Pre Action protocol for debt collection

The request was successful.

Dear Plymouth City Council,

With the introduction of the pre-action protocol for debt claims which came into force on 1 October 2017 please provide working practices/policy documents on how the Authority will now deal with sundry debts

Yours faithfully,

Paul Gulley

Dear Plymouth City Council,

My request made on 4/Oct/2017 hasnt been acknowledged has this been received:
"Dear Plymouth City Council,

With the introduction of the pre-action protocol for debt claims which came into force on 1 October 2017 please provide working practices/policy documents on how the Authority will now deal with sundry debts

Yours faithfully,

Paul Gulley"

Ta

Yours faithfully,

Paul Gulley

Perrin, Aaron, Plymouth City Council

10 October 2017

Dear Paul Gulley

Thank you for your email requesting Sundry Debt Pre-Action Protocol Information.

The application was received on 10 October 2017.

The Council will seek to provide the information that you have requested within the 20 working days following the receipt of your request, or let you know how you can obtain it. We may not be able to provide all you have requested; if we do not hold the information, or if an exemption or exception to providing the information applies. We will explain if we cannot provide what you have requested.

Information is usually provided free of charge, but if there could be a fee, we will tell you about any charge before we retrieve the information.

We usually provide the information in either electronic or paper format, depending on how you made your request and how the information is held. If you would like our response to be in a particular format then please let me know, but there may be a charge.

If you have any questions concerning information requests then please look at the Council’s web pages: http://www.plymouth.gov.uk/homepage/coun... or contact me using the details above. If I am unavailable please leave a contact telephone number.

Yours sincerely

Aaron Perrin
Senior Specialist Support Coordinator
Customer Service
Plymouth City Council
Ballard House,
West Hoe Road
Plymouth
PL1 3BJ

E [email address]
www.plymouth.gov.uk

Perrin, Aaron, Plymouth City Council

1 November 2017

Dear Paul Gulley

Thank you for your request for information received on 4 October 2017 concerning ‘Debt Collection'.

This request is being handled under the Freedom of Information Act 2000.

Your request is to be supplied with the information detailed in your email. The Council's response is below.

We are aware of our obligations under pre-action protocol and are currently working with our legal department to develop working practices.

Please note that the information supplied can mostly be re-used in accordance with the Open Government Licence. The council should be acknowledged as the source of the information, but copyright is maintained for all photographs and third party contributions to the information supplied. For further details see http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/o...

If you wish to discuss this letter or the information that is supplied then please contact me.
If you are unhappy with the way your request for information has been handled, you can request a review by writing to me stating the reason for your dissatisfaction.

If you remain dissatisfied with the handling of your request or complaint, you have a right to appeal to the Information Commissioner at:
Information Commissioner's Office,
Wycliffe House, Water Lane, Wilmslow, Cheshire, SK9 5AF.
Telephone: 0303 123 1113. Website: www.ico.gov.uk
There is no charge for making an appeal.

Yours sincerely

Aaron Perrin
Senior Specialist Support Coordinator
Customer Service
Plymouth City Council
Ballard House,
West Hoe Road
Plymouth
PL1 3BJ

E [email address]
www.plymouth.gov.uk

Dear Perrin, Aaron,

Than you for your response.

Please confirm that no recovery action has therefore occurred on sundry debts (apart from reminder notifications being sent) on debts as I find it incomprehensible that you are still looking at working practices a month after the pre-action protocol has been in existence for over a month. Please provide a copy of your current sundry debt practices (or provide link if its available on website)

Please also confirm the date that your legal department were first contacted by your sundry debt team to discuss the protocol.

Please also provide the total sundry debt monies outstanding to PCC (an aged debt report is sufficient) clearly showing the various departments who have given rise to the charge where there is a sum outstanding .

Yours sincerely,

Paul Gulley

Perrin, Aaron, Plymouth City Council

I am currently out of office until Monday 6th November. If your query
relates to Finance or Lyreco please contact Sammy Pettit on
[email address] or 01752 306346. For all other enquiries
please contact Cheryl Spear on [email address] or 01752
307244.

 

Otherwise I will reply to your email ASAP on my return.

 

Thank you.

Dear Plymouth City Council,

Please pass this on to the person who conducts Freedom of Information reviews.

I am writing to request an internal review of Plymouth City Council's handling of my FOI request 'Pre Action protocol for debt collection'. The Authority have failed to respond to me following my subsequent response (Though Mr Perrin did send an "out of office request")

A full history of my FOI request and all correspondence is available on the Internet at this address: https://www.whatdotheyknow.com/request/p...

Yours faithfully,

Paul Gulley

Perrin, Aaron, Plymouth City Council

1 Attachment

12 December 2017

Dear Paul Gulley

Thank you for your further request for information dated 3 November 2017. I apologise for the delay in response.

This request is being handled under the Freedom of Information Act 2000.

Your request is to be supplied with the information detailed in your email. The Council holds part of the information that you have requested and is below, and also requires some clarification.

Please confirm that no recovery action has therefore occurred on sundry debts (apart from reminder notifications being sent) on debts as I find it incomprehensible that you are still looking at working practices a month after the pre-action protocol has been in existence for over a month. Please provide a copy of your current sundry debt practices (or provide link if its available on website)

- Since 1st October we have not yet taken any legal action on any new Sundry Debt. If this action is required we now have the necessary correspondence in place to meet the requirements of the protocol. I have attached the current Income and Credit Management policy.

Please also confirm the date that your legal department were first contacted by your sundry debt team to discuss the protocol.

- Information not held. This would have been verbal communications between departments.

Please also provide the total sundry debt monies outstanding to PCC (an aged debt report is sufficient) clearly showing the various departments who have given rise to the charge where there is a sum outstanding.

- Can you please clarify to what charge you refer?

Please note that the information supplied can mostly be re-used in accordance with the Open Government Licence. The council should be acknowledged as the source of the information, but copyright is maintained for all photographs and third party contributions to the information supplied. For further details see http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/o...

If you wish to discuss this letter or the information that is supplied then please contact me.
If you are unhappy with the way your request for information has been handled, you can request a review by writing to me stating the reason for your dissatisfaction.

If you remain dissatisfied with the handling of your request or complaint, you have a right to appeal to the Information Commissioner at:
Information Commissioner's Office,
Wycliffe House, Water Lane, Wilmslow, Cheshire, SK9 5AF.
Telephone: 0303 123 1113. Website: www.ico.gov.uk
There is no charge for making an appeal.

Aaron Perrin
Senior Specialist Support Coordinator
Customer Service
Plymouth City Council
Ballard House,
West Hoe Road
Plymouth
PL1 3BJ

E [email address]
www.plymouth.gov.uk

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Dear Perrin, Aaron,

Thank you for your delayed response.

Please confirm the date of the policy was ratified/endorsed etc as I note this is missing. I can not readily see that this policy has been updated to take into account the protocol. I am mindful that some of the posts detailed within the policy have been removed from PCC structure so am uncertain if this is a correct version.

You have asked me to clarify what I refer to as "charge". Having looked at your protocol I believe the charges I am after refer to debt held on your Civica Authority Financials protocol. To assist I require in spreadsheet fashion. The information to include:-

- A list of all sundry invoices raised after 1 April 2013 where a debt remains outstanding after 60 days of invoice production.
- The date the invoice was issued
- The date(s) that a reminder and/or final notice was issued
- The amount of the initial debt and the current debt outstanding
- The department who raised the debt (if possible can this be further identified as rent, parking fees, advertising etc?)
- Whether the debt is currently with an External Collection Agent (I assume this to mean Bailiff?) or has been referred to legal services
- Whether the debt is covered by a court order/Land Registry charge order.
- The date of the past payment made on the account.

Regards
Yours sincerely,

Paul Gulley

Perrin, Aaron, Plymouth City Council

1 Attachment

2 January 2018

 

Dear Paul Gulley

 

Thank you for your further request for information dated 13 December 2017.
This request is being handled under the Freedom of Information Act 2000.

 

Your request is to be supplied with the information detailed in your
email. The Council’s response is below.

 

 

 

Please confirm the date of the policy was ratified/endorsed etc as I note
this is missing.

The policy was approved by Cabinet on 7 March 2017.

 

I can not readily see that this policy has been updated to take into
account the protocol.

The pre action protocol involves a change in working practice with regard
to communications with debtors prior to commencing legal action and this
does not require a policy change.

 

I am mindful that some of the posts detailed within the policy have been
removed from PCC structure so am uncertain if this is a correct version.

We can confirm that the policy sent to you is the most recent version.

 

You have asked me to clarify what I refer to as "charge".  Having looked
at your protocol I believe the charges I am after refer to debt held on
your  Civica Authority Financials protocol.  To assist I require in
spreadsheet fashion.  The information to include:-

1 - A list of all sundry invoices raised after 1 April 2013 where a debt
remains outstanding after 60 days of invoice production. 

2 - The date the invoice was issued

3 - The date(s) that a reminder and/or final notice was issued

4 - The amount of the initial debt and the current debt outstanding

5 - The department who raised the debt (if possible can this be further
identified as rent, parking fees, advertising etc?)

6 - Whether the debt is currently with an External Collection Agent (I
assume this to mean Bailiff?) or has been referred to legal services

7 - Whether the debt is covered by a court order/Land Registry charge
order.

8 - The date of the past payment made on the account.

 

The attached report details our response for points 1, 2, 4, 5, 6, 7 and
8. We cannot currently produce the information for point 3.

 

 

 

Please note that the information supplied can mostly be re-used in
accordance with the Open Government Licence. The council should be
acknowledged as the source of the information, but copyright is maintained
for all photographs and third party contributions to the information
supplied. For further details see
[1]http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/o...

 

If you wish to discuss this letter or the information that is supplied
then please contact me.

If you are unhappy with the way your request for information has been
handled, you can request a review by writing to me stating the reason for
your dissatisfaction.

 

If you remain dissatisfied with the handling of your request or complaint,
you have a right to appeal to the Information Commissioner at:

Information Commissioner's Office,

Wycliffe House, Water Lane, Wilmslow, Cheshire, SK9 5AF.

Telephone: 0303 123 1113. Website: [2]www.ico.gov.uk There is no charge
for making an appeal.

 

Yours sincerely

 

Aaron Perrin
Senior Specialist Support Coordinator
Customer Service
Plymouth City Council
Ballard House,

West Hoe Road
Plymouth
PL1 3BJ

E [3][email address]

[4]www.plymouth.gov.uk

 

 

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