What Percentage of Money Owed Is Typically Recovered by a Collection Agency?

How much money you can expect to collect depends on how old the debt is.

If you call in a collection agency when the debt is three months past due, you can expect to collect almost 74 percent of the debt. After six months, the chance of receiving payment drops to 56 percent. If you leave debt collection to linger for a year or more, your chance of collecting is only 29 percent, according to the Commercial Law League of America.

Lesson learned: Make your first phone call to the debt dodger the first day after a payment is due.