Collections actions are individual steps that are performed in the process of collecting overdue balances, such as sending a dunning letter, applying a late fee, or making a courtesy phone call.

When you define a collections action, you specify the following:

• The collections action name

• The action type: manual, one of several system types, or custom

• For bill units in a collections group, the target bill units: the specified bill unit only (Self), the parent and all child bill units (All Members and Parent), or all child bill units (All Members)

You can create new actions to use in collections scenarios.

To create a collections action:

1. From the Home page, click the Actions tab at the bottom.

   The View and Manage Actions page appears.

2. Click Create Action at the top right.

   The Create Action dialog box appears.

3. In the Action Name field, enter a name for the action.

4. From the Action Type list, select an action type:

   • Dunning Letter: Sends a dunning letter to the selected action target. You must also select a value in the Template field.
   • Invoice Reminder: Sends an invoice reminder to the selected action target. You must also select a value in the Template field.
   • Late Fee: Charges a late fee for the selected action target. You must also set Charge to either Both, Percent, or Amount and the following:
     • If Charge is set to Both, set the Operator to Sum, Minimum, or Maximum and then also set the Percent and Amount.
     • If Charge is set to Percent, set the Percent.
     • If Charge is set to Amount, set the Amount.
   • Finance Charge: Charges a finance charge to the action target. You must also specify a Currency and a Percent of the overdue balance to charge.
   • Custom Action: Indicates a custom action type that you can add.

5. (Invoice Reminder or Policy Action types only) Enter or select the name of the template to use.

6. (Late Fee types only) Specify the currency type and the late fee amount or percentage to charge.

7. (Finance Charge types only) Specify the percentage of xxx to charge.

8. From the Action Target list, select a target for the action: Self, All Members, or All Members and Parent.

9. (Optional) In the Description field, enter a description of the action.

10. Click Create Action to save the action.

The new action appears in the View and Manage Actions list.

You can edit certain fields of an existing collections action. Editable fields include Action Target (Self, All Members, All Members and Parent), Description, and Percent (for applicable action types). You cannot change the action name or type.

To edit a collections action:

1. On the View and Manage Actions page, locate the action you want to edit.

2. Click the following menu icon at the end of the row:

   

3. Select Edit.

   The Edit Action dialog box appears.

   Note:

   When editing a collections action, you can’t change the Action Name or Action Type.
4. Update the information as needed. See "Actions Data Reference" for details of the information you can edit.

5. Click Save Action to apply your changes, or Cancel to exit without saving.

Collections Configuration Center saves the changes and returns you to the action list.

You can create a collections action by duplicating an existing action.

To duplicate a collections action:

1. On the View and Manage Actions page, locate the action you want to duplicate.

2. Click the following menu icon at the end of the row:

   

3. Select Duplicate.

The duplicated action appears in the actions list.

You can remove actions that are no longer needed.

To delete a collections action:

1. On the View and Manage Actions page, locate the action you want to delete.

2. Click the following menu icon at the end of the row:

   

3. Select Delete.

   A confirmation dialog box appears.

4. Click Delete to confirm that you want to delete the selected action.

The action is removed from the list.

Table 3-1 contains information about the data used to create and edit collections actions.