CCA News - January 2014 - Consumer Credit Association

JANUARY 2014
The year of the regulator
How will firms cope with the introduction of a new,
largely unknown regime?
Marketing magic!
Find out more from the CCA
members that are using modern
marketing methods to drive
forward their traditional firm
Regional Round-Up
Find out why the Yorkshire &
Humberside regional meetings
are so well-attended
Topical news and updates
We bring you all the relevant
industry updates that matter to you
PROMOTING HIGH STANDARDS
OF BUSINESS AND CONSUMER
RELATIONS IN THE HOME
CREDIT INDUSTRY
Contents
Editorial
FCA Spotlight
Member Spotlight Regional Spotlight News Round-Up FCA Spotlight
03
04
08
13
17
Regulatory Round-Up Members’ News Member Benefits Key CCA Contacts
04
A review of recent
FCA consultations and
policy proposals
Find out all the latest updates from the FCA
including a review of its most recent policy
proposals.
08
Member Spotlight
We speak to Hunter Simpson Finance Ltd: the upand-coming credit business that is making head way
through the use of social media marketing and an
entrepreneurial spirit!
13
Regional Spotlight:
CCA Regional Meetings
CCA News attends the Yorkshire & Humber meeting and
chats to delegates... Find out more on page 13.
2
26
29
30
32
News Round-Up
Regulatory RoundUp
Members’ News
Key CCA Contacts
Is Britain on the road to
recovery? Is Universal Credit
effective? And who were the
most complained about firms
in 2013… Read all about it,
inside.
Why should claims firms be
running scared and which new
methods of alternative finance
are MPs backing?
Boxing Clubs and Satsuma
loans… discover all on
page 29!
Learn more about the
CCA team and find out
about all the latest
events and services we
have to offer.
17
28
31
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CCANEWS
JANUARY 2014
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EDITORIAL
STOP PRESS
FCA
Authorisation
fees now
£1,000 to
£15,000
Welcome to the
January issue of
CCA News
I wish all CCA members, staff and their families a happy, healthy and prosperous New Year.
To say that we all have challenges ahead is an understatement. With the closure of the
Office of Fair Trading on 31 March and the Financial Conduct Authority becoming the
regulator the following day of the entire consumer credit industry – around 50,000 firms
– we usher in a completely new and largely unknown regime in an unprecedentedly short
timescale.
I remind members that, if they have not done so already, that it is critical to register for
Interim Permission with the FCA before 31 March 2014. If you don’t do this, you will need
to apply immediately for full FCA authorisation and stop trading while you do this – the
process can take up to 6 months.
On a much more positive note, I can tell members that the FCA have already publicly
stated that they are actively reviewing their original decision to impose a flat £10,000
authorisation fee on the Home Credit industry and are looking at the introduction of
a much more proportionate approach. And in a very comprehensive and robust CCA
response to the FCA consultation, we have spelt out the consequences of maintaining
the proposed “one size fits all” approach across all consumer credit market sectors. I am
optimistic that our evidence-based arguments will bring more good news to us all.
Although there may be some indications of economic recovery in sight for 2014: we are
hearing lots of positive sound bites from the government and the Bank of England that
the economy is growing robustly and that unemployment figures are falling faster than
expected. However, with ever-rising costs for food, fuel and accommodation and on-going
decreases in real incomes and reducing benefits it is not clear if the average consumer is
feeling more confident or able to increase spending or borrowing.
Inside this issue, you can find reviews of the latest news and developments across the
charitable and third party sectors as well as the various government policies and initiatives
that are relevant to you.
Finally, as we enter the New Year, it is apt to look at new ways of doing things – whether
this is personal resolutions, or just thinking of alternative ways to do business. So it is very
relevant that this issue’s member spotlight focuses on the marketing techniques of Hunter
Simpson Finance Ltd. Take a look at their feature on page 8 and the insight that they share
into new ways to market your business.
Jack Bennett | CCA Director General
3
FCA SPOTLIGHT
A REVIEW OF RECENT FCA CONSULTATIONS
AND POLICY PROPOSALS
FCA consultation timetable
3 October 2013: The FCA has published a consultation paper setting out its proposed rules for
the consumer credit market. You can find out more on the FCA website (CP13/10 Proposals for
consumer credit regime). <http://www.fca.org.uk/news/cp13-10-consumer-credit-detailed-proposals>
31 October 2013: The FCA has published a consultation paper on proposed changes to the way it
levies fees, including how much firms will be charged to be authorised to offer consumer credit
services. Find out more on the FCA website (CP13/14 Regulatory fees and levies).
<http://www.fca.org.uk/news/cp13-14-regulatory-fees-and-levies>
The proposed FCA
rule book
What are the main headlines
relating to home credit?
On the 3rd October the Financial Conduct
Authority published a consultation on the
new consumer credit regime that will be in
place next April.
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A summary of the main headlines within the
Executive Summary that relate to the Home
Credit industry are listed below:
Provision of data to the FCA
The consultation states that from 1 October 2014 firms will be
required to submit data to the FCA. This will be using the FCA’s
electronic reporting system. Financial data will also have to be
submitted covering key financial figures including capital assets,
liabilities, exposures, income and profit.
Strengthened scrutiny of firms
Also from October 2014 Product Sales Data is to be submitted
by high cost short term credit firms and this will need to be
submitted every six months. It will cover loan details, value, fees
interest rates, rollover information,
reason for loan (if known), date of
birth and post code of customer,
employment status and income.
The FCA states that it will identify which firms are carrying out
activities that pose a higher risk to consumers and which are
carrying out lower-risk activities and it will have a different
supervisory approach depending on what category a firm falls
into. The FCA considers that the high-cost short-term credit
sector poses a potentially high risk to consumers in financial
difficulty.
There will also be a requirement to
submit complaints data every six months or annually depending
on the level of revenue of a firm.
In its Executive Summary, the FCA states that it will only place
additional costs and burdens on firms if they are proportionate
to securing an appropriate degree of protection for consumers
or to promoting effective competition in the interests of
consumers, keeping in mind how important is it for credit
to continue to be available to help consumers manage their
finances.
However the FCA states that it will be limiting how much data it
will ask firms to report to it until the firms are authorized. In the
consumer credit market, the FCA is only proposing to require debt
management firms and some not-for- profit advice bodies to hold
specific amounts of capital.
OFT guidance
The OFT guidance is being carried across into rules. These include
guidance on Irresponsible Lending, Debt Collection and Mental
Health.
Treating customers fairly
The FCA intends to carry out thematic reviews of how high cost
credit providers treat customers in financial difficulties and the
application of default fees and charges.
The FCA considers that the
high-cost short-term credit
sector poses a potentially
high risk to consumers in
financial difficulty.
Proactive supervision and
enforcement
The FCA will have dedicated supervision and enforcement
teams to crack down on poor practice, money laundering
and unauthorised activity, to seek out the firms that are
not complying with its rules or are illegally carrying out
consumer credit business.
If firms are found to be non-compliant, the FCA will consider
using its enforcement tools. It can require firms to offer
redress to their customers where necessary. Disciplinary
action could lead to fines and criminal sanctions are also
available, with custodial sentences for the worst offenders.
Jack Bennett explains: “The FCA wants a level playing field for
firms and for all firms to put consumers at the heart of their
businesses, as CCA members do already. It should be noted
that monitoring of firms will be proactive under the FCA and
that the FCA will have more tools and more flexibility than
the OFT.”
5
A summary of the FCA’s policy
statement (PS 13/9)
On 15th October, the FCA published a
policy statement (PS13/9) announcing
that it will publish information about
proposed enforcement actions, naming
firms and individuals, before deciding
whether it will take action. It will publish
information through a warning notice
statement which will typically name the
firm under investigation and, in certain
circumstances, an individual. The FCA
said the measure will allow it to achieve
better consumer protection and enhance
the integrity of the UK’s financial system.
It will make it clearer for consumers, firms
and investors what “sort of behaviour is
considered unacceptable”, while making the
enforcement process more transparent.
Previously, the regulator could only
publish information about enforcement
proceedings at a later stage in the
enforcement process, once it had decided to take action. Before making its final decision to publish, the
FCA will consult the person under investigation and will take into account any evidence that would mean
the publication is unfair.
The FCA will include a brief summary of the facts in any published warning notice statement to enable
consumers, firms and market users to understand its concerns.
New FCA guidance on the Authorisation process
The FCA has also published guidance on the Authorisation process. There will be a phased approach
to Authorisation, where the FCA will ask different types of firms to apply by different deadlines. It will
confirm when this will be and publish details about what it will involve. It aims to use a proportionate
approach to authorisation depending on the size and type of firm and the types of credit activities a
firm carries out – depending on whether the activities fall into lower-risk or higher-risk categories. Firms
carrying out lower-risk activities will receive a limited permission.
A firm will need to demonstrate that it satisfies FCA minimum standards and will continue to satisfy them
as long as it is authorised. These standards are known as threshold conditions and the FCA will consider
the firm’s business model, the experience and integrity of key personnel, the ownership of the firm and
its financial position.
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CCANEWS
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When the FCA receives a completed application, it will allocate a case officer to the
firm. S/he will review the application and may ask additional questions or seek further
clarification.
Firms will still be able to carry out regulated credit activities using its interim permission
while it is waiting for the outcome of the application for Authorisation. If the application
for Authorisation is successful, the FCA will send a confirmation letter with a unique
reference number – this will be used in all future dealings with the FCA.
FCA roadshows
The FCA has held several roadshows over the past month which the CCA and many
members have attended. CCA members should have nothing to fear as we know that
members are doing the right things. Even so, members should be prepared for more
contact with the FCA than under the OFT.”
The FCA has also released a more detailed
timetable for the next 6 months
Late 2013
Early 2014
Consultation paper on some further consequential changes to the FCA
Handbook
Announcement of dates (starting in autumn 2014) by when specific
types of firms with interim permissions must apply for full authorisation
Early 2014
Consultation on guidance on the new consumer credit regime
February 2014
Policy statement in response to the CP13/10 consultation, including
final rules for the new regime
March 2014
Final version of guidance on the new consumer credit regime
March 2014
Fees: proposals for periodic fee rates for 2014/15
Around the time of
transfer (April 2014)
FCA paper on key risks in the market and its priorities for intervention
7
MEMBER SPOTLIGHT
Hunter Simpson
Finance Ltd:
Modern marketing
works wonders for
‘traditional’ firm
The home credit industry
is a long-established trade
that has been operating for
centuries. For almost four
decades, the Consumer Credit
Association has been at the
forefront of the home credit
industry, maintaining high
standards and sharing best
practice.
8
Hundreds of home credit businesses,
from sole traders to large PLC’s are
members of the CCA; and what is
common across these firms is that
their businesses have withstood the
test of time. For many home credit
firms, the business has been ‘in the
family’ for generations.
CCA Director General Jack Bennett
explains: “There are many common
principles that unite home
credit businesses,
such as the value
placed on customer
relationships,
excellent service
and a passion for
the industry as a
whole. It’s also
remarkable
how
much
camaraderie there is across firms.
It’s a very friendly industry with a
strong support network across the
membership.”
Many members approach marketing
and business development in similar
ways. Face to face canvassing and
customer referrals tend to be the
norm. Cash loans, with stringent
underwriting policies, are also the
traditional mainstay product.
So when CCA News heard that
some relatively new members
were marketing their business
in a new and very successful
way, we went to visit them to
find out more….
CCANEWS
Hunter Simpson Finance
Ltd was created in April
this year by former social
worker, Simon Hunter and
his partner Victoria Simpson,
although the beginnings
of the business were formed in 2010.
Their business is going from strengthto-strength and they’re planning to
expand significantly over the next 3
years.
Your growth has been strong and
consistent over the past three years,
in spite of the uncertain regulatory
and economic landscape. How
difficult was it to establish yourself?
Simon explains: “Although Hunter
Simpson Finance Ltd was formed
earlier this year, the basis of the
business began in 2007 when I set
up ‘Clothes Rail’ selling clothing and
promoting clothes parties in Bradford.
My customer base grew rapidly
and people began to ask for other
products such as weekly credit, cash
loans and merchandise other than
clothing, for example, electrical items.”
“To prepare for this we applied for
a consumer credit licence. This was
approved in September 2010 and
we joined the Consumer Credit
Association the next month. My
partner, Victoria Simpson had recently
completed a PhD at University and
so she took on responsibility for
managing the licence application,
compliance and administration.”
JANUARY 2014
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Facebook allows us to
reach people instantly and
immediately.
Simon continues: “After attending CCA
events and meeting other members
we decided to go ahead and expand
our product range to include cash
loans. I had a lot of loyal customers
that were proven good payers so
expanding into loan products as
well as merchandise was more of a
sideways step.”
The loan product sold well and Simon
and Victoria soon added vouchers to
their portfolio. When Simon began
to use Facebook as a marketing tool
the business went from strength to
strength.
A Facebook fascination!
Over 95% of Hunter Simpson Finance
Ltd’s customers are on Facebook.
Simon says: “It provides a personal
service for people – almost on a par
with the agent relationship. It’s also
very cost-effective for business and
saves time without affecting the
customer experience. If anything I
think it actually enhances customer
service.”
How would you describe the main
business benefits gained from using
Facebook for home credit suppliers?
Instant access to customers, free
customer insight and exceptional
marketing and business development
tools are just some of the benefits that
Facebook can bring to your business
claim Simon and Victoria.
Victoria says: “Most firms rely on their
agents to tell customers about new
merchandise, but Facebook allows
us to reach people instantly
and immediately. We can
also use social media to test
people’s interest in products.
For example, you can upload
an item to Facebook to
check if people like it before you buy
it. Plus goods can be pre-ordered and
shipped in and out on the same day,
so your business is never left carrying
surplus stock.”
Customers no longer need to wait
until Simon visits them before they
can see merchandise, because it’s
available instantly to view online.
Simon compares this to his Clothes
Rail business when he would need to
buy stock direct from the wholesaler
anticipating how much he would sell.
But inevitably he would sometimes
be left with surplus stock – and tied
up cash. Simon says: “Using Facebook
enables you to test the popularity of a
product before you buy it through the
number of ‘views’ and ‘likes’ it gets on
Facebook.”
Free customer insight tools
Simon and Victoria say that Facebook
is a smarter way to access marketing
tools and customer data analysis
without the expensive agency fees.
For example, Facebook tells you how
many people have looked at your
page, or your item. It also provides
a breakdown of your potential
customers by age and demographics.
9
Simon recommends beginning with
a personal Facebook page (which
you can sign up for by logging on to
facebook at www.facebook.com) and
using this to launch a business page.
Cutting through communication
barriers
A common complaint of the
‘traditional’ home credit firm is not
being able to contact the customer,
either from calling at their home when
they’re not in, missing
phone calls, or mobile
phone users running
out of calling credit.
Through Facebook
messaging, Simon
can see messages
straight away and
customers (or ‘friends’)
can see instantly if he
is available. Facebook
also provides a ‘free’
messaging service – so
it cuts through the
problems of customers
with mobile phones not having any
calling credit.
Simon is now so proficient in using
Facebook as a business marketing
tool that he is finding that people are
proactively messaging him to ask if
they can become a customer! “I do
believe that firms that are ignoring the
power of social media are missing a
trick. Once you know how to navigate
your way around it, the benefits are
enormous.” Simon says.
Many people are unfamiliar with
social media technology. So whilst
this all sounds great, where would
someone start if they’re a novice, but
want to enjoy some of these business
benefits?
10
So for example, Simon created his
personal profile and then created a
page for ‘Clothes Rail’ and later for
‘Hunter Simpson Finance Ltd’. He then
asked all his customers to go onto
Facebook and ‘like’ his page. He initially
hoped to get 100 ‘likes’.
Today Simon has more than 600 likes
on Clothes Rail and more than 1150
‘friends’! Simon explains: “The aim is
to reach as many people as possible
through ‘likes’. So if I put an image on
my Clothes Rail page and share this
with my personal page, more that
100,000 people would see this item,
because the ‘like’ feature enables direct
friends to see the post as well as their
friends and friends of their friends. Plus
this extends across my personal and
business pages.”
The other benefit of a personal page is
that it gives business pages a personal
credibility and it helps to maintain the
one-to-one, face-to-face relationship.
Simon says: “Selling goods via
Facebook is a great place to start,
because it’s a simple way to test the
popularity of products at no cost to
you. And you can sell a really diverse
product range. We sell electrical goods,
toys, fragrances, trainers and bedding
to name a few and we’ve found that
our customers keep coming back.
“We’ve found that using Facebook
significantly reduces marketing and
business development costs and it can
help firms to promote their business
and their products to thousands of
people through the Facebook ‘like’
tool and through sharing pages with
friends.”
So how do you increase your number
of ‘friends’ and ‘likes’
to reach such a large
number of people?
Simon explains that
firms can do this by
posting what people
want to see. “You can
identify what people like
through using the insight
Facebook provides for
free. So you can see who
is looking at your pages
and where the consumer
interest is. For example,
I can post an image of a bedding
set to see if people will ‘like’ it. If they
don’t, then I know not to market that
product before I’ve had to spend
money on purchasing and sourcing it.”
What obstacles have you needed to
overcome as you’ve established your
business?
As with any new and expanding
business, it hasn’t been plain sailing.
But Simon and Victoria are clearly
very adept at steering their way
forward and maintaining a happy
ship of customers at the same time.
For Victoria, the biggest challenge
has been managing the ‘hidden’,
administrative side of the business.
CCANEWS
She says: “Navigating the amount of
legislation and regulatory compliance
has been a challenge. I write all our
policies and procedures and keeping
up-to-date with everything is very
time consuming.”
Managing collections also became
difficult as the business grew. The
business now uses standing order
as its main collection method, more
than doorstep collection. Simon
says: “The business grew quickly so
it was difficult for me to get around
customers to collect repayments, but
I’ve also found that most customers
prefer to repay through standing
order.”
As any compliant home credit
business, Hunter Simpson Finance
Ltd has strict lending criteria and uses
credit reference agencies for credit
checks on all new customers. Simon
explains: “We’re lending our own
money, so we don’t take any chances
on a customer if we don’t think they
can pay the money back. We perform
all the relevant checks and start very
small with loans of up to a maximum
of £80 and build up gradually.”
“We have a very rigorous policy
about who we lend to, but on the
rare occasion when people get into
difficulty, we give them as much
time as they need and we are very
flexible. We know our customers well
and we have a good long-standing
relationship with them.”
CCA provides an ‘invaluable’
support network
The CCA has played an invaluable
part in the growth and development
JANUARY 2014
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of Hunter Simpson Finance Ltd.
Victoria explains how much
information, advice and support is on
hand. “It’s also amazing how friendly
everybody is and how willing to help
they are. The Association provides
a brilliant support network, even
though we’re competing against each
other.”
Veteran CCA member and home
credit business owner, Karl Jeffs,
has also been fundamental in their
growth and success. Victoria explains:
“It’s remarkable how generous people
in the industry are with their time.
Karl Jeffs has given us lots of support
in the beginning and has been like
a mentor to us. We met at a CCA
meeting when he introduced himself
to us and we’re very grateful to him.
He has so much experience and he
has helped us enormously.”
Credit and Loan Businesses
Credit
Required by privately owned Home Credit
Finance Company
Top price and quick settlement for good
established businesses and book debts
All negotiations in the strictest confidence
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Short Term Finance Limited
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Tel: 0121 382 2700
Mob: 07977 137 247
Fax: 0121 382 2800
11
Successful Growth
Hunter Simpson Finance Ltd is now
on the verge of employing staff. They
have one self-employed agent and
are looking to recruit admin staff and
another agent. As they continue to
grow they anticipate that they’ll need
to recruit a full-time staff member just
to manage social media and Facebook.
What do you consider has been your
greatest success?
Simon says: “We’re both self taught and
there’s a lot of personal satisfaction that
comes from that. We’ve built our own
website and taught
ourselves how to make
the most of Facebook
and social media.”
Victoria says: “We make
a great team! Simon
is a great marketeer
and my own University
background has given
me the skills I need
to keep on top of
the regulatory and
administrative part
of the business. We’re
also really proud of the
relationship we have
with our customers and
how satisfied they are with our service.
We have an exceptionally low bad debt
level and that speaks volumes about
who we are lending to.”
Simon continues: “People genuinely
appreciate what we do and we both
get a huge amount of satisfaction from
that. Our customers are very audible
about our service especially when we
are enabling them to get things they
need but wouldn’t normally be able
to afford. Many of our customers are
friends and we get invited to their
family events like christenings and
weddings. It’s a great feeling when we
get lots of positive feedback.”
12
Where do you see the business in
five years time?
“It’s a tough question,” Simon says,
“but our aim is to grow the business
so that we can sell it or leave it for
our son to take over and keep it in
the family. I’m always researching
opportunities. At the moment we’re
winding down Clothes Rail and
working on growing our electrical
and home wear range.”
Whilst Simon focuses on business
development and marketing, Victoria
is busy keeping up to date with the
new regulator, the FCA and its new
rule book, ensuring they’re fully upto-date and compliant. She is also
busy preparing for the recruitment
of staff.
She explains: “This is where
membership of the CCA is absolutely
vital. There’s no way we’d be able
to keep abreast of changes as well
as having the resources to prepare
for business growth without the
guidance and support of the CCA.
The CCA’s policies and procedures
disk is a godsend. I wouldn’t have
known where to start without the
CCA!”
What advice would you give to others
thinking of starting a home collected
credit business?
Simon advises a careful and considered
approach. He says: “Be cautious and
don’t take any big risks. You have to
start small and build the business
gradually. We could grow much faster,
but the risks would be greater and our
lending criteria are very strict because
we are lending our own cash.”
“Apply the same caution when you
want to expand your product range
too. Always start small. Bedding is a
good starter product,
but be wary when
you’re selling larger
items. We use the
same principle of
starting small and
building up for all our
products, whether this is
merchandise or loans.”
It’s clear that their
business model is
working – and that
there are many benefits
from bringing the use
of modern technology
into a traditional market.
Hunter Simpson Finance
Ltd is now a dynamic business with a
varied product range and this keeps
Simon and Victoria busy all year round,
rather than experiencing the traditional
peaks and troughs that are common in
the industry.
Whilst not everyone would want to
venture into the technical world of
social media to market their business;
for those that do, Simon and Victoria’s
story shows that there is a strong
payback in terms of time and money
savings. Perhaps dipping a toe in the
water is a good place to start. After all it
seems there’s nothing to lose, but there
are lots of benefits to be gained!
CCANEWS
JANUARY 2014
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REGIONAL SPOTLIGHT
Yorkshire & Humberside Regional Meeting
One of the benefits of CCA membership
is the networking opportunities that it
brings. As well as an annual convention
and year-round workshops and seminars,
each region also holds its own meetings
twice a year. The meetings are very popular
with members and each region sets its
own agenda. So CCA News went along to
a recent Yorkshire & Humberside regional
meeting to find out what’s involved!
More than 40 people attended the
regional meeting on October 2nd,
which is led and managed by regional
chairman, Martin Oddy. Martin takes
his chairmanship very seriously and
works hard to attract presenters and
speakers that can add real value to
attendees.
Martin Oddy - Regional Chairman
This meeting included presentations
from solicitor Hayley Lawrence of
Walker Morris on the FCA regime;
Victor Thomson from First Data and
Anita Williams from Park Hampers.
vv
Membership of the CCA is worth every
penny – as a sole trader or small business,
there is no way that we could keep abreast
of all the new legislation and changes.
- Barry Gorman, Planet Loans
13
Hayley Lawrence, Walker Morris: The FCA regime
Hayley gave a high level presentation on the new regime and the authorisation
and supervision process. She responded to members questions, specifically about
Authorised Representatives and the Approved Persons regime. Hayley explained that
agents that work only for one firm will not need to be authorised representatives.
However, if an agent is working for several different lenders they will need to be an
authorised representative and the firm will have full responsibility for them.
A key message from Hayley to the audience was ‘being forewarned is forearmed’. Hayley
advised attendees to take the following steps:
1. Review all your policies and procedures: Hayley explained: “The FCA is very serious
about record keeping and so what you do in practice must be reflected in your
policies.”
2. Evidence as much as you can!
3. Ensure you have a clear complaints policy that is suitably documented.
4. Carry out a gap analysis and plug any gaps now!
5. Identify who will be an Approved Person and if you will have any appointed
representatives as soon as possible.
6. Ensure that all your staff are aware of your policies and procedures and that they
understand them.
The meetings are really useful and very informative.
They help us keep up to date with regulatory and
legislative changes.
- ADL Finance
Anita Williams, Park Hampers
Anita presented to the group on the benefits of selling hampers as an additional
product. She explained that lots of CCA members sell hampers and Anita says that all
are pleased with the service Park Hampers delivers, which includes a dedicated account
manager, competitive discounts, excellent customer service and direct delivery to
customers.
The CCA regional meetings are very useful and give
members a chance to chat about business and stay up
to date with the latest developments.
- Pete Bonser, Bonser’s Finance Ltd
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CCANEWS
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Victor Thomson, First Data Solutions
Victor Thomson from First Data Solutions gave an
informative presentation on the payment solutions
that First Data Solutions can offer members
including providing firms with the facility to access
debit payments. First Data Solutions operates in
almost all sectors to help businesses take card
payments. This may be via chip and pin machines
or a virtual terminal for payments made over
the telephone as well as online payments. Victor
explained that the company “touches one out of
every three payments that are made worldwide.”
Many CCA members already use the services of First Data Solutions. Delegates at the
Yorkshire & Humberside regional meeting were keen to find out more. Victor explained
that every business is assessed individually based on number of agents and the number
of collections being made, to enable First Data Solutions to develop a bespoke package
that meets the business need.
I don’t think that sole traders could manage without
the information that the CCA provides us with. So the
regional meetings are essential events.
- Ian Stewart
CLC Finance
We wish to acquire credit and loan businesses or
individual rounds in Yorkshire, Humberside, North
Nottinghamshire or East Lancashire
Top prices paid for quality debts.
In strictest confidence please contact
Russell Mason on 0113 263 0295 or [email protected]
www.clcfinance.com
15
16
CCANEWS
JANUARY 2014
www.ccauk.org
NEWS ROUND-UP
Is Britain on the road to
recovery?
CCA members that attended this year’s CCA Convention
will no doubt recall a keynote presentation from Paul
Johnson, Director at the Institute for Fiscal Studies about
the state of the economy and its effect on peoples’
incomes.
Paul explained that GDP has suffered its biggest and
most protracted fall in decades; household incomes
are down to where they were in 2000; unemployment
levels are high and we’re facing the UK’s biggest ever
public spending cuts. In short, he told delegates not
to expect any growth in 2013.
So it was with some relief when CCA News heard
George Osbourne announce in November 2013 that
Britain is “on the path to prosperity” and is enjoying a
recovery that “very many countries would crave.” This
was tempered of course with a note of caution and a
warning that the biggest risk to the economy was the
temptation to give into ‘popular policies’, including
the desire for the government to ‘tax business more,
put controls on labour markets and introduce fixed
prices.’ According to Osbourne this would ‘be a
catastrophe for the recovery and employment in this
country.
Bank of England says UK
recovery has taken hold
But it does indeed appear that progress is being
made. The Bank of England’s quarterly inflation
report (also published in November) stated that the
UK recovery has finally taken hold, with the economy
growing robustly. The BoE raised its economic
forecasts, stating that the UK’s unemployment rate
will fall faster than it expected three months ago
and reporting that there a “two in five chance” that it
could be 7% at the end of 2014.
17
NEWS ROUND-UP
Government invests
in small firms
The government has also announced the first funding
allocation from the British Business Bank’s investment
programme and launched a campaign to help small firms
grow.
The first £45 million of funding is to be committed to
Praesidian Capital Europe (£30 million) and BMS Finance
(£15 million) to provide debt finance of approximately
£125 million through their respective new funds. Once
legal terms are agreed it is expected that both funds will
start lending to small businesses in early 2014.
The first investments from the British Business Bank’s
investment programme will provide choice to smaller
businesses looking to secure vital finance to help invest.
At the time of the announcement, Skills and Enterprise
Minister Matthew Hancock was reported saying: “Small
18
firms are a vital driver of our economy’s success, so it is
imperative we do all we can to ensure businesses don’t
just survive, but thrive to compete in the global race.”
Government has an important role in providing a coherent
package of measures to support businesses, but there
is also a role for business-to-business support, with
successful, growing small businesses talking to others
about how exporting, hiring and business planning can
take a business to the next level.
Around the time of publication of CCA News, it is
anticipated that a cross-government strategy on small
business support will be published. The strategy will
set out how it will make it easier for businesses to grow
through a range of measures, including improving access
to finance and helping to export and innovate.
CCANEWS
JANUARY 2014
www.ccauk.org
Survey shows a third of Brits
will put Christmas on credit
A survey conducted by the
Money Advice Service found
that over 18m UK adults were
worried about how they’d
afford Christmas, and 17m
expected to start 2014 in debt.
The annual survey found that
one third (32%) of UK adults
(16m people) will have paid
for the Christmas festivities
using credit cards and over a
million people (1.2m) admitted
they planned to turn to payday
loans to cover the cost of
Christmas.
MAS reported that although
seasonal spending this year was
expected to be £1bn less than
Christmas 2012; it would still reach
£24bn.
Despite intentions to cut back,
34% of UK adults admitted they
expected to start 2014 in debt
(about 17m people) because of the
cost of Christmas.
The top five reasons given for
overspending are:
•
Pressure to please other
people and loved ones (51%)
Two fifths (40%) of respondents
surveyed said they feel pressure
to put on a special Christmas for
their family, and more than a third
(39%) say they stretch themselves
financially over the festive season.
Although more than two fifths
(42%) say they are happy to
cut back on other costs to fund
Christmas spending, more than a
quarter of UK adults (27%) admit to
getting carried away at Christmas
and spending more than they can
afford.
•
Wanting to give children the
perfect Christmas (47%)
•
Being tempted by special
offers/deals (29%)
•
Desire to buy their child the
‘must have’ gadget (19%)
•
Not knowing how to budget
and losing track of spending
(13%)
The research, conducted among
2,000 UK adults, reveals almost one
in ten (9%) adults are still paying for
Christmas 2012. Although people
anticipated Christmas 2013 would
cost them £487– that’s £21 less
than 2012 (£508), more than a third
(38%) of adults (19m people) were
expecting Christmas 2013 would
be more difficult for them to afford
this year.
19
NEWS ROUND-UP
Standard and
Quality of Debt
Advice is Set to Rise
The Money Advice Service (MAS) is aiming
to deliver on plans to increase the standard,
quality and consistency of debt advice that
people will get in the future, through the
introduction of a new grant agreement
process.
The Service has revealed it will be offering
three-year funding agreements to debt
advice providers from October 2014
through to 30 September 2017. It has
invited its six existing partners in England
and Wales, including the Citizens Advice
Bureau and Community Finance Solutions,
to demonstrate how they will deliver debt
advice over the next three years. This will
include setting out how they will reach all
over-indebted groups.
Jack Bennett comments: “MAS say that
they will assess the plans in early 2014. If its
existing partners are unable to demonstrate
that they can meet the Service’s three-year
objectives, then MAS will be looking to
other providers.”
20
CCANEWS
JANUARY 2014
www.ccauk.org
Universal Credit Creates
Concerns Across Charity
groups
A progress report into Universal
Credit by the Public Accounts
Committee (PAC) has found that
poor delivery is putting the whole
reform, and people’s wellbeing,
under threat. The Select Committee
reported that taxpayers must get
value for money but consumer
groups argue that the most crucial
priority must be to ensure that the
individuals and families affected are
protected through these changes.
The PAC’s report on the early
progress of Universal Credit revealed
that much of the £425m spent so
far on the programme is likely to be
written off, including £140m worth
of IT assets.
The DWP expects to spend £2.4
billion up to April 2023 on the
implementation of Universal Credit
but by April this year it had spent
£425m, with IT development
accounting for £303m, according to
the PAC.
The PAC said that ministers should
not draw any firm conclusions from
the pilots so far. The reform must
be rolled out slowly. In addition a
survey carried out by Citizens Advice
Bureaux in the new benefit’s pilot
areas showed that many people will
struggle to deal with the changes
without support.
The Bureaux reports that despite
only 5.6% of adults in the UK not
having a basic bank account, 22% of
those Citizens Advice clients in the
areas set to receive the new benefit
say they do not have the banking
services required under the new
system, such as direct debits and bill
payments. Under the new system,
claimants will need to have access
to basic banking services to handle
support payments and any income
which they receive.
The Citizens Advice survey found
that:
83% of respondents say they
are not ready to budget with single
monthly payments;
83% would find an adjustment
period of fortnightly, rather than
monthly, payments helpful to cope
with changes to payments;
86% claim they simply do not
have the information they need
about changes;
75% would find it helpful to have
rent continued to be paid directly to
their landlord to help them manage
their finances.
Citizens Advice Chief Executive,
Gillian Guy, reported that at the
moment around 6,000 people each
month are going to their website for
advice about Universal Credit.
The new single benefit was
introduced to a small number of
people in four areas of Greater
Manchester and will next be rolledout in Hammersmith, Bath, Shotton,
Harrogate and Rugby before March
2014.
21
NEWS ROUND-UP
2012
CC
O
O
M
M
PP
LL
A
A
II
N
N
TT
SS
..
2013
Consumer complaints fell in 2013
The FCA has published data on
complaints and redress for the first half of
2013. It shows that:
Consumer complaints reported by
financial services firms fell by 500,000
between the second half of 2012 and the
first half of 2013.
The data shows 2.9million complaints
were made in the first half of 2013,
compared to 3.4million consumer
complaints reported by firms in the
previous six months.
The FCA found 51% of the complaints
reported in the first half of 2013 were
22
upheld, with £2.55 billion of redress paid
to consumers.
92% of the complaints reported in the
first half of 2013 were closed in eight
weeks, the highest percentage since this
data was first published in 2006.
Martin Wheatley, chief executive of
the FCA, was reported in the media
saying: “Publishing complaints data is
a powerful tool that helps encourage
competition between firms to improve
their service to customers, and help
consumers assess their relationships with
banks and other providers.”
The five most complained about firms
received a total of 1.3 million complaints
in the first six months of 2013. These
include Barclays Bank, Lloyds TSB Bank,
credit card provider MBNA, Bank of
Scotland and Santander UK.
Jack Bennett says: “The figures released
by the FCA show that Payment protection
insurance continues to receive more
complaints than any other product.
Credit card provider MBNA was also in
the top five most complained about firms
alongside the mainstream banks.”
CCANEWS
Benefit
sanctions have
increased by
11%
More than 400,000 people have lost Jobseeker’s
Allowance under new government sanctions
aimed at ensuring they actively seek work.
Around 580,000 sanctions were handed down
between October 2012 and June 2013, a 6%
rise on the same period a year earlier, before
rules were toughened.
JANUARY 2014
www.ccauk.org
More people are ‘taking action’
to manage their money better
Figures released from the
Money Advice Service in
November show that between
July to September 2013 over
3.7m customers contacted the
Service for money advice, and
58,000 customers completed
its online Budget Planner. (The
CCA has recently rebranded its
‘managing your money’ leaflet
which includes a link to the
Money Advice Services’ planner).
Separate data extracted from
the Services’ Quarterly Financial
Capability Tracker indicates that
184,000 people took positive
money steps in 2013 between
April to June. Jack Bennett
says: “The figures released by
the Money Advice Service are
encouraging and demonstrate
that people are taking positive
steps to managing their money
responsibly.”
CCA Director General Jack Bennett says: “The
new sanctions were introduced on 22 October
2012. If a comparison is made between
November 2012 and June 2013 and the same
period a year earlier, then there was an 11%
rise in sanctions.”
In a statement to the BBC in October,
Employment Minister Esther McVey said that
people were paid Jobseeker’s Allowance only
if they were doing all they could to look for a
job. She said these sanctions were only used
against those who were “wilfully rejecting
support for no good reason”.
More than 400,000 people
have lost Jobseeker’s
Allowance under new
government sanctions...
However Tim Nichols, of the Child Poverty
Action Group, reported concerns that job
centres are setting targets to arbitrarily push
up the numbers of people hit with a sanction.
Separate figures from the DWP showed that
the number of claimants of Employment and
Support Allowance (ESA) who have been
sanctioned stood at 9,000 between October
and June. They were hit by more than 11,000
sanctions, similar to the figure for the whole
of the previous year to the end of May 2012,
when 11,130 ESA sanctions were applied.
23
The Money Charity Debt Statistics
November 2013
£54,178 was the average household
debt (including mortgages) in September
£163 million was the daily amount
of interest paid on personal debt in September
1,447 people were made redundant
every day between June and August
900,000 people had been unemployed for
over a year between June and August
Every 17 mins 4 sec a
property is repossessed
Every 5 mins 3 sec someone is
declared insolvent or bankrupt
24
CCANEWS
UK Personal
Debt
£11.3
MILLION
THE ESTIMATED
AVERAGE
OUTSTANDING
MORTGAGE FOR
THE 11.3 MILLION
HOUSEHOLDS THAT
CARRY MORTGAGE
DEBT STOOD AT
£112,727 IN
SEPTEMBER.
£28,649
TRILLION
OUTSTANDING
PERSONAL DEBT
STOOD AT
£1.428 TRILLION
AT THE END OF
SEPTEMBER 2013.
THIS IS UP FROM
£1.422 TRILLION
AT THE END OF
SEPTEMBER 2012.
£1.269
£158.7
BILLION
OUTSTANDING
UNSECURED
(CONSUMER CREDIT)
LENDING STOOD
AT £158.7 BILLION
AT THE END
OF SEPTEMBER
2013. THIS IS
UP FROM
£157.5 BILLION
AT THE END OF
SEPTEMBER 2012.
TRILLION
£6,020
OUTSTANDING
SECURED
(MORTGAGE)
LENDING STOOD
AT £1.269 TRILLION
AT THE END OF
SEPTEMBER 2013.
THIS IS UP FROM
£1.264 TRILLION
AT THE END.
AVERAGE
HOUSEHOLD
DEBT IN THE UK
(EXCLUDING
MORTGAGES)
WAS £6,020
IN SEPTEMBER.
THIS IS UP FROM
A REVISED
£6,011 IN AUGUST.
www.ccauk.org
£54,178
AVERAGE
HOUSEHOLD
DEBT IN THE UK
(INCLUDING
MORTGAGES)
WAS £54,178
IN SEPTEMBER.
THIS IS UP
FROM A REVISED
£54,133 IN AUGUST.
£1.428
JANUARY 2014
THE AVERAGE
AMOUNT OWED
PER UK ADULT
(INCLUDING
MORTGAGES)
WAS £28,649
IN SEPTEMBER.
THIS IS UP
FROM A REVISED
£28,626 IN
AUGUST AND
WAS AROUND
116% OF AVERAGE
EARNINGS.
£3,183
AVERAGE
CONSUMER
BORROWING
(INCLUDING
CREDIT CARDS,
MOTOR AND
RETAIL FINANCE
DEALS, OVERDRAFTS
AND UNSECURED
LOANS) PER UK ADULT
WAS £3,183 IN
SEPTEMBER. THIS IS
UP FROM A REVISED
£3,179 IN AUGUST.
£59.6
BILLION
BASED ON
SEPTEMBER
2013 TRENDS,
THE UK’S TOTAL
INTEREST
REPAYMENTS
ON PERSONAL
DEBT OVER A
12 MONTH PERIOD
WOULD HAVE
BEEN £59.6 BILLION.
THIS IS EQUIVALENT
TO £163 MILLION
PER DAY. THIS
MEANS THAT UK
HOUSEHOLDS
WOULD HAVE
PAID AN AVERAGE
OF £2,262 IN
ANNUAL INTEREST
REPAYMENTS.
£3.67
BILLION
UK BANKS AND
BUILDING SOCIETIES
WROTE-OFF
£3.67 BILLION
OF LOANS TO
INDIVIDUALS
OVER THE FOUR
QUARTERS TO
Q2 2013. IN Q2
2013 ITSELF
THEY WROTE-OFF
£694 MILLION
(OF WHICH
£371 MILLION
WAS CREDIT
CARD DEBT)
AMOUNTING TO A
DAILY WRITE-OFF
OF £7.61 MILLION.
25
Everyday in the UK
285
PEOPLE
7420
NEW
84
PROPERTIES
£11,072
MILLION
29.1
MILLION
285 PEOPLE ARE DECLARED INSOLVENT OR BANKRUPT
1,655
EVERY DAY (BASED ON Q3 2013 TRENDS).THIS IS
PEOPLE
EQUIVALENT TO ONE PERSON EVERY 5 MINUTES 3 SECONDS.
CITIZENS ADVICE BUREAUX IN ENGLAND AND WALES
DEALT WITH 7,420 NEW DEBT PROBLEMS EVERY
£29.02
PER DAY
WORKING DAY DURING THE YEAR ENDING JUNE 2013.
1,447
84 PROPERTIES ARE REPOSSESSED EVERY DAY
(BASED ON Q2 2013 TRENDS).
PEOPLE
1,655 CONSUMER COUNTY COURT JUDGEMENTS (CCJS) ARE
ISSUED EVERY DAY (BASED ON Q3 2013 TRENDS). THE AVERAGE
VALUE OF A CONSUMER CCJ IN Q3 2013 WAS £2,383.
IT COSTS AN AVERAGE OF £29.02 PER DAY TO
RAISE A CHILD FROM BIRTH TO THE AGE OF 21.
1,447 PEOPLE A DAY REPORTED THEY
HAD BECOME REDUNDANT BETWEEN
JUNE AND AUGUST 2013.
PUBLIC SECTOR NET BORROWING (EXCLUDING FINANCIAL INTERVENTIONS)
WAS £11,072 MILLION IN SEPTEMBER 2013, MEANING THAT THE GOVERNMENT
BORROWED AN AVERAGE OF£369 MILLION PER DAY DURING THE MONTH
(EQUIVALENT TO£4,272 PER SECOND).
29.1 MILLION PLASTIC CARD PURCHASE TRANSACTIONS WERE
MADE EVERY DAY IN AUGUST 2013 WITH A TOTAL VALUE
OF £1.427 BILLION.
£66.10
1,123
PEOPLE
THE UK POPULATION GREW BY
1,123 PEOPLE A DAY BETWEEN
2001 AND 2011.
IT COST £66.10 TO FILL A 50 LITRE TANK
WITH UNLEADED PETROL IN OCTOBER.
Concerned about
the impact of future
regulatory controls?
Thinking about selling
your business?
...talk to us first!
Call today and speak to:
Doug Martin 01905 642 045
or Paul Oliver 07850 153 988
In strictest confidence
26
www.morsesclub.com
CCANEWS
NEWS ROUND-UP
JANUARY 2014
www.ccauk.org
Can you afford to give away free meals?
Most people would think not! But a recent report has found that the average UK family is wasting nearly £60 a month by throwing
away almost an entire meal a day.
The study by the government’s waste advisory body, the Waste & Resources Action Programme (Wrap), reveals that we’re
throwing away the equivalent of 24 meals a month, adding up to 4.2 million tonnes of food and drink every year that could have
been consumed. Almost half of this is going straight from fridges or cupboards into the bin. One-fifth of what households buy
ends up as waste, and around 60% of that could have been eaten.
Astonishingly, we get rid of the equivalent of 86 million chickens every year. The top three foods being thrown away uneaten in
British homes are bread, potatoes and milk. The equivalent of 24m slices of bread, 5.8m potatoes and 5.9m glasses of milk are
being wasted daily, while even cakes and pastries make it into the top 10 most wasted items.
Henderson Finance
Wish to acquire credit and loan business
or individual round calls.
In and around
MERSEYSIDE
Contact in confidence
Telephone: 0151 733 5151
Henderson Finance, 95 Picton Road, Wavertree, Liverpool L15 4LF
27
REGULATORY ROUND-UP
Claims firms are threatened with
fines
Claims firms which use unsolicited calls and texts will face
fines if they use information gathered from cold calling.
New powers to crack down on rogue firms responsible for
bombarding people with unwanted calls are to be given
to the Claims Management Regulation (CMR) Unit at the
Ministry of Justice next year.
The new rules also intend to reduce the flood of
unsubstantiated claims for compensations from banks,
which are at a cost to other customers.
The fines are expected to be brought in during 2014 as
part of law changes being made through the Financial
Services (Banking Reform) Bill which is currently
progressing through parliament.
28
Stephanie Smallwood at the CCA says: “Action taken by the
Ministry of Justice against rogue claims management firms
has seen the number operating drop to 2,300 from a peak
of 3,400 in 2011.”
“It appears that the increased numbers of enforcement
staff at the Claims Management Regulation Unit are likely
to be funded by a rise in fees paid by regulated claims
firms.”
As well as employing more staff to tackle irresponsible
practice by claims firms, the Government will strengthen
the CMR Unit by appointing independent regulatory
experts in non-executive roles and will commission
a comprehensive review of the independence of the
current Claims Management Regulator’s governance
arrangements.
REGULATORY ROUND-UP
CCANEWS
JANUARY 2014
www.ccauk.org
Financial Secretary to the Treasury, Sajid Javid made a
public statement that said: “These new rules will put PPI
claims pests in their place. This will also help free up the
banks to pay legitimate claims more quickly.”
1 in 4 (27%) received their most recent call during a
during a family meal time;
Under the new rules claims companies will have a
duty to make sure the claims they are submitting have
a realistic chance of success, as well as ensuring full
evidence is provided to back up any allegations. Firms
will also have to carry out thorough audits of how data
they use has been gathered, so they can no longer turn
a blind eye to whether leads have been found by illegal
marketing texts and calls.
Around 1 in 8 (13%) of people were contacted
during TV and film viewing;
Citizens Advice recently reported that over 30 million
people have been contacted out of the blue about PPI
and half have received unexpected calls or texts more
than 10 times in the last 12 months.
Their research has found that people’s work, family time
and even household chores are being put on hold to
answer calls about re-claiming for PPI.
Around 1 in 7 (14%) received the call while at work
including during meetings and presentations;
1 in 25 (4%) were carrying out their domestic duties,
like cleaning, cooking and gardening, when they
last received a PPI claims call.
Telephone calls (91%), automated messages to
landlines (39%) and texts to mobiles (35%) are the
most common ways in which people are contacted
about PPI claims. Steph says: “People feel like they’re being harassed in
their own homes by these type of calls and we know
that four out of five people aged between 65 and 74
are getting nuisance calls. So it’s great news that the
government are working to reduce the amount of cold
calls that people receive.”
29
MPs support
alternative form of
finance
A group of more than 25 MPs has come together to promote an alternative form of
finance that it believes has the potential to rival mainstream banking in the future.
The All-Party Crowdfunding Group has formed to investigate and promote
non-bank finance models which can fund community, social and private
sector companies.
Jack Bennett explains: “The formation of the group follows
the publication of the Financial Conduct Authority’s
(FCA) new draft framework on the regulation of
crowdfunding.”
The CCA will monitor developments
and keep the membership
informed.
OFT revokes three licences from
the debt management sector
The OFT has used its powers to revoke the consumer credit licences of three debt management
businesses in October. Since the OFT’s 2010 review of the debt management sector, over 100 businesses
have exited the market or been refused licences to enter the sector.
The latest firms to be forced to cease trading are First Step Finance Limited (FSF), Welcome Solutions Ltd
(WSL) and Debt Connect (UK) Limited (DCL).
Jack Bennett comments: “The actions taken by the OFT demonstrate that they are tackling bad
practices in the debt management sector and that they are serious about treating customers fairly and
transparent sales and marketing practices. This is something we support and uphold at the CCA as do
CCA members in the home credit sector.”
30
CCANEWS
JANUARY 2014
www.ccauk.org
Photo To Come
MEMBERS’ NEWS
Capital Credit (Leeds) Ltd
Support Local Boxing Stars
C
leakheaton Police Boxing
Ismail Khan recently beat England
Academy recently held its
international Liam Search as part of
annual presentation evening, thanks
an Everton Red Triangle Boxing Club
to sponsorship from CCA member
event. Whilst Jordon Yates (pictured)
business, Capital Credit (Leeds) Ltd.
recently won Most Promising Boxer of
Martin Oddy has sponsored and
the Year.
supported the club for six years,
following on from his passion for the
Cleakheaton Police Boxing Academy
sport when he was a child – and now
attracts boxers from Batley, Dewsbury,
a keen spectator!
Heckmondwike, Cleckheaton and
surrounding areas.
Two boxers from the Club have
recently received glowing accolades.
Provident
launches
new
product
Provident Financial
plc, has launched
an online product
– Satsuma loans.
Satsuma Loans will
lend up to £300 to
customers who pay
back over 13 or 26
weeks at an APR
of 792%. Interest
is repaid weekly,
with no additional
charges for late
payers.
31
CCA MEMBER BENEFITS
CCA Safe & Sound DVD
The CCA ‘Safe & Sound’ DVD is available to members free
of charge. To order your copy please contact one of the
CCA team at Chester on 01244 312044.
Everything you need to comply
with the Anti Money Laundering
requirements – direct from CCA
The ‘Money Laundering Regulations 2007’ require all
home credit businesses to take money laundering
precautions. Failure to comply with the regulations is an
offence that could result in unlimited financial penalties
and / or a prison term of up to two years.
The CCA can supply a resource pack to help members
complete the compliance task within a minimum time
frame. It can also help members to produce quality
solutions that stand up to OFT inspection.
The pack is available on CD for £50 including delivery and
postage. It is also available in paper form and the CCA can
customise your documents as required at a cost of £75
including delivery and postage.
If you require any further information, or wish to order a
pack, please contact Mike Hart on 01244 312044 or email
Mike at [email protected]
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CCA members can enjoy exclusive discounts on a variety
of vouchers as shown below:
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32
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• Fantastic last minute deals
• Discounts with major 3,4 and 5 star hotel groups
• Group hotel reservations and discounts
• Offer is also available to your friends and family
To take advantage of these fabulous discount offers
visit www.hotelstayuk.com and login with ‘CCA’.
Alternatively call 08445 007106 and quote ‘CCA’.
KEY CCA CONTACTS
CCA Services
CCA Organisation
Annual convention
CCA News is published quarterly by CCA (UK) Advisory Services Ltd
and is the official publication of the Consumer Credit Association of
the United Kingdom and Ireland. Price £7.50.
Credit Reference services
Defaulters letter service
Delayed Presentation Agreements
Full-time Director General
available to give advice
PROMOTING HIGH STANDARDS
OF BUSINESS AND CONSUMER
RELATIONS IN THE HOME
CREDIT INDUSTRY
Full-time headquarters
administration
Law committee to monitor
legislation
Staff
Diary Dates 2014
Legal advice service
DIRECTOR GENERAL
Jack Bennett 01244 505905
Email: [email protected]
National Convention
30th April 2014
Model employment contracts
MEMBERSHIP SECRETARY/
DIRECTOR GENERALS PA
Stephanie Smallwood ext 212
Email: [email protected]
ADMINISTRATOR
Anna Pritchard ext 202
Email: [email protected]
ADMINISTRATOR
Lee McAvery ext 203
Email: [email protected]
TRAINING & IT COORDINATOR
Mike Hart ext 208
Email: [email protected]
FINANCIAL CONTROLLER
Julie Parker ext 210
Email: [email protected]
34
Business stationery
Code of Practice
Consumer Credit Association and CCA are
trading names of CCA(UK) Advisory Services
Ltd. Registered in England, Number 1441617.
Registered office: Queens House, Queens Road,
Chester, CH1 3BQ
Telephone: 01244 312044
Fax: 01244 318035
Email: [email protected]
Website: www.ccauk.org
APR, ES and default information
services
Membership logo
Public relations
Membership Seminars
15th January 2014
19th March 2014
16th July 2014
10th September 2014
26th November 2014
National Council
25th June 2014
5th November 2014
National Executive
12th February 2014
9th July 2014
15th October 2014
Quarterly magazine
Members News Extra
Register of prevailing rates
Regional meetings
Regular discussion with
Government departments, Local
Authorities and consumer groups
Removed accounts collection
services
Staff training and business
guidelines
Three levels of representation;
Regional, National and European
Voucher trading
Workshops and seminars
CCANEWS
National Executive &
Committee Chairmen
NATIONAL CHAIRMAN
Guy Philips
[email protected]
FINANCE
Neil Gillespie
[email protected]
LAW:
David Rees
[email protected]
REPUBLIC OF IRELAND
LIAISON
Brendan Connor
[email protected]
MARKETING:
Chris Binstead
[email protected]
PUBLIC RELATIONS:
Anthony Coombs
[email protected]
DATA SHARING:
Doug Martin
[email protected]
COMPLIANCE:
VACANT
LIFE COUNSELLORS:
Neville Greenwood
Gemmell Good
JANUARY 2014
www.ccauk.org
REGISTRAR:
Colin Wallace
02920 758497
Regional Chairmen
DISCIPLINE:
Phil Carey
[email protected]
WEST MIDLANDS
VACANT
All Chairmen can be contacted
via CCA Chester
EAST MIDLANDS
I Welch
0116 275 0055
NORTH EAST
Phil Carey
01642 850022
NORTHERN IRELAND
Gerard MacAllister
02825 652915
NORTH WEST
Simon Greenhalgh
0161 950 6666
REPUBLIC OF IRELAND
Kevin Carey
(00353) 087 971 4444
SCOTLAND
Neil MacFarlane
07771 945299
SOUTH EAST
David Abbott
01582 452700
SOUTH WEST
Trevor Swinford
01392 444857
WALES
Chris Binstead
01495 223891
YORKSHIRE & HUMBERSIDE
Martin Oddy
0113 3180756
35
REGISTERED OFFICE: Queens House, Queens Road, Chester, CH1 3BQ
TELEPHONE: 01244 312044
FACSIMILE: 01244 318035
EMAIL: [email protected]
WEBSITE: www.ccauk.org