Treating Customers Fairly

As Europe’s largest credit management services company, we bear a significant responsibility to conduct our operations ethically and sustainably. Every day, we engage with over 250,000 individuals facing varying levels of debt and financial circumstances.

In line with these efforts, we have developed a comprehensive set of guidelines, the Treating Customers Fairly Instruction, which is applied across our operations. This is based on ten key principles for ethical and responsible debt collection services—robust principles we believe should set the standard for our industry.

10 principles for ethical and sound debt collection practises

1. Debt collection services must be conducted in compliance with applicable national legislation, regulations, regulatory guidance, local market conduct and requirements at all times.
2. Debt collection services must be conducted with integrity and confidentiality by ensuring that any information provided by individuals is respected and handled with the utmost care.
3. Debt collection services must be conducted with due care, professional skills and diligence.
4. Debt collectors must treat customers, individuals and companies alike, fairly, with respect, and honour their privacy.
5. Debt collectors must ensure that customer costs, fees and interest rates are lawful, reasonable and proportionate to the claim at all times.
6. Debt collectors must pay due regard to the information needs of its customers and ensure that all employees who are in contact with customers are trained to communicate information in a way which is clear, fair, and not misleading.
7. Debt collectors must manage conflicts of interest openly, fairly and ethically. This is especially important regarding conflicts of interest between the case handler and the customer.
8. Debt collectors must take reasonable care to ensure the suitability of the advice, (in countries where it is permitted to give advice), and discretionary decisions for customers.
9. Debt collectors must arrange adequate protection for the customers’ assets when responsible for them.
10. Debt collectors must take extra precautions with vulnerable customers. Drivers of potential vulnerability include health conditions, major life events, or limited knowledge of financial matters. Vulnerable customers should be shown special care and be handled by trained employees and, if suitable and possible, forwarded to a relevant authority for support.