LexisNexis(R) Risk Solutions today announced the availability of LexisNexis(R) Banko(R) Events Monitoring, a new feature available with the LexisNexis(R) Receivables Management Solutions suite that automates the process of monitoring bankruptcy events and helps collections organizations improve efficiency, reduce cost and identify new sources of revenue. In preliminary customer trials, the solution is proven to save collections agencies and first-party debt collectors 50 percent or more on costs associated with manually monitoring bankruptcy events.

“In our current economic environment, bankruptcies are increasing like never before, and collections professionals need access to the most current, comprehensive data possible in order to collect on accounts and reduce loss exposure,” said Robert Fite, vice president, LexisNexis Receivables Management Solutions. “LexisNexis Banko Events Monitoring allows collections professionals to focus on the business of making decisions, increasing efficiency and profitability.”

The number of people and businesses filing for bankruptcy is increasing at a staggering pace — 1.4 million petitions were submitted in 2009, a 32 percent increase from 2008. With the number of bankruptcy cases increasing dramatically, it is vital for collections professionals to monitor bankruptcy events such as attempts to have a court forgive certain debts, to have an accurate picture of their debt portfolio. Every time they want to check status on a debtor, collections professionals must conduct manual, labor-intensive searches using PACER, the federal court case electronic access system.

Banko Events Monitoring helps debt collectors overcome this problem by automating the monitoring process of bankruptcy events. The solution works by automatically monitoring every daily court docket entry for every bankruptcy case, and then provides collections organizations with relevant information on the debtors and events they need to track. As a result, collections organizations are empowered with information they need to make better and faster decisions about debt recovery. In addition, users save costs associated with purchasing individual PACER reports, improve employee productivity, minimize the need for manual investigations, and reduce their loss exposure.

In a beta trial of Banko Events Monitoring conducted with nine clients across several industries, including a collections agency, mortgage lender and automotive lender, the solution delivered average savings of 50 percent when compared to the cost of manually searching for bankruptcy events. To cite one example, an auto loan company had historically only been able to monitor approximately 7,500 of their 43,500 active bankrupt accounts. Banko Events Monitoring enabled the company to monitor all 43,500 of their active accounts — and for less than half the cost of manually searching 17 percent of the prior caseload.

LexisNexis Banko Events Monitoring is a key component of the LexisNexis Receivables Management solutions suite that helps collections businesses minimize unnecessary operational expenses and focus their efforts on the most collectible accounts. Banko Events Monitoring is an added functionality to Banko(R), a fully customizable solution that allows businesses to search comprehensive nationwide bankruptcy databases to quickly identify new filings and recently deceased individuals.

About LexisNexis

LexisNexis(R) (www.lexisnexis.com) is a leading global provider of information and services solutions, including its flagship Web-based Lexis(R) and Nexis(R) research services, to a wide range of professionals in the legal, risk management, corporate, government, law enforcement, accounting and academic markets. A member of Reed Elsevier [NYSE:ENL; NYSE:RUK] (www.reedelsevier.com), LexisNexis serves customers in 100 countries with 15,000 employees worldwide.

About LexisNexis Risk Solutions

LexisNexis(R) Risk Solutions is the leader in providing essential information that helps advance industry and society. Building on the legacy of proven LexisNexis(R) services from the past 30 years, our cutting-edge technology, unique data and advanced scoring analytics provide total solutions that address evolving client needs in the risk sector while upholding high standards of security and privacy. LexisNexis Risk Solutions serves commercial organizations and government agencies and is comprised of several affiliated corporations, each offering premier customer-focused solutions. For more information, visit risk.lexisnexis.com.

SOURCE: LexisNexis Risk Solutions