# Placement — definition > A placement is the assignment of an account or a batch of accounts by a creditor or debt owner to a collections firm or agency for collection, under terms set by a placement agreement, without transferring ownership. - Source: https://ottoforfirms.com/glossary/placement/ - Publisher: Otto — https://ottoforfirms.com - Updated: 2026-09-01 [All terms](https://ottoforfirms.com/glossary/) **Placement** — A placement is the assignment of an account or a batch of accounts by a creditor or debt owner to a collections firm or agency for collection, under terms set by a placement agreement, without transferring ownership. Regulation F uses the concept without defining it: 12 C.F.R. § 1006.30(b) prohibits a debt collector from selling, transferring, or placing for collection a debt it knows or should know has been paid, settled, or discharged in bankruptcy. Beyond that, "placement" is contractual vocabulary rather than a regulatory term, and its content — data fields supplied, media available on request, fee tier, work standards, permitted contact channels, suit authority, and recall rights — lives in the placement agreement and accompanying client work standards. The distinction from a sale matters legally: on placement the bank remains the owner and, under the interagency third-party guidance, remains accountable for the activity performed on its behalf. ## Primary sources 1. [12 C.F.R. § 1006.30(b)](https://www.law.cornell.edu/cfr/text/12/1006.30) ## See also - [Recall](https://ottoforfirms.com/glossary/recall/) - [Account media](https://ottoforfirms.com/glossary/account-media/) - [TPRM](https://ottoforfirms.com/glossary/tprm/) - [Contingency fee](https://ottoforfirms.com/glossary/contingency/) ## Where this appears - [How banks audit their collection law firms](https://ottoforfirms.com/bank-audits/) - [Manual compliance versus enforced compliance](https://ottoforfirms.com/manual-vs-enforced/) - [Migrating a collections firm to a new case management system](https://ottoforfirms.com/migrating/) - [Migrating from Q-Law](https://ottoforfirms.com/migrating/from-q-law/) - [CollectMax alternatives for collections law firms](https://ottoforfirms.com/compare/collectmax/) - [Q-LawE alternatives: what to check before you switch](https://ottoforfirms.com/compare/q-lawe/) - [Collection-Master alternatives: what a replacement has to carry](https://ottoforfirms.com/compare/collection-master/) - [Collection-Master vs CollectMax: ownership, architecture and pricing model](https://ottoforfirms.com/compare/collection-master-vs-collectmax/) - [Debt collection software for law firms: how the category works](https://ottoforfirms.com/collections-software/) - [How to respond to a debt validation request](https://ottoforfirms.com/guides/responding-to-a-validation-request/) - [Regulation F's 7-in-7 rule in practice](https://ottoforfirms.com/guides/call-frequency-in-practice/) - [Building a validation notice from a placement file](https://ottoforfirms.com/guides/building-a-validation-notice/) - [Call recording and retention for collections firms](https://ottoforfirms.com/guides/call-recording-retention/) - [What documents you need to file suit on a credit-card debt](https://ottoforfirms.com/guides/documents-to-file-suit/) - [What a collections firm's audit file should contain](https://ottoforfirms.com/guides/the-audit-file/) - [SCRA and bankruptcy scrubs: what each protects and when the check must run](https://ottoforfirms.com/guides/scra-and-bankruptcy-scrubs/) - [The YGC and vExchange file format, explained](https://ottoforfirms.com/guides/ygc-vexchange-file-format-explained/) - [Operational guides for collections law firms](https://ottoforfirms.com/guides/) - [The Otto platform](https://ottoforfirms.com/platform/) - [Client oversight — the bank window, which ships as Glass](https://ottoforfirms.com/platform/bank-window/) - [One-click audit packages](https://ottoforfirms.com/platform/audit-export/) - [Exchange — the placement file gateway](https://ottoforfirms.com/platform/data-exchange/) - [Editorial policy](https://ottoforfirms.com/editorial-policy/) - [How to model the return on collections software](https://ottoforfirms.com/roi/) - [Support — a person replies](https://ottoforfirms.com/support/) - [What Is Regulation F (12 CFR Part 1006), and What Did It Add to the FDCPA?](https://ottoforfirms.com/compliance/regulation-f/) - [Regulation F Validation Notice (12 CFR 1006.34): Content, Itemization Date, Presumed Receipt](https://ottoforfirms.com/compliance/regulation-f/validation-notice/) - [TCPA Consent and Revocation: What Do 47 U.S.C. 227 and 47 CFR 64.1200 Require for Collection Calls and Texts?](https://ottoforfirms.com/compliance/tcpa/) - [Metro 2 Furnishing Accuracy Under the FCRA and the e-OSCAR Dispute Cycle](https://ottoforfirms.com/compliance/metro-2/) - [What Evidence Must a Firm Hold Before Filing Suit on a Consumer Debt?](https://ottoforfirms.com/compliance/competent-reliable-evidence/) - [GLBA Safeguards Rule: What Are the Required Elements of an Information Security Program Under 16 CFR 314?](https://ottoforfirms.com/compliance/glba-safeguards/) - [Client Trust Accounting for Collections Firms: What Does Three-Way Reconciliation Actually Require?](https://ottoforfirms.com/compliance/iolta-trust-accounting/) - [Bank Third-Party Risk Management: What Do the Interagency Expectations Mean for a Law Firm Being Supervised?](https://ottoforfirms.com/compliance/vendor-oversight-tprm/) Last reviewed 2026-07-29 ## About Otto Otto builds collections case management for the US law firms this vocabulary belongs to. - [Book a walkthrough](https://ottoforfirms.com/contact/) - [See what it costs](https://ottoforfirms.com/pricing/) --- This is an informational reference, not legal advice, and using it creates no attorney-client relationship. Limitations periods turn on facts this page cannot know — which state's law governs, the contract type, when the claim accrued, and whether anything tolled or revived it. Confirm against the primary source and your own counsel before acting.