AboutMichelle Dunn Expertise As one of the Top 5 Women in Collections, one of the Top 50 Collection Professionals of 2007, and winner of the 2007 Business Excellence award, I can answer any questions about debt, debt collection, improving business credit, creating a credit policy, enforcing a credit policy and collecting on past due accounts. I can also answer questions in regards to starting a debt collection agency since I have been a bill collector for over 21 years, started and ran my own collection agency for 8 years, and maintain my 11 year old American Credit & Collections Association for members of the credit & debt collection industry. I am also the author of the popular and award winning book "Starting a Collection Agency, how to make money collecting money" now on it's 3rd edition. This book has won a the Writers Digest self published award as well as the 2007 New York Book Festival Award.
I am a repeat contributor to the Wall Street Journal, and have been featured on NPR as well as many other national radio and television programs. I have also been featured in national publications such as the Wall Street Journal, Forbes, Smart Money, MSNBC and much more. I have 12 published books to my name and am an accomplished speaker and consultant. I currently write 9 columns for newspapers, magazines and online portals worldwide.
Experience I have over 21 years experience in debt collection, I started and ran my own collection agency for 8 years and I am the Executive Director of my American Credit & Collections Association that I founded in 1998. www.credit-and-collections.com
Organizations The American Credit & Collections Association LLC, I was also a member of the American Collectors Association and Plymouth Chamber of Commerce for 9 years. I am a member of many writing groups as well as my local Women Inspiring Women chapter. I am a member of Know More Media as an expert for their blog on business credit.
Publications Business NH Magazine, Smart Money Magazine, MSNBC, CNN, Forbes.com, The Wall Street Journal, Home Business Magazine, Entrepreneur Magazine and website, many books, newspapers and television programs as well.
Education/Credentials I have written 12 books in my collecting money series and one for Entrepreneur Press called the Ultimate Credit and Collections Handbook.
Awards and Honors My book Starting a Collection Agency, how to make money collecting money won an award from Writers Digest and the 2007 New York Book Festival in the "How to" category. I have won 2 awards from Dun & Bradstreet and Governor Jean Shaheen. I was nominated as one of the Top 5 Women in Collections in 2007 as well as having been selected as one of Collection Advisor's Top 50 Collection Professionals for 2007.
Question In 2006, My wife and I signed our daughter up with a Modeling agency. At the time she was 6 Months Old. We really felt good about this agency. Right away they had us out to three tryouts and sittings within three months. Then there was a dry spell. It wasn't something that we were really dedicated to, so it wasn't a big deal to us that we hadn't heard from them for six months or so. But now, I started wondering why we haven't heard anything, since its been almost 2 years. So I gave them a call. I got a recording that the phone was disconnected. I checked there website and I couldn't get on it. So I googled the company and found out that they went out of Business. Now we paid $595 for a 5 year contract with them. All we got was 3 "Tryouts". Is there anything I can do to get atleast some of the money back if not all of it? The companies name is Kids.com
Answer Michael,
Check your contract that you have with them, and find out if the company went out of business, was dissolved, filed bankruptcy or how it ended. There should be an attorney you can contact that represented them during any of those three things. Also, you can bring your contract to an attorney and let him know they have closed and how it happened, and find out if you can go after the principal of the business, if the contract stipulates anything about this type of situation.
