ARC Europe Debt Collection: Letters, Payments and Your Rights

Received a demand from ARC Europe? Verify the sender and account before making a payment.

In this article, we will talk about:

• Who Arc Europe are and if they are a real company.
• Why Arc Europe might be trying to get money from you.
• If you really owe them any money.
• What Arc Europe can do if you can’t or won’t pay.
• Ways to stop them from bothering you and how to get help with your debts.

If contact or affordability is causing difficulty, you can request support and free independent debt advice.

We’ll tell you all you need to know about Arc Europe Ltd Debt Collection and what you can do in this situation. Let’s get started!

Why you are being contacted by Arc Europe Ltd?

ARC Europe provides collection services for clients in sectors including financial services, leisure, insurance and utilities.

A collection instruction is different from a sale of the debt. Check the creditor named on your letter.

An agency’s commercial arrangements do not determine whether the balance is legally owed.

For regulated-credit collection, firms must consider financial difficulty and appropriate forbearance.

Explain any support or accessibility needs and keep a record if they are not properly considered.

Your Rights With Debt Collectors

A collector must not use threats, harassment or misleading statements about its powers.

Here’s a quick table that explains what debt collectors are not allowed to do. If you’d like to learn more about your rights, make sure to check out our detailed guide.

Check if you really owe the money

Are you sure you really owe the money? The first thing to establish is where the debt started and how much you really owe.

Sometimes mistakes happen and Arc may be chasing you, thinking that you are someone else. So I always recommend asking for proof that you owe the debt before you make a payment.

Ask for the creditor’s name, account reference, balance breakdown and evidence that you are liable. For regulated consumer credit debts, a firm must pause recovery while it investigates a dispute on valid or potentially valid grounds. A request for information does not itself cancel the debt or extend a court deadline.

If they do prove that you owe the debt but you know that it’s been a while since you made a payment towards it or wrote to your creditor about it, stop for a moment and think. You need to find out if the debt has been statute-barred.

Many ordinary unsecured debts may become statute-barred after six years in England and Wales, or prescribed after five years in Scotland. The start date, debt type, payments, legally relevant acknowledgments and any court claim all matter. A creditor’s letter alone does not restart the period. Ask a debt adviser to check the facts before paying or admitting liability, and respond to any court papers on time.

In England and Wales, limitation can provide a defence to a claim; Scottish prescription can extinguish an obligation. Respond if court papers arrive rather than assuming proceedings cannot be issued.

Keep in mind that not all debts become statute-barred!

Tax debts and judgments have separate rules. A CCJ does not expire with its credit-file entry, but later enforcement may need permission or face other restrictions.

Check other disputes and affordability as well as limitation. If the debt is enforceable but unaffordable, compare suitable repayment and debt-solution options.

Making a payment

To make a payment to the Arc Europe website, click ‘quick pay’ and enter your ‘Arc reference number’. You will also need your last name and date of birth.

What can ARC Europe Limited Do?

» TAKE ACTION NOW: Fill out the short debt form

A limited range of things. There are a number of actions that ARC Europe Limited can take if you don’t pay back your debts. That being said, you need to keep in mind that they are still a debt collection agency.

For regulated consumer credit collection, FCA rules require firms to give due regard to reasonable requests about when, where and how they contact you. You can ask for letters or emails instead of calls and explain any health or accessibility needs. This is not an automatic ban on every call or required notice. Keep a record of unreasonable contact and complain if your request is not properly considered.

An ordinary collector is not subject to a universal seven-day bailiff notice rule. A collection visit must comply with applicable contact rules and must not misrepresent enforcement powers.

Please note that debt collectors don’t have any extra-legal authority and you don’t have to let them into your house. In fact, you don’t even have to open the door if you don’t want to.

I recently spoke to the Mirror about debt collectors and bailiffs. While a bailiff may be permitted to take your possessions, a debt collector never can. All they are allowed to do is ask for a payment.

A debt collector must never lie about who he or she is. They need to be clear and loud about who they are and they must show their credentials upon request.

Debt collectors are also required to leave your residence if you ask them to.

Thousands have already tackled their debt

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Can a debt solution release some debt?

An IVA is a formal arrangement administered by an insolvency practitioner. Its approved terms govern contributions, assets and fees; only covered debts remaining on successful completion are released. It does not ban every required creditor communication. There is no universal statutory minimum debt or requirement for two creditors. Suitability depends on your debts, assets, affordable contribution or lump sum and creditor approval. Compare alternatives through independent debt advice.

Arc Europe Ltd Contact Details

How to file a complaint

If you think that Arc Debt Collection has been unreasonable or behaved inappropriately, you can make a complaint. You can also make a complaint if you feel that they have broken any of the Financial Conduct Authority’s (FCA) guidelines.

Make your first complaint to Arc directly so that they have the chance to sort out the issue themselves. If you feel that they have not taken your complaint seriously enough or have not addressed your issue properly, you can escalate matters.

Complain to the business first. If the activity falls within the Financial Ombudsman Service’s remit, you can normally escalate after a final response or eight weeks without one, usually within six months of the final response. The Ombudsman can require redress, such as compensation or correcting records; it does not fine firms or remove their authorisation.

Other Debt Collectors 

You should check for more outstanding debts that you may have with other companies or debt collectors. Here are four steps you could take: 

1. Check your credit report for other defaults 
2. Check your email and post for reminders or overdue notices
3. Check the court records for CCJs against you
4. Check your bank statements for the names of other debt collectors 

There are hundreds of debt collectors in the UK and each works with different companies to collect debts.

Some debt collection businesses act for creditors; others purchase debts. Check the letter and ask who owns the debt and how the balance was calculated.

If you see a name on your bank statement that you don’t recognise then you can search MoneyNerd to see if they’re a debt collector. 

References

1. ARC Europe: collection services
2. Companies House: ARC Europe control information
3. FCA: treatment of customers in arrears

CONC 7.3 Treatment of customers in default or arrears (including repossessions): lenders, owners and debt collectors

CONC 7.9 Contact with customers