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Australian Trainers Association | Ata Resources Centre Debt Recovery
Debt Recovery
Debt recovery of overdue debts
The Australian Trainers' Association (ATA) is pleased to have established a debt recovery partnership with Thoroughbred Recoveries, a specialist boutique collections agency dedicated to the thoroughbred industry. This collaboration offers our members access to professional debt recovery – from initial letter of demand through to legal action if required.
How it Works
1. ATA Members send their debts through to Thoroughbred Recoveries. The most efficient way to do that is through our dedicated ATA online portal.
2. ATA members will be asked to review and sign Thoroughbred Recoveries Terms & Conditions of business, making you a direct client of Thoroughbred Recoveries.
3. Thoroughbred Recoveries provides full-service debt recovery to ATA members. You can use Thoroughbred Recoveries for a single debt, or for all your aged receivables-whatever works best for you.
ATA Recommends
That effective credit management is supported by:
1. Production and provision of a FEES NOTICE to owners/debtors
(Trainer and Owner Reforms (TOR) compliance)
2. Provision of itemised Tax invoices that both reflect the Fees Notice and meet the requirements of the Australian Tax Office
Dedicated Online Portal for Members
Thoroughbred Recoveries has created a dedicated online portal for ATA members. simply complete as much of the form as you can (compulsory fields are marked with an *) and hit "Submit". You will:
ATA DEBT RECOVERY PORTAL - CLICK TO LOAD YOUR DEBTS
The information you load in the system is visible to ATA staff, ensuring the performance of the Thoroughbred Recoveries partnership can be monitored.
Thoroughbred Recoveries
Thoroughbred Recoveries has deep experience in the thoroughbred industry, having worked with over 500 industry participants including trainers, breeders, vets, transporters and syndicators. The Thoroughbred Recoveries team understands the unique challenges trainers face when it comes to recovering outstanding debts and can apply industry specific debt recovery strategies to achieve the best results while preserving important client relationships.
Full-service debt recovery process
Thoroughbred Recoveries' debt collection process has five key steps:
1. Submit Your Debt - Send your debt details through the dedicated online portal for ATA members, including invoices and debtor information. The more details you provide, the better.
2. Letter of Demand - Thoroughbred Recoveries sends an official payment request to your debtor. For ATA members, this letter includes the peak body's name for added authority.
3. Follow-Up - The Thoroughbred Recoveries team contacts your debtor through structured communication to convey urgency. If needed, payment plans can be structured to encourage repayment.
4. Legal Assessment - If the debt isn't paid, Thoroughbred Recoveries can prepare materials to hand over to our lawyers. Going to court isn't always the best option, so they can help you decided - getting good advice will save you time and money in the long run.
5. Legal Action - If necessary, Thoroughbred Recoveries works with legal experts to escalate the case. This step is only used when other commercial methods fail.
You pay a fee upfront when the Letter of Demand has been sent, and then you pay a commission on the debt collected on your behalf.
Thoroughbred Recoveries' fees are outlined in the Terms & Conditions and Fee Schedule that you will receive when you submit your debt. You are not obligated to proceed with collection through the Thoroughbred Recoveries/ATA partnership until you review that information and sign the T&Cs.
Why ATA provides access to Debt Collection services
Handling the collection of a debt is both time consuming and costly to any business. In fact one is often faced with the dilemma of debt versus the cost of any recovery proceedings. The ATA handles many enquiries from Trainers and is well versed on the various scenarios impacting their cashflow.
In the Training Industry many horses are divided into individual ownership shares or owned by a syndicate. In either case a Manager is nominated although that does not necessarily ensure that all accounts for a horse are guaranteed from the owners/shareholders. It is also possible that an outstanding debt from one particular Debtor/Owner who holds shares in many horses within your business is having an adverse effect on your overall cashflow.
Trainers can be faced with difficulties around debt collection:
ATA recommends two important steps to support credit management
1. Production and provision of a FEES NOTICE to owners/debtors
To utilise the debt recovery actions provided under the Trainer & Owner Reforms (TOR) rules a trainer must provide a FEES NOTICE to the Managing Owner of the horse within 7 days of their appointment as trainer.
A FEES NOTICE is a schedule of the fees and charges a Trainer invoices for their services. A Fees Notice template can be downloaded from Racing Australia's dedicated Trainer & Owner Reforms web site.
The FEES NOTICE, along with a TRAINING AGREEMENT are two key documents of the Trainer and Owner Reforms. Together they act as a set of 'Terms and Conditions'.
2. Provision of itemised Tax Invoices/Invoices that both reflect the Fees Notice and meet the requirements of the Australian Tax Office
Many disputes arise through inadequate account itemisation. The TOR rules allow for an owner to dispute a charge that is not consistent with the Trainer's Fees Notice. Ideally the transactions itemised on a Tax invoice issued by a Trainer should reflect the Trainer's Fees Notice, the date the items/services were provided and an adequate description of same.
To help you determine the right level of account itemisation we have listed some common items you can specify:
Resources:
Australian Taxation Office - Tax invoices
Business.gov.au - How to Invoice
In addition to the Fees Notice & Training Agreement, the ATA recommends Trainers collect sufficient contact details from their owners when first bringing them onboard i.e., a residential address, phone number, email and/or ideally a copy of their driver’s license or other verifiable ID.
Racing Australia and the Principal Racing Authorities take privacy seriously and are unlikely to share owner details, without an owner's express consent. There is provision in the Racing Australia Co-owner Agreement for a Managing Owner to request the details of their Co-owners, however the same provision is not afforded to Trainers, even in situations of payment default.
Consider a simple form to collect your owners/customers details. Consider including a section on the form seeking the owner's signed acknowledgement and/or authority e.g., acknowledge receipt of Fees Notice, alternate Training Agreement or other terms & conditions; authority to Racing Australia/PRA to disclose full details of the owner.
Trainer and Owner Reforms (TOR)
The enduring issue of Owner related training debt that for so long plagued the training industry, was addressed by Racing Australia (RA) and Principal Racing Authorities (PRA’s) in 2017 with the introduction of the Trainer and Owner Reforms (TOR).
"The reforms are intended to provide greater certainty and clarity in the relationship between owners and trainers as well as between multiple owners of a horse.
They are aimed at encouraging on-time payments of fees and introduce a streamlined process to resolve issues where payments are not made in a timely fashion."
-Racing Australia.
The Trainer & Owner Reforms, which include a prescribed process for the Trainer and Owner to engage contractually, standardised documents and agreements for use by the parties, and a tribunal established in each state to manage and adjudicate on training disputes, is incorporated within the Australian Rules of Racing.
For a copy of the new Rules, to read an overview on this subject, and to download the standard documents, please visit Racing Australia's dedicated TOR web site https://tor.racingaustralia.horse/
Training Agreements from 1 August 2017
Racing Australia mandated a training agreement is required between a Trainer and Owner(s).
The Standard Training Agreement (STA) has been produced by Racing Australia (RA). This operates as the default agreement for Trainers where they elect not to use an alternative training agreement.
The reason for the introduction of a mandatory agreement is to ensure transparency and greater certainty exists within the contractual relationship between the Owner and Trainer. It is not obligatory for the Trainer to furnish the Owner with a copy of the STA. An Owner can access the STA from the Racing Australia web site if they wish to do so. It is the Trainer’s choice however to provide a copy to the Owner(s) as part of their business practice. For example, accompanying the Fees Notice, the first training fees invoice issued after 1 August 2017, or independently under cover of a letter.
In terms of an alternative agreement, RA recognises not all Trainers have the same breadth of activity or operation, nor level of financial exposure. Hence, the TOR rules sensibly allow Trainers to introduce an alternative training agreement to better suit their individual risks and trading differences. The sole requirement by Racing Australia where a Trainer exercises this right is that the alternative agreement must not contravene the TOR Rules.
ATA alternative endorsed Training Agreement for Members
The ATA endorses an alternative Training Agreement authored by Macquarie Legal Practice. This Agreement is available for use by ATA members should they elect to use an agreement other than the STA. The ATA endorsed Agreement is fully compliant with the TOR Rules and includes additional clauses to benefit the Trainer and training relationship (and Owner from a transparency viewpoint), including:
* ATA Members who wish to use the ATA endorsed Training Agreement in lieu of the STA, contact the Australian Trainers’ Association so an Agreement can be personalised for your training business. Review the sample agreement.
Note:
The ATA endorsed Training Agreement replaces the previous Australian Trainers’ Association Terms and Conditions of Training document, redundant from 1 August 2017.
It is mandatory for the Trainer to furnish all Owners with a copy of any training agreement they use as an alternative to the STA.
The Trainer is required by the Australian Rules of Racing to provide a copy of any new Agreement to ALL Owners (other than for a registered Syndicate, where you send this to the Syndicate Manager, who is then responsible to share the document with Syndicate members).
In accordance with the above, it is recommended that a Trainer ensure they create a confirmed paper and/or email trail in order to support their communication and distribution of an alternative Training Agreement.
The Australian Trainers' Association (ATA) is pleased to have established a debt recovery partnership with Thoroughbred Recoveries, a specialist boutique collections agency dedicated to the thoroughbred industry. This collaboration offers our members access to professional debt recovery – from initial letter of demand through to legal action if required.
How it Works
1. ATA Members send their debts through to Thoroughbred Recoveries. The most efficient way to do that is through our dedicated ATA online portal.
2. ATA members will be asked to review and sign Thoroughbred Recoveries Terms & Conditions of business, making you a direct client of Thoroughbred Recoveries.
3. Thoroughbred Recoveries provides full-service debt recovery to ATA members. You can use Thoroughbred Recoveries for a single debt, or for all your aged receivables-whatever works best for you.
ATA Recommends
That effective credit management is supported by:
1. Production and provision of a FEES NOTICE to owners/debtors
(Trainer and Owner Reforms (TOR) compliance)
2. Provision of itemised Tax invoices that both reflect the Fees Notice and meet the requirements of the Australian Tax Office
Dedicated Online Portal for Members
Thoroughbred Recoveries has created a dedicated online portal for ATA members. simply complete as much of the form as you can (compulsory fields are marked with an *) and hit "Submit". You will:
- Receive an auto-message containing Thoroughbred Recoveries Terms & Conditions, and explaining the next steps in the collections process. You will need to sign and return the T&Cs the first time you submit a debt. The email you receive will come from the address "Jotform" and may take some moments after submission.
- Be notified by Thoroughbred Recoveries when they have made initial contact with your debtor. You will also receive an invoice for payment.
ATA DEBT RECOVERY PORTAL - CLICK TO LOAD YOUR DEBTS
The information you load in the system is visible to ATA staff, ensuring the performance of the Thoroughbred Recoveries partnership can be monitored.
Thoroughbred Recoveries
Thoroughbred Recoveries has deep experience in the thoroughbred industry, having worked with over 500 industry participants including trainers, breeders, vets, transporters and syndicators. The Thoroughbred Recoveries team understands the unique challenges trainers face when it comes to recovering outstanding debts and can apply industry specific debt recovery strategies to achieve the best results while preserving important client relationships.
Full-service debt recovery process
Thoroughbred Recoveries' debt collection process has five key steps:
1. Submit Your Debt - Send your debt details through the dedicated online portal for ATA members, including invoices and debtor information. The more details you provide, the better.
2. Letter of Demand - Thoroughbred Recoveries sends an official payment request to your debtor. For ATA members, this letter includes the peak body's name for added authority.
3. Follow-Up - The Thoroughbred Recoveries team contacts your debtor through structured communication to convey urgency. If needed, payment plans can be structured to encourage repayment.
4. Legal Assessment - If the debt isn't paid, Thoroughbred Recoveries can prepare materials to hand over to our lawyers. Going to court isn't always the best option, so they can help you decided - getting good advice will save you time and money in the long run.
5. Legal Action - If necessary, Thoroughbred Recoveries works with legal experts to escalate the case. This step is only used when other commercial methods fail.
You pay a fee upfront when the Letter of Demand has been sent, and then you pay a commission on the debt collected on your behalf.
Thoroughbred Recoveries' fees are outlined in the Terms & Conditions and Fee Schedule that you will receive when you submit your debt. You are not obligated to proceed with collection through the Thoroughbred Recoveries/ATA partnership until you review that information and sign the T&Cs.
Why ATA provides access to Debt Collection services
Handling the collection of a debt is both time consuming and costly to any business. In fact one is often faced with the dilemma of debt versus the cost of any recovery proceedings. The ATA handles many enquiries from Trainers and is well versed on the various scenarios impacting their cashflow.
In the Training Industry many horses are divided into individual ownership shares or owned by a syndicate. In either case a Manager is nominated although that does not necessarily ensure that all accounts for a horse are guaranteed from the owners/shareholders. It is also possible that an outstanding debt from one particular Debtor/Owner who holds shares in many horses within your business is having an adverse effect on your overall cashflow.
Trainers can be faced with difficulties around debt collection:
- A debt may not be eligible for recovery actions under the Trainer and Owner Reforms (TOR)
- Collection proceedings may result in the Trainer losing the horse and possibly other horses whether fully owned or part-owned by the Debtor within their establishment.
- The Trainer is also a part-owner of a horse with proceedings against another part-owner.
ATA recommends two important steps to support credit management
1. Production and provision of a FEES NOTICE to owners/debtors
To utilise the debt recovery actions provided under the Trainer & Owner Reforms (TOR) rules a trainer must provide a FEES NOTICE to the Managing Owner of the horse within 7 days of their appointment as trainer.
A FEES NOTICE is a schedule of the fees and charges a Trainer invoices for their services. A Fees Notice template can be downloaded from Racing Australia's dedicated Trainer & Owner Reforms web site.
The FEES NOTICE, along with a TRAINING AGREEMENT are two key documents of the Trainer and Owner Reforms. Together they act as a set of 'Terms and Conditions'.
2. Provision of itemised Tax Invoices/Invoices that both reflect the Fees Notice and meet the requirements of the Australian Tax Office
Many disputes arise through inadequate account itemisation. The TOR rules allow for an owner to dispute a charge that is not consistent with the Trainer's Fees Notice. Ideally the transactions itemised on a Tax invoice issued by a Trainer should reflect the Trainer's Fees Notice, the date the items/services were provided and an adequate description of same.
To help you determine the right level of account itemisation we have listed some common items you can specify:
- Date relating to charge or event.
- Quantity & rate of charge.
- Location where charge/event occurred.
- Origin & destinations for floating/travel.
- Daily fees - Training / Agistment / Stabling etc.
- Race meeting expense itemisation.
- Special Trainer services provided.
- Third party services provided.
- Special products/saddlery purchased.
- Percentage of ownership.
- Amount due based on Owner share.
- Amount overdue or ageing balances 30/60/90 days
- Receipt of any payments
- Invoice or Tax Invoice or Statement
- Business Name & address.
- Owner Name & address.
- Business ACN & ABN. (if applicable)
- Goods & Services Tax (GST) information
Resources:
Australian Taxation Office - Tax invoices
Business.gov.au - How to Invoice
In addition to the Fees Notice & Training Agreement, the ATA recommends Trainers collect sufficient contact details from their owners when first bringing them onboard i.e., a residential address, phone number, email and/or ideally a copy of their driver’s license or other verifiable ID.
Racing Australia and the Principal Racing Authorities take privacy seriously and are unlikely to share owner details, without an owner's express consent. There is provision in the Racing Australia Co-owner Agreement for a Managing Owner to request the details of their Co-owners, however the same provision is not afforded to Trainers, even in situations of payment default.
Consider a simple form to collect your owners/customers details. Consider including a section on the form seeking the owner's signed acknowledgement and/or authority e.g., acknowledge receipt of Fees Notice, alternate Training Agreement or other terms & conditions; authority to Racing Australia/PRA to disclose full details of the owner.
Trainer and Owner Reforms (TOR)
The enduring issue of Owner related training debt that for so long plagued the training industry, was addressed by Racing Australia (RA) and Principal Racing Authorities (PRA’s) in 2017 with the introduction of the Trainer and Owner Reforms (TOR).
"The reforms are intended to provide greater certainty and clarity in the relationship between owners and trainers as well as between multiple owners of a horse.
They are aimed at encouraging on-time payments of fees and introduce a streamlined process to resolve issues where payments are not made in a timely fashion."
-Racing Australia.
The Trainer & Owner Reforms, which include a prescribed process for the Trainer and Owner to engage contractually, standardised documents and agreements for use by the parties, and a tribunal established in each state to manage and adjudicate on training disputes, is incorporated within the Australian Rules of Racing.
For a copy of the new Rules, to read an overview on this subject, and to download the standard documents, please visit Racing Australia's dedicated TOR web site https://tor.racingaustralia.horse/
Training Agreements from 1 August 2017
Racing Australia mandated a training agreement is required between a Trainer and Owner(s).
The Standard Training Agreement (STA) has been produced by Racing Australia (RA). This operates as the default agreement for Trainers where they elect not to use an alternative training agreement.
The reason for the introduction of a mandatory agreement is to ensure transparency and greater certainty exists within the contractual relationship between the Owner and Trainer. It is not obligatory for the Trainer to furnish the Owner with a copy of the STA. An Owner can access the STA from the Racing Australia web site if they wish to do so. It is the Trainer’s choice however to provide a copy to the Owner(s) as part of their business practice. For example, accompanying the Fees Notice, the first training fees invoice issued after 1 August 2017, or independently under cover of a letter.
In terms of an alternative agreement, RA recognises not all Trainers have the same breadth of activity or operation, nor level of financial exposure. Hence, the TOR rules sensibly allow Trainers to introduce an alternative training agreement to better suit their individual risks and trading differences. The sole requirement by Racing Australia where a Trainer exercises this right is that the alternative agreement must not contravene the TOR Rules.
ATA alternative endorsed Training Agreement for Members
The ATA endorses an alternative Training Agreement authored by Macquarie Legal Practice. This Agreement is available for use by ATA members should they elect to use an agreement other than the STA. The ATA endorsed Agreement is fully compliant with the TOR Rules and includes additional clauses to benefit the Trainer and training relationship (and Owner from a transparency viewpoint), including:
- Owner Visitation to Licensed premises
- Limitation of Liabilities
- Owner undertakings with regard to the thoroughbred
- Use of images for business promotion
- Personal Property Security Act – securitisation of the asset
- Broader services definition and responsibilities
* ATA Members who wish to use the ATA endorsed Training Agreement in lieu of the STA, contact the Australian Trainers’ Association so an Agreement can be personalised for your training business. Review the sample agreement.
Note:
The ATA endorsed Training Agreement replaces the previous Australian Trainers’ Association Terms and Conditions of Training document, redundant from 1 August 2017.
It is mandatory for the Trainer to furnish all Owners with a copy of any training agreement they use as an alternative to the STA.
The Trainer is required by the Australian Rules of Racing to provide a copy of any new Agreement to ALL Owners (other than for a registered Syndicate, where you send this to the Syndicate Manager, who is then responsible to share the document with Syndicate members).
In accordance with the above, it is recommended that a Trainer ensure they create a confirmed paper and/or email trail in order to support their communication and distribution of an alternative Training Agreement.
