TINA MARKOE KINSLOW/Courier-Post Tammy Peters, 33, president of Quality Asset Recovery in Gibbsboro, started the business in January with partners Larry Steller (left) and Charles Hehn. The business has 18 employees.

Chances are if you have ever gotten seriously behind on a bill, you got a phone call from a bill collector. Admittedly, it's not always a pleasant call.

But Tammy Peters, president of Quality Asset Recovery in Gibbsboro, is working to change that image. She opened her collection agency in January with partners Larry Steller and Charles Hehn. The goal, she said, is to change the image most people have of bill collectors. The company focuses on medical and commercial collections.

"We are trying to educate the public. We work as more of a customer service representative. We're here to help you, not to hurt you," said Peters, 33, of Berlin Township.

According to the U.S. Department of Labor, the bill collection profession is expected to grow faster than the average for all occupations through 2010. Unlike other occupations, bill and account collectors are generally in higher demand as the level of consumer debt rises and more companies are striving to improve debt collection.

The agency's client base stretches from New York to Delaware and west to Pennsylvania. Some of its local clients include Kessler Memorial Hospital and Kessler Home Health, both of Hammonton; the Delaware Valley Fertility Clinic in Marlton; and Virtua Health.

Peters said one of the biggest hurdles her staff faces are patients who aren't familiar with their health-care policies.

"You'd be surprised how many people don't know what their health insurance covers," said Peters. "Sometimes companies don't have the insurance representatives come out to explain how the programs work. Many small companies only offer minimum coverage that may include only parts of an MRI or $150 per day for hospital visits."

As a collection agency, one of the first things Peters trains her staff of 18 to do is to truly listen to people. She lets clients vent their problems and then she tries to work out solutions.

"Sometimes when people get a bill, they shoot first and ask questions later," said Peters. "You have to let them get out their frustrations and tell you what the problem is. At that point you can offer solutions and get them to realize this isn't the end of the world."

Peters considers it her job to rebuild relationships between clients and service providers that may have broken down during the billing process.

"You have to let them know there is a light at the end of the tunnel," she said.