Enforcement agents prove essential for funding local services

CIVEA’s chief executive, Russell Hamblin-Boone, has put together some excellent insight into the impact of enforcement since August, when visits recommenced.

Our experience at Excel certainly tallies with his findings, which draw on data provided by Excel and the other enforcement companies within CIVEA.

CIVEA developed a post-lockdown plan, cognisant of the fact that you could not simply restart enforcement visits. The plan included safety measures and reconnection letters well in advance of any visits.

£7.4bn of debt repaid during lockdown

Hamblin-Boone says that comprehensive data from a variety of sources suggests that enforcement activity is not contributing to financial problems. The key findings that demonstrate the success of the plan are:

• Over two million pre-visit re-engagement letters have been sent has been to re-engage with people in debt to identify those in need as early as possible
• Complaint levels are very low at present
  
• Most people have continued to meet their repayment plans throughout the coronavirus pandemic, indicating that payments are both fair and affordable - less than 1% of people are claiming that financial difficulties prevent them paying their debts
• Around 48,000 enforcements were suspended as a result of people reporting COVID-19 infection or self-isolation, which is a testament of the pre-visit engagement work
• Half of all enforcement cases are resolved by agreeing repayment plans
• More people are paying off their debts early and increasing instalment payments - UK consumers have repaid a record £7.4bn of debt during COVID-19 lockdowns

Public support for enforcement agents

A YouGov survey, commissioned by CIVEA suggests that the public perception is that enforcement is appropriate and necessary. Key findings showed:

• More than two-thirds of people surveyed believed some taxpayers will use the current health crisis to avoid paying their council tax, even though they can meet the payments
• 56% of those surveyed said they believe councils should use bailiffs to collect money from people who can but won't pay
• Only 28% said they were against this, with the rest remaining unsure

Hamblin-Boone concludes that with latest figures showing high success, safe practices and low complaints, there is no logical reason to deny fair and appropriate debt recovery activities from taking place, so that local authorities can continue to fund the provision of local services (around 60% of council budgets are allocated to supporting vulnerable households).

You can read the full article on the CIVEA website.