Policy Statement Procedure Responsibilities Definitions Related Legislation and Documents

Transcription

1 POLICY AND PROCEDURE COLLECTIONS Policy Statement Procedure Responsibilities Definitions Related Legislation and Documents 1 PURPOSE This document outlines the requirements for the management and collection of debtors. It establishes controls to minimise the occurrence of bad debts and supports the University in meeting its obligations under the National Consumer Credit Protection Regulations 2010 and the Financial and Management Performance Standard SCOPE This policy and procedure applies to all CQUniversity staff and all persons or organisations owing monies to CQUniversity. It does not apply to staff of the University s subsidiary companies 1 or to persons or organisations owing monies to such subsidiaries. 3 EFFECTIVE DATE 15 September LEGISLATIVE AUTHORITY Central Queensland University Act 1998 (Qld) National Consumer Credit Protection Regulations 2010 Financial and Performance Management Standard 2009 (Qld) 5 POLICY STATEMENT 5.1 All practical means will be undertaken to collect outstanding amounts due to the University with minimal disruption to customers and students. 5.2 Students with overdue amounts owing to the University will have sanctions placed on their record and will be issued with relevant collection letters (reminders). If the debt remains unpaid after the period identified in the Collection Procedures, the student will be referred to the University s Debt Collection Agency. 5.3 Commercial and General Debtors with amounts owing to the University will be issued with relevant reminders. If the debt remains unpaid after the period identified in the Collection Procedures, the person or organisation will be referred to the University s Debt Collection Agency and future supply of goods and services will be observed. 5.4 The University may enter into payment arrangements with full fee paying overseas students, VET students and commercial and general debtors with a recorded debt. The University expects such debtors to finalise and pay any amounts outstanding by the due dates specified in their payment arrangement. 5.5 Payment plans for the repayment of outstanding fees and debts via instalments may also be granted, however will only be granted to those full fee paying overseas students, VET students or commercial and general debtors who: are unable to pay the outstanding debt due to severe hardship, and have not been subject to previous collections action for the debt. 1 The University s subsidiary companies refers to Health Train Education Services Pty Ltd (Train@CQUniversity), CQU Travel Centre Pty Ltd (Travel Crew) and C Management Services Pty Ltd (CMS). Reference Number/Code: 347 Page 1 of 10

2 5.6 Applications will be assessed on a case-by-case basis by a delegated officer of the University. Credit worthiness of the applicant will be the primary focus of the assessment. 5.7 Payment plans must not be extended to full fee paying overseas students for longer than sixty days from the due date recorded on their invoice/fee notice and may not exceed one term s fees. 5.8 Payment plans must not be extended to VET students for longer than 30 days prior to the end of the student s qualification or program of study. 5.9 Payment plans must not be extended to commercial and general debtors for longer than sixty days from the date of the agreement Payment plans will not be available for amounts less $ PROCEDURE Student Debtors 6.1 Students with an overdue debt will have sanctions placed on their record. An overdue student debt occurs when a student fails to pay their debt to the University within the terms specified. A definition of a student debtor and a list of sanctions that may be imposed, are given in Table A (below). 6.2 A student in breach of their Student Loan payment terms as set out in the Special Assistance for Students - Student Loan Scheme Procedures, will fall within the ambit of these procedures. 6.3 The collection of debts is managed centrally within the University's Financial Services Division. Debt Recovery Student Accounts and Student Loans 6.4 The following actions are available to deter students from defaulting on their payments and to successfully recover outstanding debt: Sanctions(Refer Table A), Correspondence and contact where appropriate, and Referral to the University Debt Collection Agency. 6.5 Where sanctions are imposed on a student debtor, the student will be notified accordingly. 6.6 The Treasury and Accounts Manager will ensure all practical means are taken to recover amounts due to the University from Student Accounts and Student Loans. 6.7 A Fee Notice is available online in CQUCentral s Student Centre to all students with a tuition charge or student services and amenities fee. In accordance with the Student Principles, students are advised via their CQUniversity address once their Fee Notice is available. The due date for all Student Contribution and FeeHelp students is Census Date. All other students should refer to their student account or a copy of their relevant Fee Notice. 6.8 An invoice will be issued for non-enrolment-based charges when an amount becomes payable to the University. Payment terms are detailed on the invoice. 6.9 Invoices for VET students are available on request for fees raised in StudentOne. Payment for VET fees are due upon enrolment and credit is only provided to students with an approved payment plan in place. User choice students are enrolled in advance however the fee is not due until the first day of their study block Three collection letters will be sent in respect to students' outstanding debt, after which the debt will be forwarded to the University s Debt Collection Agency If placed in the hands of the Collection Agency, student debtors will be notified in writing The approval of the Treasury and Accounts Manager is required prior to pursuing legal action. Recoverable court costs will be added to the outstanding debt. Reference Number/Code: 347 Page 2 of 10

3 Debt Recovery - Overseas Centres 6.13 Overseas Centres will be responsible, in conjunction with the Financial Services Division for debt collection, if not specified contractually. Disputes - Student Accounts Disputes Relating to Services Rendered or Charges Imposed 6.14 A person wishing to dispute whether an amount is payable must raise their complaint in writing to the Coordinator, Student Fees and Records. The dispute resolution will be communicated in writing to the debtor within 14 days from the date received. Mail to: Coordinator, Student Fees and Awards Student Governance Centre Building 2 CQUniversity Rockhampton Qld 4701 Fax: far@cqu.edu.au Disputes Relating to Payments 6.15 A person wishing to dispute whether an amount has been paid must raise their complaint in writing to the Debtors Officer. The dispute resolution will be communicated in writing to the debtor within 14 days from the date received. Mail to: Debtors Officer Financial Services Building 65 CQUniversity Rockhampton Qld 4701 Fax: cqudebtors@cqu.edu.au Unresolved Disputes Relating to Services Rendered and Payments 6.16 Having taken the appropriate action mentioned above, should the complaint remain unresolved, the person can submit their complaint in writing to the Student Ombudsman. Mail to: The Student Ombudsman Building 37 CQUniversity Rockhampton Qld 4701 Fax: student-ombudsman@cqu.edu.au Commercial and General Debtors (includes Student Sponsors) Debt Recovery 6.17 Action to successfully recover outstanding debt for Commercial and General Debtors includes discontinuation of any future supply of goods and services for those accounts that have been forwarded to the University Debt Collection Agency until settlement of the overdue amounts. An invoice will be issued after an amount becomes payable to the University. Payment terms are 14 days from date of invoice or as agreed within a legally binding contract. Reference Number/Code: 347 Page 3 of 10

4 Disputes Aged Statements are issued to all Commercial and General Debtors on a monthly basis (Student Sponsors exempt from this process). Collection letters are generated in the third week of each month (fortnightly for Student Sponsors). Debts less than $150 and in the aging category may be recommended for write off. Three collection letters will be sent in respect to outstanding debt after which the debt will be forwarded to the University Debt Collection Agency. Debtors will be notified in writing, if placed in the hands of the Collection Agency. Where legal action is required, the approval of the Treasury and Accounts Manager will be obtained. Recoverable court costs will be added to the outstanding debt. Non-payment of Commercial and General Debts by University students will result in sanctions being applied to their student account administered within the student database. Disputes Relating to Services Rendered 6.18 A person who wishes to dispute whether an amount is payable should raise their concerns with a Debtors Officers (cqudebtors@cqu.edu.au) to be forwarded to the relevant School/ Division/Department for attention. Disputes Relating to Payments 6.19 A person who wishes to dispute whether an amount has been paid must raise the complaint with the Debtors Officer. The dispute resolution will be communicated in writing to the debtor within 14 days from the date received. Mail to: Debtors Officer Financial Services Building 65 CQUniversity Rockhampton Qld 4701 Fax: cqudebtors@cqu.edu.au Unresolved Disputes Relating to Services Rendered and Payments 6.20 Having taken the appropriate action mentioned above, should the complaint remain unresolved, the person can submit their complaint in writing to the Treasury and Accounts Manager. Mail to: Treasury and Accounts Manager Financial Services Building 65 CQUniversity Rockhampton Qld 4701 Fax: cqudebtors@cqu.edu.au Commercial Operations 6.21 CQUniversity Bookshop and Student Residences will be responsible for their own collection processes with regards to issuing account reminder letters, performing recovery procedures similar to the general debtor recovery procedures outlined in these procedures and referral to the University Debt Collection Agency. Travel Advances, Travel or Procurement Cards and Overpayments (Creditors and Salaries) Reference Number/Code: 347 Page 4 of 10

5 6.22 All University expenditure must be approved. In the event a staff member or student incurs unapproved or personal expenditure, an invoice will be raised and recovery procedures commenced in accordance with the Commercial and General Debtor principles outlined in this document Expenditure deemed private includes, but is not limited to: 6.1 staff and students who receive travel advances that are not acquitted by the due date, 6.2 corporate cardholders who make inappropriate use of travel or procurement cards, and 6.3 other expenses deemed private by any other University policy Should an overpayment by the University occur (excluding salaries or salary related payments), an invoice will be raised and recovery procedures commenced in accordance with the Commercial and General debtor principles, as outlined in this document Should a salary overpayment occur, an invoice will only be raised after all other methods of recovery have been exhausted. Payment Plans 6.26 The Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Finance and Planning) or their delegate may, in special circumstances, approve a collection agreement in accordance with the Collections Policy, Payment Plan Procedures and National Consumer Credit Protection Regulations Failure to adhere to the repayment schedule will result in the referral of debt to the University Debt Collection Agency. TAFE Payment Plan Procedures will result in referral of debt to the University Debt Collection Agency where the student fails to adhere to the repayment schedule. Write Offs 6.27 The write-off of debts shall occur as detailed in the University's Bad Debts Principles and Procedures. Monthly Reviews 6.28 A monthly review of University Debtors will be undertaken to ensure compliance to procedures. Potential Risk of Non-Compliance 6.29 Continued provision of goods and services to students, staff and other debtors who do not pay Staff and students who receive travel advances and traveller's cheques are required to acquit those advances. Non-acquittal is a contravention of the Financial and Management Performance Standard 2009 and debt recovery may be instituted against those debtors, even if they have left the University Corporate cardholders who make inappropriate use of travel or purchasing cards may become debtors of the University. Debt recovery may be instituted against those debtors, even if they have left the University By not employing collection procedures debts that may otherwise have been recoverable may need to be written off Steps would not be taken to recover debts with insignificant account balances, where costs of recovery including manpower, postage and collection agent fees outweigh any possible benefit that could be obtained in return Debtors could be overstated due to insufficient provision for bad debts. Student Debtors and Sanctions 6.35 Debt recovery against a Student Debtor commences at the point where the student: fails to pay any fine, fee, charge or debt due to CQUniversity, or fails to repay to the University a student loan in accordance with the terms of the loan agreement. Reference Number/Code: 347 Page 5 of 10

6 6.36 A sanction restricts a student's access to various entitlements to which they would normally have access. The sanction becomes increasingly restrictive the longer the student's account balance remains overdue. The following is a schedule of sanctions, which the University will apply to Student Debtors. These sanctions will be applied until the Student's Account is returned to normal credit terms Sanctions will remain on the student account until the student pays the overdue debt in full. In the circumstance where the University recovers previously written-off bad debt, the sanction will be removed from the student's account In the circumstance where a student is declared bankrupt, the University will write off the debt upon receipt of substantive documentation. A sanction will be retained on the student s record, although there are no impacts recorded. Student Debtors Recovery Letters 6.39 The first letter will be sent for outstanding student balances as prescribed in the Debt Threshold detailed in Table A, after the debt has remained unpaid for at least four days beyond the due date. The letter will inform the debtor that sanctions may have been imposed. Immediate payment of the overdue debt will be requested together with the payment of any other debt when it becomes due and payable. Basic sanctions may apply until a debt is cleared. Student accounts with rounding balance up to and including five cents will be recommended for write off, with no sanction The second letter will be generated 14 days after the first letter should the overdue debt remain unpaid. The letter will advise of further legal action for the recovery of the debt if not paid within 14 days The third letter will be generated 14 days after the second letter should the overdue debt remain unpaid. The letter will inform the debtor that the account will be referred to the University Debt Collection Agency for formal recovery action Financial Services staff may also contact the debtor by phone or by in an effort to have the debt paid, prior to accounts being placed in the hands of the Collection Agency. Reference Number/Code: 347 Page 6 of 10

7 Table A A Student Debtor is defined as, one who: fails to pay any fine, fee, charge or debt due to CQUniversity; fails to repay to the University a student loan in accordance with the terms of the loan agreement. Arrears Period (from due date) Collection Letter Issued Debt Threshold for Sanctions Sanction Level Sanction Code Sanctions 4 days First Reminder (CL1) 18 days Second Reminder (CL2) 32 days Final Notice (CL3) $10 Level One Sanctions TRAN Official Transcript not available CCA Cannot Collect Award $10 Level Two Sanctions TRAN Official Transcript not available CCA Cannot Collect Award PRR Prevent Student Receiving Results $150 Level Three Sanctions TRAN Official Transcript not available CCA Cannot Collect Award PRR Prevent Student Receiving Results ACW Computer access may be removed AENR No new enrolment - ability to drop only 46 days 96 days Sent to Debt Collector Advice (CL4) $150 Level Four Sanctions TRAN Official Transcript not available CCA Cannot Collect Award PRR Prevent Student Receiving Results ACW Computer access may be removed AENR No new enrolment - ability to drop only IENR No new enrolment - inability to drop or add WFE Withdraw Future Enrolment PDC Passed to debt collector Notification Cancellation of Program $500 Level Four Sanctions + TRAN Official Transcript not available Reference Number/Code: 347 Page 7 of 10

8 Arrears Period (from due date) Collection Letter Issued Debt Threshold for Sanctions Sanction Level Sanction Code Sanctions NOTE: International students will be cancelled earlier where ESOS legislation permits (Standard 13 National Code of Practice). Cancellation of Program CCA Cannot Collect Award PRR Prevent Student Receiving Results ACW Computer access may be removed AENR No new enrolment - ability to drop only IENR No new enrolment - inability to drop or add WFE Withdraw Future Enrolment PDC Passed to debt collector TER Cancellation of program Please Note: Students i ii iii Iv v Debt Threshold amounts are cumulative overdue amounts 'equal to' or 'greater than' the dollar figure specified. Between 46 and 96 days overdue, debtors with a cumulative overdue amount of $150 and greater will move from the 'Level Four Sanctions' to 'Level Five Sanctions' when processed as being 'Sent to Debt Collector'. Collection Letters One and Two will be issued to all debtors with overdue amounts of $10 and greater. Collection Letter Three will be issued to all debtors with overdue amounts of $150 and greater. Collection Letter Four will be issued to debtors with overdue amounts equal to, or greater than $150 and who have been referred to the Collection Agency. Reference Number/Code: 347 Page 8 of 10

9 Commercial and General Debtors Recovery Letters 6.43 Overdue Commercial and General Debtors will be issued with collection letters applicable to the number of days aged on the day that the letters are processed. In instances whereby the customers have multiple invoices, the system will select the oldest charge and the applicable recovery letter will be issued. The schedule of letters is, as follows: Table B Aging Number of Days Category Overdue Collection Letter Letter Description Dollar Threshold Future 0 days No Collection Letter issued N/A N/A Present 1 3 days No Collection Letter issued N/A N/A days Collection Letter 1 1 st Reminder Any amount days Collection Letter 2 2 nd Reminder Any amount days Collection Letter 3 Final Notice $150 or greater days Collection Letter 4 Sent to DC Notice $150 or greater days No Collection Letter issued In hands of Debt Collector N/A days and greater No Collection Letter issued In hands of Debt Collector N/A Disputed Invoices Any number of days No Collection Letter issued N/A N/A 6.44 Prior to referring debtors to the Collection Agency, the Debtor Officers will be required to perform the following task: Aging Category Number of Days Overdue Dollar Threshold Tasks days $150 or greater Ensure customers sent CL4 correlate with debtors forwarded to Collection Agency It is imperative to the success of this process that any disputes are reported immediately to the Debtors Officer so that the disputed debt can be flagged as In Dispute. This will ensure that the invoice is excluded from the Collections Process until the dispute is resolved. Where disputes are not resolved within 30 days the Treasury and Accounts Manager will be notified Financial Services staff may also contact the debtor by phone or by in an effort to have the debt paid, prior to accounts being placed in the hands of the Collection Agency 7 RESPONSIBILITIES Compliance, Monitoring and Review 7.1 Overall responsibility for implementation lies with the Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Finance and Planning), with delegated responsibility to the Treasury and Accounts Manager. 7.2 Responsibility for compliance and monitoring resides with the Treasury and Accounts Manager, Financial Services. 7.3 It is the responsibility of the Treasury and Accounts Manager to ensure that the University's financial practices are consistent with these procedures. This document will be reviewed regularly and revision will be made, if warranted. 7.4 If at any time the Treasury and Accounts Manager considers that the objectives cannot be met, notice in writing should be sent to the Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Finance and Planning). Records Management 7.5 A monthly review of Accounts Receivable is undertaken to ensure compliance to these procedures. 7.6 All records relevant to this document are to be maintained in a recognised University recordkeeping system. Reference Number/Code: 347 Page 9 of 10

10 8 DEFINITIONS Delegated Officer/s for the purposes of Payment Plans will be: Student Services Coordinators on the Metropolitan Campuses, and The Treasury and Accounts Manager or their delegate for all Commercial and General Debtors. Sanction: a restriction placed on a student's access to various entitlements to which they would normally have access. The sanction becomes increasingly restrictive the longer the student's account balance remains overdue. Refer to the University glossary for the definition of terms used in this policy and procedure. 9 RELATED LEGISLATION AND DOCUMENTS Related Policy Document Suite Payment Plan Procedures Payment Plan Procedures (TAFE) Bad Debts Principles Bad Debts Procedures Special Assistance for Students Student Loan Scheme Policy Special Assistance for Students Student Loan Scheme Procedures Student Principles Related Legislation and Supporting Documents National Consumer Credit Protection Regulations 2010 Financial and Management Performance Standard 2009 Central Queensland University Act Approval and Review Details Approval Authority Council Advisory Committee to Approval Authority Planning and Resources Committee Administrator Deputy Vice Chancellor (Finance and Planning) Next Review Date 26/08/2018 Approval and Amendment History Details Original Approval Authority and Date Council 07/10/2002 Amendment Authority and Date Council 22/09/2006; Director, Division of Finance 15/03/2010, Minor Amendment 21/06/2012; Council 24/06/2013; Council 26/08/2013; Council 26/08/2015. Reference Number/Code: 347 Page 10 of 10