Credit Management magazine December 2017

The state of the credit
management nation
THE CICM is seeking the views of members
in a new survey – ‘The State of the Credit
Management Nation’ – being launched and
conducted by students at Sheffield Hallam
University.
The survey, commissioned by the
CICM’s Think Tank, a group of 25 senior
credit industry executives, will explore
every aspect and specialism of the credit
MAT’s bailiffs figures disputed
by Enforcement body
LOCAL authorities across England and
Wales have referred debts to bailiffs on 1.8
million occasions in the last 12 months,
according to figures obtained by the Money
Advice Trust. The charity issued Freedom
of Information requests to all 374 local
authorities in England and Wales.
However, the figures have been disputed
by the Civil Enforcement Association
(CIVEA) and described as ‘misleading’ as
many authorities re-issue previous years’
debts when issuing a debt for the current
year.
Kevin McCarthy, President of CIVEA,
says what is of considerable concern is
that of those authorities listed in the top
10, 50 percent now have an in-house bailiff
team: “Such in-house bailiff teams are
normally set up on the basis that it will give
the Council greater controls to protect the
vulnerable, whereas these figures indicate
that Councils with an in-house enforcement
agent team are more likely to move more
often to enforcement, hence incurring more
fees more quickly for debtors.
“A check of one of the Councils cases
in the list shows that for every 1,000
bailiff cases issued there are actually 540
properties. A Council with an in-house
team has a self-interest in moving a case
quickly on to the bailiff stage as it generates
additional income for a council, this is not
the case where an external enforcement
agent is used.”
According to MAT’s figures, there is
variation across the 374 different local
authorities in England and Wales as
to how frequently bailiffs are called in:
Birmingham City Council (the largest
local authority in the UK) referred debts to
bailiffs on 82,329 occasions in the last 12
months – equivalent to 17 percent of total
properties in the city. The London Borough
of Newham Council referred 55,652 cases
to bailiffs – equivalent to nearly half of the
total properties under its authority.
Merthyr Tydfil Council referred 6,094
debts to bailiffs, equivalent to 22 per cent of
the total properties under its authority.
Joanna Elson OBE, Chief Executive of
the MAT, says it is not economically or
socially responsible for local authorities
to continue to use bailiffs so frequently:
“Local authorities seem to be assuming
that anyone not paying debts is a ‘won’t
pay’, rather than a ‘can’t pay’. In today’s
economy, with real incomes having fallen
consistently for many years, more and
more people are falling into the ‘can’t pay’
bracket – sending the bailiffs in to collect
these debts can be very destructive, both
financially and psychologically.”
moneyadvicetrust.org
civea.co.uk
Philips & Cohen strengthens
senior team
PHILLIPS & Cohen Associates has moved to
strengthen its senior leadership team with
a significant re-organisation; Nick Cherry
moves up to the role of Chief Operating
Officer for the global organisation.
Cherry, who has been with the business
since 2010, previously fulfilled the role of
Managing Director of PCA International and
oversaw all group activity outside of the US
mainland. Cherry will now be responsible
for overseeing all aspects of collections and
digital strategy, operations, HR, recruitment
and training for the global group.
In conjunction with Cherry’s new global
role, the group has moved to strengthen its
executive leadership in both markets.
management lifecycle.
Philip King, Chief Executive of the CICM
urged members to take part: “This is one of
the most important initiatives to come from
our Think Tank group and will be used to
inform the thinking and direction of future
credit strategies,” he said.
The survey closes on 15 December, 2017.
The report will be published in Spring 2018.
Stuart Webb, formerly of New Day,
Santander and Barclays, has joined the UK
management team as Site Director. Stuart
brings with him operational collections
and risk management experience, which
will further re-enforce PCA’s position as
the leading provider of deceased account
management services in the UK.
Similarly, Andrew Worrall, whose
career with PCA spans 12 years, has
been appointed as Site Director of the US
Headquarters in Wilmington, Delaware.
Andrew has fulfilled several prior roles
at PCA, most recently VP of Client and
Acquisition Services.
phillips-cohen.co.uk
Brits trapped in
working poverty
ONE in five people (21 percent) in the UK
are still earning below the real Living Wage,
meaning that an estimated 5.5 million
employees are struggling to get out of
in-work poverty, according to a new report
published by KPMG.
The research, conducted by IHS Markit for
KPMG, found that the total number earning
below the real Living Wage is down slightly
by 100,000 compared to last year, when
an estimated 22 percent of all jobs and 5.6
million roles paid less than the real Living
Wage. This is the first reduction in five
years, but still leaves the total of one million
more people earning below the real Living
Wage than in 2012.
For five years in a row, the research finds
that women are considerably more likely
to be paid below the real Living Wage than
men. With nearly 225,000 more women in
work than last year, this year’s data shows
that just over one in four (26 percent) of
female employees earn less than the real
Living Wage, compared to 16 percent of all
males. In numerical terms this equates to
3.4 million female employees versus 2.1
million male employees.
Around 3.1 million part-time employees
earn less than the real Living Wage,
compared with 2.4 million full-time
workers. Part-time jobs are around three
times more likely to pay below £8.75 per
hour (or £9.75 in London) than full-time
roles. Some 42 percent of part-time workers
now earn less than the real Living Wage,
compared with 13 percent full-time workers.
Indeed, the difference is so stark that
despite accounting for less than one-third
(28 percent) of all UK jobs, part-time roles
represent more than half (56 percent) of all
jobs paying less than the real Living Wage.
Regionally, Northern Ireland has the
highest proportion of jobs earning below
the real Living Wage at 26 percent, followed
by the East Midlands, Yorkshire and
Humber, Wales and the West Midlands all
at around 24 percent. The lowest proportion
of employees earning less than the Living
Wage is found in the South East at 17
percent, Scotland at 18 percent and London
at 19 percent.
However, by number of people rather
than proportion, London at around 750,000,
followed by the South East and North West
at an estimated 635,000 each, are the areas
with the highest levels.
ihsmarkit.com
The Recognised Standard / www.cicm.com / December 2017 / PAGE 9