PCS Skip Tracing & Locate Techniques 3 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Which skip tracing database aggregates information from credit headers, public records, and utility data to produce a consolidated debtor profile?
- LexisNexis Accurint or TransUnion TLO (Correct answer)
- PACER federal court system
- USPS National Change of Address (NCOA) database
- Internal Revenue Service (IRS) TIN matching system
Correct answer: LexisNexis Accurint or TransUnion TLO
Tools like LexisNexis Accurint and TransUnion TLO are commercial skip tracing platforms that consolidate multiple data streams into a single debtor profile.
Question 2: What does the term 'hard skip' mean in collections terminology?
- A debtor who has intentionally concealed their location and left no traceable forwarding information (Correct answer)
- A debtor whose debt has been charged off and sold to a third party
- An account where the statute of limitations has expired
- A debtor who has filed for bankruptcy protection
Correct answer: A debtor who has intentionally concealed their location and left no traceable forwarding information
A 'hard skip' refers to a debtor who has deliberately hidden their whereabouts, making location significantly more difficult than a standard skip.
Question 3: When skip tracing reveals that a debtor has died, what is the FIRST action a collector should take?
- Cease collection from the deceased and identify the estate or executor for further action (Correct answer)
- Continue collection activity until probate is officially opened
- Write off the account immediately as uncollectable
- Contact the next of kin listed in the file to demand payment
Correct answer: Cease collection from the deceased and identify the estate or executor for further action
Upon confirmed death, collection must shift to the estate and its executor or administrator rather than continuing against the deceased.
Question 4: Which of the following represents an ILLEGAL skip tracing tactic under the FDCPA?
- Falsely identifying yourself as a government official to obtain debtor location information from a third party (Correct answer)
- Calling a neighbor once to ask if they have the debtor's current address
- Searching publicly available court records for a debtor's new address
- Using a commercial skip tracing database to find a new phone number
Correct answer: Falsely identifying yourself as a government official to obtain debtor location information from a third party
Misrepresenting identity (e.g., claiming to be a government official) violates FDCPA Section 807, which prohibits false or misleading representations.
Question 5: What is the primary purpose of running a debtor's name through the Social Security Death Master File (SSDMF) during skip tracing?
- To confirm whether the debtor is deceased before continuing collection efforts (Correct answer)
- To verify the debtor's SSN for identity validation
- To determine the debtor's eligibility for a payment plan
- To check if the debtor has a fraudulent Social Security number
Correct answer: To confirm whether the debtor is deceased before continuing collection efforts
The SSDMF is used to verify mortality, preventing collectors from inappropriately pursuing collection against deceased individuals.
Question 6: A collector leaves a location message with a debtor's adult child asking the debtor to return the call. Which FDCPA provision is most relevant?
- Third-party disclosure prohibition — the collector must not reveal the debt when leaving the message (Correct answer)
- FDCPA mini-Miranda requirement applies to all messages left with third parties
- Cease communication rules prevent leaving any message with a third party
- No FDCPA provisions apply to messages left with family members
Correct answer: Third-party disclosure prohibition — the collector must not reveal the debt when leaving the message
The FDCPA prohibits disclosing the nature of the debt to unauthorized third parties; a location message may only request a callback without mentioning debt.
Question 7: Which technique involves analyzing a debtor's pattern of known addresses over time to predict their likely current location?
- Geographic profiling / address pattern analysis (Correct answer)
- Reverse phone lookup triangulation
- Credit header scrubbing
- Bankruptcy petition cross-referencing
Correct answer: Geographic profiling / address pattern analysis
Geographic profiling analyzes the trajectory and pattern of a debtor's past addresses to make informed predictions about their current or future location.
PCS Skip Tracing & Locate Techniques 3
Which skip tracing database aggregates information from credit headers, public records, and utility data to produce a consolidated debtor profile?