ARA Reports Major Contract Improvement for Recovery Agents

Updated American Recovery Services agreement adds mutual indemnification protections, marking progress toward fairer contracts and reduced liability exposure.

The American Recovery Association (ARA) Contract Committee recently completed a review of the latest American Recovery Services Master Services Agreement (MSA) and identified a positive development for recovery agents. The updated agreement includes mutual indemnification language, representing a meaningful improvement over the previous MSA, which did not provide reciprocal indemnification protections for recovery agents unless specifically requested by individual agents.

This is an important step in the right direction toward more balanced contractual obligations and a fairer allocation of liability between the parties.

We strongly encourage ARA members who may still be operating under an older version of the ARS MSA to request and review the most current agreement and any applicable amendments for potential execution.

This also serves as an important reminder that recovery agencies should review their client contracts every few years to ensure they remain current, identify opportunities for improved terms, and avoid operating under outdated agreements that may expose their businesses to unnecessary liability.

Contract improvements are often incremental, but progress toward more balanced agreements is a win for the recovery industry.

ARA members may submit contracts to the ARA Contract Committee for legal review as a member benefit by emailing ContractReviewProgram@americanrecoveryassn.org.

About the American Recovery Association (ARA)
The American Recovery Association is the world’s largest association dedicated to the advancement and professional development of the recovery and remarketing industry. ARA provides compliance support, education, and advocacy for hundreds of recovery professionals nationwide. ARA is the founder and host of the annual three-day North American Repossessors Summit (NARS) — the largest repossession conference in the industry. For more information, go to repo.org or call (972) 755-4755.