Debt Collector job description: duties, skills and qualifications.

Core duties

13

O*NET task statements

O*NET occupation

Bill and Account Collectors

O*NET-SOC 43-3011.00

Preparation

Job Zone 1-2 of 5

very little to some preparation

Typical entry education

High school diploma or equivalent

BLS 2025–35

Median pay

$47,030

BLS May 2025

Data Government data groups this job as Bill and Account Collectors (O*NET-SOC 43-3011.00). O*NET 31.0 lists “Debt Collector” as a job title for this occupation only (evidence: O*NET's Sample of Reported Titles (titles job holders report), O*NET job-incumbent data, the SOC Index, employer job postings and user input). Figures on this page are for that occupation. TryHired has no separate career page for this title yet.

1. Record information about financial status of customers and status of collection efforts. importance 4.7 of 5
2. Locate and notify customers of delinquent accounts by mail, telephone, or personal visits to solicit payment. importance 4.5 of 5
3. Locate and monitor overdue accounts, using computers and a variety of automated systems. importance 4.5 of 5
4. Arrange for debt repayment or establish repayment schedules, based on customers' financial situations. importance 4.5 of 5
5. Advise customers of necessary actions and strategies for debt repayment. importance 4.4 of 5
6. Answer customer questions regarding problems with their accounts. importance 4.3 of 5
7. Persuade customers to pay amounts due on credit accounts, damage claims, or nonpayable checks, or to return merchandise. importance 4.3 of 5
8. Confer with customers by telephone or in person to determine reasons for overdue payments and to review the terms of sales, service, or credit contracts. importance 4.3 of 5
9. Receive payments and post amounts paid to customer accounts. importance 4.2 of 5
10. Trace delinquent customers to new addresses by inquiring at post offices, telephone companies, credit bureaus, or through the questioning of neighbors. importance 4.0 of 5
11. Notify credit departments, order merchandise repossession or service disconnection, and turn over account records to attorneys when customers fail to respond to collection attempts. importance 3.9 of 5
12. Sort and file correspondence and perform miscellaneous clerical duties, such as answering correspondence and writing reports. importance 3.9 of 5
13. Perform various administrative functions for assigned accounts, such as recording address changes and purging the records of deceased customers. importance 3.6 of 5

Work activities O*NET rates most important here: Working with Computers, Organizing, Planning, and Prioritizing Work, Documenting/Recording Information, Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates and Resolving Conflicts and Negotiating with Others.

Also part of the job

Supplemental tasks O*NET lists for this occupation: less central than the core duties above, and not done in every job.

• Contact insurance companies to check on status of claims payments and write appeal letters for denial on claims.
• Negotiate credit extensions when necessary.

Knowledge areas: English Language, Customer and Personal Service, Mathematics, Economics and Accounting and Law and Government.

Software O*NET lists for this occupation: Microsoft Excel, Microsoft Office software, Microsoft Outlook, Microsoft Word, SAP software, MEDITECH software. These are examples O*NET records for the job, not a list of tools every employer uses or a checklist of what you must know.

• Education: BLS lists a high school diploma or equivalent as the typical entry-level education.
• Experience: BLS lists no work experience in a related occupation as typical to enter.
• Training on the job: BLS lists moderate-term on-the-job training as typical once hired.
• Preparation: O*NET places the job in Job Zone 1-2 of 5 (very little to some preparation). Some occupations may need little or no previous experience; others require several months to a year of experience.
• Licenses and certifications: not listed here. A license is a legal requirement set by a state; a certification is a credential from a private or professional body. Rules vary by state and employer, and a missing entry on this page does not mean none is required: check with your state's licensing board.

The most common answer among debt collectors surveyed by O*NET is a high school diploma or equivalent (48%).

Job title: Debt Collector
[Company] · [City, State] · [Full-time or part-time] · [Pay range, where your state requires one]

About the role
[Company] is hiring a Debt Collector to locate and notify customers of delinquent accounts by mail, telephone, or personal visit to solicit payment.
[One sentence on your team and why this role matters.]

What you will do
- Record information about financial status of customers and status of collection efforts.
- Locate and notify customers of delinquent accounts by mail, telephone, or personal visits to solicit payment.
- Locate and monitor overdue accounts, using computers and a variety of automated systems.
- Arrange for debt repayment or establish repayment schedules, based on customers' financial situations.
- Advise customers of necessary actions and strategies for debt repayment.
- Answer customer questions regarding problems with their accounts.
- Persuade customers to pay amounts due on credit accounts, damage claims, or nonpayable checks, or to return merchandise.
- Confer with customers by telephone or in person to determine reasons for overdue payments and to review the terms of sales, service, or credit contracts.

What we are looking for
- [Education: BLS lists a high school diploma or equivalent as typical for this occupation; set the level this role truly needs]
- [Experience: BLS lists no related work experience as typical to enter; set what this role needs]
- Strength in active listening, speaking and social perceptiveness
- Working knowledge of English Language and Customer and Personal Service
- [Software your team uses, e.g. Microsoft Excel or Microsoft Office software]
- [Any license or certification your state or company requires]

[Schedule, benefits and how to apply]

Illustrative: every name, employer, school, date and number in these samples is fictional or a bracketed placeholder. Replace each bracket with your own true details; never copy a result you did not achieve.

Not a real job posting. This template is TryHired's illustration built from government occupational data. It is not an opening at any employer, and no employer wrote it.

For Bill and Account Collectors, the median annual wage was $47,030 in May 2025. The median hourly wage was $22.61. BLS estimates about 158,830 jobs in this occupation in the U.S.

BLS projects employment of Bill and Account Collectors to decline 10.4% from 2025 to 2035, with about 11,200 openings a year over that period, including openings to replace workers who leave.

• Read a real debt collector posting next to the core duties above. Duties it repeats, such as “Record information about financial status of customers and status of…”, tell you what that employer weighs most; anything it adds is specific to that team.
• Tailor your resume to the posting, not to this page: describe only debt collector work you have actually done, with your own results.
• Prepare a story for each of the top-rated skills (active listening and speaking): a real situation, what you did and what changed.