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Debt collection agencies and solicitors

Debt collection agencies

Many creditors don’t want to collect reduced payments and often pass accounts to debt collection agencies.

Collection agencies are companies that specialise in buying and collecting debts. They either buy the debt from the original creditor or are paid a percentage of the amount they collect.

Sometimes a collection agency will say that a debt collector is going to call at your house in person; but this is rare as home visits are more costly for the collection agency than letters or phone calls.

It’s important to remember that debt collectors who call at your house aren't bailiffs and they can’t:

  • Enter your house or take any goods. You don’t have to open the door or speak to them if you don’t want to
  • Discuss your account with anyone else in your house and they must leave if you ask them to
  • Act in a way that’s threatening or intimidating and they should always carry photographic identification

For more information on how to deal with difficult creditors you can refer to our section on harassment.

Debts being passed to another company

If one of your debts is passed to a debt collection agency, let us know so we can start to pay them directly. We’ll let the debt collection agency know that you’re on a DMP with us and send them a copy of your budget, along with your offer of payment.

Visit the My Debts page to tell us if a debt has been passed to a debt collection agency.

In most cases, the agency will stop interest and charges but there’s no guarantee that they will.

Solicitors

You might receive letters from solicitors while you’re making reduced payments. This doesn’t necessarily mean that court action is going to be taken.

Solicitors become involved in debt collection for a number of reasons:

  • The solicitor is acting as a collection agency. This is likely to be the case if the letters are asking for payment to be made to the solicitor. You should treat them just like a collection agency.
  • The creditor may be intending to start court action. This is much less common than the reasons above.

FAQs

It's very rare that a creditor will visit you at work. But if you don't want them to write to them and clearly state you dont want them to do this. The law states that it's unfair for a creditor to contact you at work after they have been told not to. If they ignore your instructions, please contact us for further advice.

This usually means the original creditor has sold your debt to a collection agency or solicitor. You should get a letter from them soon with their details. Please visit the My debts page once you receive this letter so you can give us the details of the new company. We'll amend our records and begin paying the new company.

If a debt collection agency has written to you asking for payments, you need to visit the My debts page and tell us the details. We'll then amend our records and start sending payments to them.

If the letter is asking you to contact or make payment directly to the original creditor, you don't need to do anything. We'll continue making payments as normal.

If a solicitor has written to you asking that payment for a debt should be made to them, you need to visit the 'My debts' page and tell us which debt has been passed to them. We'll then contact them and arrange for future payments to be made to them.

If the letter is asking you to contact or make payment directly to the original creditor, you don't need to contact us. We'll continue making payments as normal.

A letter from a solicitor does not mean the debt will be taken to court.

Your creditors can visit you at home to discuss your situation but this is rare. Most companies rely on phone calls or letters.

If your creditor visits, they can't enter your house uninvited or take any goods from you. All they can do is speak to you and they must leave if you ask them to. They aren't bailiffs and you don't need to open the door or speak to them if you don't want to.

If a creditor visits and you are worried, contact us for further advice.

Bailiffs can only get involved if court action has been taken and you haven't made the payments the court instructed. If this has happened, please contact us as soon as possible for help.

It's common for creditors to talk about sending debt collectors to your home. Debt collectors aren't bailiffs and they don't have any legal powers. They are rarely used if you're making payments through a DMP.