on new steam in an economy like this one. An outstanding amount that seems manageable when business is good can be alarming when dentists' workloads--and payments--are sluggish. Here, laboratory owners give their take on basic strategies for keeping accounts receivable in check.

Strategy: Put Preventive Policies in Place

I get the impression that some dentists--like many consumers--overextended themselves when the economy was booming and now are having problems keeping up. During the last year or two, many of our clients have become slower to pay and our collection efforts require more telephone calls. And, for the first time in our 16-year history, we had clients with unpaid balances filing for bankruptcy--in fact, two of them within a week of each other.

In light of this, we decided to change our payment policies. As of last January, every client has to...