How do you call it?

[ladorada]

I am looking for a word in English which designates a person, usually a man, a tough guy, whose "job" is to recuperate money from those who do not pay their debts. This is not about bank services, but about what people do in the streets of poor neighbourhoods, in bars or in private. It usually involves threats, muscles, dubious phone calls etc. and it happens between rival gangs. Can I say that he is a "recuperator"? Is there another slang word, perhaps more frequently used?

[woofgang]

recuperate is to do with getting better from an illness, nothing at all to do with gangland or money. The best i can come up with is "enforcer" but thats a more general term...maybe debt collector?

[chelle7272]

Yes usually enforcer, or collector

[doctordb]

bag man or collector. On the other hand if he's with you right now call him what he wants and hand over the cash!

[NOX]

Enforcer is undoubtedly the word you are after.

[weecalf]

themanfromtaxcreditwhosmistakeitwasinthefirst

[heathfield]

A search on Google shows 'tallyman' as an English slang term for such a person. In the West Country, they're said to be a 'machinegunner', for some odd reason.

[mike11111]

I understood a tallyman to be someone who made weekly collections from those who had taken out credit. It did not have undertones of threats or violence.

[Quizmonster]

Someone who does this sort of work 'officially' is called a bailiff, but I have to say I like Shakespeare's name for such a person...shoulder-clapper! It carries the right combination of surprise and threat somehow.

[jno]

I think ladorada is translating from Romanian?

"Enforcer" is probably the best word, though an enforcer would do more than just collect debts; he'd make sure you did what his boss wanted.

[mike11111]

I was once late in paying an instalment of council tax. I received a threatening letter which crossed with the payment. I rang the number on the letter to be greeted with, "Enforcement office!" Menacing!

[Mosaic]

We always called them heavies.

[jno]

yes, that's a good word, a 'heavy'.

[Quizmonkey]

Isn't it called dunning?