Days past due (DPD)

In plain words

DPD is a counter. On the due date it is zero. If the payment does not arrive, the next day it shows 1, then 2, and so on until the debt is paid. It is the simplest and most widely used measure of how serious a delay is. Lenders, collection teams and credit bureaus all speak in DPD.

How it is counted

A payment of 200 was due on 1 March. The client pays nothing until 16 March. On that day the loan is at DPD 15. If the client pays only part of the sum, many lenders keep the counter running until the instalment is covered in full, while others count from the oldest unpaid instalment. The rule should be fixed once and applied the same way everywhere, or reports will not match.

Debt is grouped by DPD into buckets: DPD 1–30, 31–60, 61–90, 90+. The bucket often decides who works the case, which tone is used and which steps are allowed.

Why it matters to an owner

DPD links collections to money. The chance of payment falls as the counter grows, so the speed of the first contact has a direct price. DPD is also how the portfolio is judged from outside: investors, partners and auditors look at the share of loans above certain thresholds, often 30 and 90 days.

Common mistake

Resetting DPD after a small partial payment or a promise. Such tricks make reports look better for a month and hide real risk. A promise to pay is a reason to wait, not a reason to change the counter.