GUIDE · COLLECTION CADENCE
Collection cadence: what it is, how to build one and how to automate it.
A collection cadence (in Brazil, a régua de cobrança) is the sequence of contacts with someone who owes, from the reminder before the due date to the closed agreement. Here are the stages, the channels, the legal limits, the indicators that tell whether it works, and where an AI agent takes over the negotiation.
What a collection cadence is.
It is the plan of whom to contact, when, on which channel and with which message, by days past due. Each stage has a goal: remind before the due date, recover those who only forgot right after it, negotiate as the delay grows, and decide what to do with what doesn't resolve.
Without a cadence, collection depends on who is free that day: some customers get five calls, others none, and the debt ages. With one, every overdue customer follows a defined path, and you can measure which stage recovers and which only spends.
The stages of a cadence.
The timing varies by product and portfolio. The outline below is a starting point.
- 01
Before the due date
Five days to one day before: a reminder with the amount, the date and the payment slip or Pix. It is the cheapest stage, and it prevents the delay that comes only from forgetting.
- 02
First days past due
Up to about 15 days: a quick, friendly contact with a new payment slip ready. Whoever forgot pays here; whoever can't pay says so, and the negotiation starts.
- 03
15 to 60 days
The conversation becomes a negotiation: understand the situation, offer instalments or a discount within the company's policy, and close an agreement with a date.
- 04
Over 60 days
An agreement with deeper discounts and more instalments, credit-bureau reporting where the policy calls for it, and the decision to keep collecting in-house or hand the portfolio to an agency.
The channels and what each is for.
WhatsApp
Where most people answer. Good for reminders, new payment slips and negotiating by text at the customer's pace. On Meta's official API, a message the company sends outside the 24-hour window, like the one that opens the conversation, uses an approved template.
Phone call
The negotiation channel: you hear the objection, answer it on the spot and close the agreement in the same conversation. Made by a person, it is also the most expensive contact.
SMS
Short, and it reaches people who don't use WhatsApp. Good for reminders and payment links, not for negotiating.
Email
Cheap and good as a record: payment slip, agreement terms and receipt. It is rarely what makes the customer pay.
The legal limits in Brazil.
The Consumer Protection Code forbids exposing the debtor to ridicule or embarrassment when collecting (art. 42), and makes it a crime to collect with threats, coercion, or in a way that interferes with their work, rest or leisure (art. 71). Whoever collects an amount not owed refunds double what the consumer overpaid, unless the error was justifiable (art. 42, sole paragraph). In practice: a respectful tone, reasonable hours, checked amounts and a cap on attempts per contact.
Discuss the debt only with the debtor: confirm identity before mentioning it, and never reveal it to a relative or colleague who answers. The LGPD also requires using only the data collection needs, and letting the customer know how it is processed.
Before a debt is reported, the credit bureau must notify the consumer in writing (CDC, art. 43, § 2; STJ Súmula 359). There are also local and industry rules on contact hours and frequency: check the ones that apply to your operation. This guide is not legal advice.
The indicators that tell whether the cadence works.
Recovery rate alone hides where the cadence fails. Track it by stage and by channel.
- 01
Contact rate
Out of every hundred customers contacted, how many were reached, and how many were the right person. A low contact rate is a data or channel problem, not a message problem.
- 02
Agreement rate
Of those reached, how many closed an agreement or promised to pay. It shows whether the offer and the approach convince.
- 03
Agreements kept
How many agreements were paid on time. An agreement that isn't paid is a postponed delay: if this drops, it usually means the terms exceed what the customer can pay.
- 04
Amount recovered and cost
How much came back in each delinquency band, against what the stage cost. It is the number that says where people are worth it and where they aren't.
Common mistakes.
Starting only after the due date
The reminder before the date is the cheapest contact in the cadence, and the one most often skipped.
One message for everyone
Someone two days late and someone ninety days late are in different situations. Segment by delinquency band, amount and payment history.
Insisting without a cap
Repeated calls on the same day annoy, lower the response rate and can amount to the embarrassment the Consumer Code forbids. Set a cap on attempts per contact.
Not measuring by stage
Without knowing which stage recovers, the cadence doesn't improve. Test each change against the previous version.
Where AI fits in the cadence.
Reminders and new payment slips were already automatic. What held the cadence back was negotiation: it needed a person, and it doesn't pay to have people call the whole portfolio. That is why most cadences automate the notices and keep their agents for the bands and amounts that cover the cost of a call.
An AI collection agent talks to each customer over the phone and WhatsApp the way a negotiator would: it understands the situation, offers only the discounts and instalments the company authorised, accepts counteroffers, closes the agreement and sends the payment slip. It calls only within each portfolio's hours, never on holidays, with a cap on attempts per contact, and schedules the call for when the customer asks.
That is what NewCob does. Every conversation is recorded, transcribed and evaluated, and results show per portfolio in a portal, in real time.
Questions about collection cadences.
What is a collection cadence?
It is the planned sequence of contacts with someone who owes: whom to contact, when, on which channel and with which message, by days past due. It runs from the reminder before the due date to the closed agreement.
What are the stages of a collection cadence?
Usually: a reminder before the due date, contact in the first days past due, negotiation between 15 and 60 days and, beyond that, an agreement with deeper discounts and more instalments, credit-bureau reporting where the policy calls for it, or outsourcing the portfolio. The timing varies by product.
How often can I contact a debtor?
Brazilian federal law sets no fixed number, but the Consumer Code forbids collection that embarrasses the consumer or interferes with their work, rest or leisure. Set a cap on attempts per contact and reasonable hours, and check the local and industry rules that apply to your operation.
What is the difference between an automated cadence and one with AI?
An automated cadence sends ready-made messages on set dates: reminder, new payment slip, credit-bureau notice. With AI, the agent also talks and negotiates: it accepts counteroffers and closes the agreement within the company's rules, over the phone and WhatsApp.
Which indicators should a collection cadence track?
Contact rate, agreement rate, agreements kept, and amount recovered against cost, always by stage and by channel. That makes clear which part of the cadence recovers and which only spends.
How much does it cost to automate the cadence with NewCob?
Voice agents start at R$0.90 (~US$0.17) per minute, and the per-minute price drops with monthly volume. The full table, with the voice and message tiers and the minimum monthly commitment, is on our pricing page.
In 30 minutes, we walk you through an agent call from the first hello to the closed agreement, and talk about your operation.
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