Your Past-Due California Accounts, Paid

California debt collection that gets results, fast.

In one of the most heavily regulated states for U.S. collections, having local experts on your side is essential for success. Cedar Financial offers:

  • Over 30 years’ experience in local California collections
  • Custom campaigns and dispute resolution for your industry
  • Experienced in-house creditor’s rights attorneys

Our “People-First” approach can help you recover more funds, in less time, anywhere. Whether your claim is large or small, consumer or commercial, new or old, we can help.

Find out why Fortune 50 companies are choosing Cedar Financial as their International Debt Collection partner. Get an instant quote today.

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Top Challenges in California Debt Recovery

Compliance to Strict Fair Debt Collection Laws

In addition to the federal Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA), California has its own fair debt collection laws, under the California/Rosenthal Fair Debt Collection Practices Act. This law applies not only to debt collection agencies, but to creditors, offering consumers additional protections.

In order to stay in line with California and federal laws and protect your business’ reputation, it is important to only hire trusted California collections experts, like Cedar Financial, that are licensed and trained to meet the highest compliance standards in the industry.

Short Statute of Limitations

California has one of the shortest statute of limitations in the United States: four years for all debts except those made via oral contract, which is two years.

The state also recently updated the Rosenthal Fair Debt Collection Practices Act to require collectors to inform debtors if their debt has become time barred. 

Hiring a professional collection agency earlier in the recovery process can help you get paid what you’re owed before time runs out. Cedar Financial will quickly trace your debtor’s location and establish meaningful contact for the best possible outcome. Our veteran staff is trained in the best amicable mediation techniques for fair, but firm negotiations that work for all parties.

High Rates of Identity Theft Means Increased Disputes

Year after year, California consistently makes it on the list of top 10 states with the highest rates of identity theft. This can create massive headaches for both consumers and creditors, as it requires verification of the debt and fraud investigation.

Cedar Financial’s courteous representatives are trained to diplomatically handle every dispute. We can help determine which disputes are genuine and which are just delay tactics, helping you get paid faster.

Recession Recovery, High Levels of Debt

California has some of the highest levels of debt per person across the board, including credit card, mortgage, student loan, and auto loan debt. High cost of living, rising educational costs, and a recovering housing market can place significant strain on Californian’s wallets, making it difficult for them to pay back what they owe. 

However, while some households may still be recovering financially from the subprime mortgage crisis of 2008, the market is largely recovering, with unemployment rates dropping and foreclosures and bankruptcies falling. While Californians take longer to pay student loan debts, they are also more responsible in meeting their monthly payments, with higher than average credit scores. 

Cedar Financial can help your California debtors with debt counseling and affordable repayment solutions. Our People-First Approach has helped many find stress-free, amicable solutions that work for everyone. Call 818-224-3800 today to learn more.

Litigation in California

While every effort is made to resolve accounts amicably, what happens when a firmer approach is needed? Here’s what you need to know about the California legal process.

California Statute of Limitations

Because California has one of the shortest statutes of limitation in the US, you will want to be mindful of how much time has passed since the last payment was made. The statute of limitations is four years for credit card debt or written contracts, and two years for oral agreements. Past this time, is the debt will be time-barred and the time for legal has ended.

Foreign and domestic judgments, once obtained, are enforceable for up to 10 years, at which point they may be renewed.

Obtaining a Prejudgment Writ of Attachment

Before jumping into a full-on lawsuit, it may be beneficial to seek a prejudgment writ of attachment, which will create a judicial lien, allowing you to freeze the debtor’s assets pending the outcome of a trial or settlement.

Prejudgment writs of attachment strongly encourage your debtor to settle and provide you with assurance that you’ll have something to recover once you obtain a judgment, preventing debtors from escaping judgment by transferring assets before a decision is issued.

Suing Your Debtor

Under the California Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, you must file suit in the county where the debt was incurred, where the debtor lived when the debt was incurred, or where the debtor lives now.

Once you file a lawsuit, you must serve a notice, or Summons and Complaint, to the debtor notifying them of the lawsuit and giving them time to respond. Failure to send notice will result in any judgment being uncollectable. 

Assuming the debtor does not dispute, you can then obtain a judgment and proceed to collect on it.

Remedies Available to Creditors

Once you obtain a judgment, you have the legal right to several types of remedies in California:

  • Wage garnishment – the debtor’s employer deducts a portion (up to 25%) of their wages to pay the debt.
  • Account levy – creditor with a writ may have a levying officer take money in the debtor’s account and apply it to the judgment balance.
  • Lien on real property – places a claim on property owned by the debtor, so that if they sell, they must pay the judgment. May prevent them from selling or refinancing their home if the value is insufficient to cover the debt.
  • Seizure of personal property – lien holders of personal property may demand the sheriff seize and auction property to satisfy the lien.

Quick Facts About Debt Collection in California

Open Invoices
Unpaid Invoice Interest RateUp to 12%
Can Collection Fees be added?Must be included in contract to be added.
Statute of Limitations/PrescriptionVerbal agreement: two years
Written agreement: four years

Quick Facts About Litigation in California

Judgment
Post Judgment Interest RateUp to 10%. 7% if debtor is state
or local government entity.
Judgment Expiration 10 years.
Can judgment be renewed?Yes

Local Experts in Collections

We offer on-the-ground representatives in California who understand the debt collection practices that work to support full recovery of your funds.

 

Get Your Free Consultation Today!

FAQs About Debt Collection in California

Headquartered in California and nationally licensed, we are the experts in California debt collection. Our professional debt collectors are trained in local laws, including the California/Rosenthal Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (CFDCPA) and the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA), for high levels of compliance and results you can count on.

For pre-legal services, we work on a “no collection – no fee” basis, so you will only pay when your funds are recovered.

We have no minimum value or volume that is required to place accounts.

Specializing in both domestic and international collections, we provide services in Education, Healthcare, Commercial, E-Commerce, Government and Legal industries. Our primary services are comprised of Commercial B2B (business to business) accounts and Consumer B2C (business to consumer) or C2B (consumer to business) accounts.

Just as every claim is different, the circumstances for each consumer varies as well, resulting in an unidentifiable certain set of time. Extenuating factors such as the age of the account and the type of debt being collected upon also weigh into how much time it will take to close our agreement.

Once we receive your accounts and the proper documents to validate the claim, our representatives will begin by skip tracing the accounts to locate the debtor. We will then immediately begin working the account via phone and mail, and issue a written demand notice allowing 30 days for debt validation as required by the FDCPA. 

The statute of limitations is four years for credit card debt or written contracts, and two years for oral agreements.

If your debtor is unresponsive to letters and phone calls, we provide on-the-ground field services for investigation, skip tracing, in-person visits at your debtor’s residence, asset searches, and more.

Yes, we must be able to validate the debt before we can begin the collection process. Validation documents include, but are not limited to, contractual agreements between you and the consumer, a bill or invoices for exchanged goods or services, as well as, legal court judgment documents.

Yes, we offer in-house legal counsel, plus a global vetted attorney network for claims outside our jurisdiction. Once all amicable collection efforts are exhausted, we will evaluate the account for legal action at no additional cost to you. 

* The information provided on this website does not, and is not intended to, constitute legal advice; instead, all information, content, and materials available on this site are for general informational purposes only.

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Leader in Domestic & International Debt Recovery
  • People-First Approach
  • Global Compliance
  • Top-Notch Data Security
  • 24/7 Online Account Management
  • Expert Skip Tracing, In-House Legal Services
  • No Collect, No Fee

We value your business and will guarantee our performance. Cedar Financial is committed to achieve highest recovery of your lost dollars in the fastest time possible. Within 30 days of EVERY claim placement Cedar Financial will:

  • Acknowledge claims received.
  • Prioritize contact with your customer and open a line of communication for quick, efficient and amicable resolution.
  • Resolve disputes quickly and avoid delay tactics.
  • Use proprietary databases, technology, and professional skip trace team to locate your debtor.
  • Provide credit reporting for unpaid/unresolved accounts, where applicable.