Debtors & Creditors Checklist

What This Helps You Do

Could a different staff member defend every figure, date, and contact detail in your debt file without calling you first? The Clean-Slate Intake Map helps creditors and collections teams answer that question before sending a demand, placing a call, or referring an account for legal review.

Use it when opening a new account, receiving a returned payment, taking over an aged ledger, or correcting an incomplete file. The goal is simple: capture who owes the money, why it is owed, how much remains, and what evidence supports each point.

A clean intake prevents common errors such as contacting the wrong person, claiming the wrong balance, relying on an unsigned quote, or overlooking a payment already made. It also gives the next person a usable record instead of a folder of guesses.

Before You Start

Set up one intake record for each debt. Do not combine several invoices, customers, or legal entities in one running note.

Gather the source records before entering conclusions. Useful materials include:

• Signed contracts, estimates, applications, or membership agreements
• Invoices, statements, delivery records, and completion records
• Payment receipts, bank entries, card records, and refund details
• Emails, letters, text messages, call notes, and returned mail
• Credit applications, identity checks, and business registration details
• Security agreements, guarantees, purchase orders, and change orders
• Prior collection notices, dispute responses, and settlement offers

Choose a single working file. A spreadsheet can track intake fields and balances; a document system can hold supporting records. Keep the account number consistent across both. A practical file name is `AC-1047_Riverstone-LLC_2026-09-03`, using the internal account number, debtor name, and intake date.

Separate verified facts from items needing confirmation. Mark each field as confirmed, unclear, or missing. Do not treat an address copied from an old invoice as current merely because it appears in the file.

Set the review date before work begins. A file opened on September 3, 2026, should show when the balance, contact information, and payment history were last checked. This matters when interest, fees, addresses, or account status can change.

Use the Clean-Slate Intake Map in four passes:

• Identify the debtor and responsible parties.
• Rebuild the debt from its source documents.
• Match the balance to the payment record.
• Index the evidence supporting every material fact.

If local law, contract terms, or internal policy requires a particular notice or validation step, flag that requirement for the responsible reviewer. Intake should expose those issues, not silently resolve them.

Checklist Items

Debtor identity and contact details

☐ Record the debtor’s full legal name.

☐ Record every trading name used on the account.

☐ Confirm whether the debtor is an individual or business.

☐ Record the debtor’s business registration number.

☐ Record the debtor’s date of birth only when permitted.

☐ Record the debtor’s verified mailing address.

☐ Record the debtor’s physical address when different.

☐ Record each verified email address.

☐ Record each verified telephone number.

☐ Identify the preferred contact channel.

☐ Record the date each contact detail was verified.

☐ Identify the person who supplied each contact detail.

☐ Check for duplicate accounts under similar names.

☐ Link related account numbers without merging separate debts.

For a business account, identify the legal entity separately from its trading name. “Riverstone Plumbing” may be the shop name, while the contract names Riverstone Plumbing LLC. Use the contract’s legal name for the account record and retain the trading name for searching and contact work.

Responsible parties and authority

☐ Identify each contract signatory.

☐ Identify each authorized account contact.

☐ Identify each personal guarantor.

☐ Record each guarantor’s signed guarantee date.

☐ Confirm the guarantee covers this specific debt.

☐ Record each co-obligor or joint debtor.

☐ Identify the current owner of the account relationship.

☐ Record who approved the original credit terms.

☐ Confirm the contact person can discuss account details.

☐ Separate a billing contact from a liable party.

☐ Record authority limits for settlement discussions.

☐ Flag missing signatures before making legal conclusions.

Do not assume the person who placed an order is personally liable. An employee may have ordered $2,400 of materials for a company without becoming the debtor. Record the order contact, then trace liability to the contract, guarantee, application, or other supporting record.

Debt source and transaction facts

☐ Record the contract or account opening date.

☐ Identify the goods, services, loan, or charge involved.

☐ Record the invoice, statement, or account reference.

☐ Record the original principal amount.

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