You Might Not Have to Pay Link Financial Debt Collectors!
Have you received letters and alls from Link Financial Debt Collectors? Is so, I’m sorry to hear that. Link Financial are one of the worst debt collectors to deal with. I’ve put together this guide to show you exactly what to do to break free, avoid going to court, stop contact and even write off your debt.
It’s not your fault. Complaints to the Financial Ombudsman have risen this year from 830 to 2,006, so it’s safe to say that you’re not alone.
Deal with your debt today and feel better tomorrow.
Who are Link Financial Debt Collectors?
Link Financial is a business based in the UK, offering companies assistance with debt collection and debt management. The company is registered and regulated in the UK.
Link collect debt for companies like the HMRC, Capital One, O2 and Littlewoods. The also buy debt on the cheap to try and collect to make a profit.
Don’t worry, here’s what to do
You could get rid of debt collectors by writing off your debt. I’ve put together a 4 question debt calculator which will tell you if you’re eligible:
Why you are being contacted by Link Financial Debt Collectors?
Make no mistake – the debt collection business is huge. Debt collectors like Link Financial Debt Collectors come in several forms…
Many debt collection agencies are independent businesses; some may also be a business arm of a creditor such as a credit card company (sometimes hiding their real identity – see below); there are even individual sole trader debt collectors.
The business model of these agencies relies on purchasing debt at a fraction of its face value, possibly for as little as 20% of the face value, and making a profit by collecting the debt at (or close to) its full value. There are few morals involved; as far as they are concerned it is you who ran up the debt and you who is responsible for repaying it. They care nothing about you and your personal circumstances. Simply put, they tend not to be nice people. The Office for Fair Trading (OFT, 2010) acknowledged that such poor practices “appear to be widespread”.
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. It is quite likely that the original debt, if there was one, has been inflated by various charges and interest. It could be substantially more than you believe you owe.
You should write to Link Financial Debt Collectors and demand a copy of your original credit agreement. If they are unable to provide this you have no obligation to make any payment to them.
Follow my ‘prove it’ guide with letter templates and get them to prove that you owe the money.
Find your best debt solution (in 1 minute!)
Is all this information starting to feel overwhelming? Don’t panic! I’ve put together a 4 question debt calculator so you can quickly and easily find the best solution for you. If you’re eligible for the new government scheme, you could write off up to 85% of your debt! Answer the four questions now.
Can pay but won’t pay?
If you really do owe the money, then the road of least resistance is to repay the debt if you are able to do so, but if you can’t afford to repay it, or if doing so would prevent you from servicing more important credit such as your rent or mortgage, then try to make some arrangement with Link Financial Debt Collectors, perhaps offering them a partial repayment.
How debt collectors can ruin your life
It isn’t unusual for debt collectors to employ questionable tactics that may or may not fall foul of the law. This might include pressuring and bullying threats, frequent phone calls sometimes made to your workplace and empty threats.
Being pursued by Link Financial Debt Collectors could have a devastating effect on your life, leading to emotional distress, mental illness, and even suicide. According to the debt support trust, almost half of people who struggle with debt at some point consider suicide, and it was recently reported that a coroner raised concerns over debt-collection agency’s practices following the suicide of a debt-ridden courier. In their report into mental health and the credit industry (Walker et al, 2012) researchers from Brighton University concluded: “Debt clients frequently feel humiliated, disconnected and entrapped, with the process of debt collection having a clear impact on people’s mental health”. They called upon the government to tackle the problem of irresponsible lending and intimidating collection tactics.
How do you make a payment?
Not surprisingly, Link Financial make it very easy for you to make a payment. They would be more than willing to take a debt card or credit card payment over the phone, or they have the ability to pay online. To pay online, go to https://www.linkfinancial.eu/.
It’s actaully not obvious how to make a payment online. Look for the light blue ‘make a payment’ text by scrolling down the page a little. Once you click this, it gives you some more information, and then you have to click a link the the ‘portal’
Then from there you either need to register for an account, or use existing details to login. To register for an account you will need you ‘link customer reference’, which you can get from an agent on the phone, or from one of the many letters that they would have sent to you.
Link Financial Debt Collectors and the law
The Office for Fair Trading (OFT, 2012) has published a set of guidelines for the debt collection business. To summarise these, Link Financial Debt Collectors should:
- Treat debtors fairly and not use aggressive practices, coercion, deceit, or be oppressive, unfair, or improper
- Be transparent and provide clear information that is not confusing or misleading
- Be considerate towards debtors experiencing difficulty
- Act proportionately taking into account debtors’ circumstances.
If you are being intimidated by Link Financial Debt Collectors who are not abiding by these guidelines, then you have a good case for reporting them to the OFT which has the power to remove their license.
To make a complaint about Link Financial Debt Collectors, you can use this online complaint form.
Some debt collectors pretend to be an external agency when in fact they are a business arm of the company you owe money. That is a clear case of deceit, though they are likely to claim that this information appears in the small print.
Understanding how Link Financial Debt Collectors operates
Understanding how debt collection agencies operate can help you defend yourself against them.
They are on a bonus
The Link Financial Debt Collectors agents who phone you are likely highly incentivised and are expected to collect a specified minimum amount of money per hour. Usually, there are daily and monthly bonuses and each collection they make contribute to that bonus. Hence, they will do what they can to collect some money rather than record a “No Payment” call, including making intimidating and threatening behaviour.
The lesson here is if you are able to be strong and stand up to threats from Link Financial Debt Collectors, knowing that their threats are empty, you can to some extent turn the tables. Keep them talking but just don’t pay. You will still owe the money, but at least you won’t have to pay that day.
Automated call technology
You might be tempted to simply not answer calls from Link Financial Debt Collectors, but when this happens agencies often employ automated call technology that will attempt to phone you say every half hour until you do eventually answer. Sometimes if you do pick up the call is silent; the calls are simply being made to intimidate you.
If this happens to you make a note the frequency of the calls. Such behaviour on the part of the debt collectors is in clear breach of the OFT guidelines. Tell the agent that you will be reporting them to the Financial Ombudsman.
The best way to contact the Financial Ombudsman is by phone on 0800 023 4567 or 0300 123 9123
Bad cop, good cop
Bad cop, good cop is a tactic frequently employed, and often is highly effective. When subject to such an approach you are likely to be subject to relentless calls some of which are abusive and harassing, but with the occasional polite and friendly enquiry. This change in attitude can happen in a single phone call where the agent starts off politely but should you fail to make a payment their behaviour becomes abusive. Nor is it just relentless phone calls. Frequent threatening and sometimes sinister letters are another common practice. The total process is designed to eventually wear you down, to break your will so that eventually you will make a payment.
It is difficult to stand up to such behaviour, which is exactly why they use it. But again, you should try to stay strong if you possibly can. Report it to the OFT using this online complaint form.
Embarrassing you by talking to third parties
If someone apart from you answers the call then agents frequently attempt to embarrass you by discussing your debt and financial problems with whoever answers the call. This could be a family member at your home, or it could be someone at your workplace. This is certainly illegal behaviour and breaches not only OFT guidelines, but also other privacy laws.
Again, such behaviour should be reported to the Financial Ombudsman on 0800 023 4567 or 0300 123 9123
Deceit and lies
If everything else fails some debt collectors feel they are immune from the law and will apply some very nasty forms of leverage. They might pretend to be calling from the court, that they are a bailiff and will be visiting your home to remove your possessions, possibly even threatening you with criminal prosecution.
Never give them permission to visit you and if they do then never let them into your home and if you feel physically threatened then don’t hesitate to call the police.
Don’t let them wear you down
As we have seen, debt collectors such as Link Financial Debt Collectors are relentless and their behaviour could be responsible for mental ill-health and even suicide. Standing up to Link Financial Debt Collectors requires a degree of strength and courage few people possess. But there is help out there. Ultimately you need to get out of debt, but you need to do so in a controlled manner that will minimise your pain and distress. Ultimately all debt problems are solvable.
Getting help with debt
There are various kinds of help with debt available: there are not-for-profit agencies who exist to provide one-to-one help for you, and there are commercial debt management companies whose aim is to make money out of you. The former should be your first port of call. Some of the important agencies include:
- Citizens Advice Bureau (CAB) provides extensive help with debt and should help you stop debt collectors contacting you if you are able to show you are seeking help and are trying to repay your debts.
- Christians Against Poverty (CAP) provide free debt help.
- StepChange provides free online debt advice helping people take charge of their debt.
Writing off your debt entirely
It is possible to write off your debt entirely through an Individual Voluntary Arrangement (IVA). This is a formal agreement to pay the debt collectors an amount you can afford as a one-off sum or as monthly payments and the rest of the debt will be written off after a defined period, usually five years. This must be carried out by an insolvency practitioner.
Please note that an IVA will typically only write off a portion of your debt. You’ll still have to repay a significant portion of the debt in the form of monthly repayments.
If you can’t afford to pay off your debts at all and would like them to be written off entirely, then you should look towards other debt solutions such as bankruptcy or a Debt Relief Order (DRO).
Bankruptcy allows all of your unsecured debts to be written off without you having to make a single payment. That being said, bankruptcy has a huge set of risks which you also need to be aware of.
Firstly, bankruptcy does not protect your assets. If you decide to go bankrupt, then your valuable assets would be seized and sold off in order to raise funds for your debts. These valuable assets would include your home and your car. If you are self-employed, then your business would be seized from you as well.
Secondly, if you work in the financial sector, then it’s likely that you will lose your job if you decide to go bankrupt.
Thirdly, bankruptcy stays in your credit file for six years. This means that your credit rating is going to be negatively impacted due to your bankruptcy for six years.
You can choose to opt for a DRO which also gets your debts written off but qualifying for a DRO is much harder as it has much stricter eligibility criteria. If you can qualify for a DRO, your debts get written off in a year.
I’ve put together a 4 question debt calculator so you can quickly and easily find the best solution for you. If you’re eligible for the new government scheme, you could write off up to 85% of your debt! Answer the four questions now.
Link Financial Review
There aren’t that many reviews, however there are a lot of confused customers on various forums such as moneysavingexpert where people have recieved strange letters that they’re trying to make sense of.
Finally
Despite warnings from professional bodies, government guidelines, and other measures the behaviour of many debt collecting agencies is atrocious, leading vulnerable debtors into mental illness and even suicide. However, it is possible to fight back, especially with some help from the agencies mentioned in this article. While it’s not as simple as just refusing to pay, you can reduce the amount you must repay and spread your repayments over a period you are comfortable with. Certainly, you can stop their bullying and by reporting them to the Financial Ombudsman they may even lose their licence.
Link Financial Outsourcing Contact Details
Company Name: Link Financial Outsourcing
Other Names: Link Financial
Address:
PO Box 260
Weybridge
Surrey
KT13 0YH
Contact Number: 0800 064 4499
Fax:
Website: www.linkfinancial.eu/home/customer/
Email: info@linkfinancial.co.uk
Monday – Thursday: 8:00 am – 8:30 pm
Friday: 8:00 am – 5:00 pm
Saturday: 9:00 am – 6:00 pm
Numbers they call from
02920853500
02920808685
FAQs
Link Financial is the trading name of Link Financial Outsourcing Limited. This is a private limited company that is ultimately controlled by LF Outsourcing Holdings Ltd. LF Outsourcing Holdings Ltd. is part of the LCH European Portfolio Holdings Group which is registered in Ireland.
Link Financial Outsourcing Limited is regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. Its registration number is 606817.
As of 2020 HMRC Link FInancial is not in the list of 11 debt collection agencies that HMRC uses to collect money and cannot act on HMRC’s behalf.
Link Financial’s primary activity is the servicing of performing and non-performing debts on behalf of other organisations. It also provides services to owners of debt portfolios, but it does not buy debt itself.
If you ignore debt collectors at first they may send doorstep collectors. Secondly, they may apply for a County Court Judgement, which if successful would force you to pay and would show on your credit report.
Link Financial can take you to court in order to claim the money owed. If you have been taken to court you will have received a County Court Judgement letter.
You cannot go to jail for debts owed to debt collection agencies.
If you ignore a CCJ you won’t get sent to prison, however, bailiffs may be sent to your house to collect items equal to the value of the money that owe.
Link Financial cannot issue an arrest warrant or have you sent to prison. At most they can request a CCJ and if successful send bailiffs to your property to recover items to cover the debt owed.
Link Financial are not bailiffs. They could, however, request a County Court Judgement which means that the courts could send bailiffs. You would have received a lot of warning letters if this was going to happen.
Link Financial have been known to send people to your house, however, they have no legal powers so you can ignore them or tell them to go away. If you have received a County Court Judgement then the courts could instruct bailiffs to come to your house.
Link Financial cannot force entry, they have no legal powers over you. However, if you have received a County Court Judgement then the courts could instruct bailiffs to come to your house.
Link Financial won’t give up chasing you for the debt until they’ve exhausted all of their legal options. This usually means being chased for up to 6 years.
A debt can be too old to collect from you. Under the Limitation Act 1980 they have a maximum of 6 years to chase a debt. This 6 years is counted from your last payment or the last time that you acknowledged the debt.
As per the Limitation action 1980, you can be legally chased for up to 6 years from your last payment or the last time that you acknowledged the debt. If a County Court Judgment is raised against you the Limitation Act no longer applies and you can be chased indefinitely.
Debts collectors are only likely to write off your debt if they are no longer legally allowed to chase you. This is typically six years since you last made a payment or last acknowledged the debt.
Link Financial has a freephone number that you can use to contact them, or you can contact them via email or post. There is no live chat feature at their website.
You can pay by debit card online, but Link Financial does not accept credit cards. You can also set up a direct debit.
References
CONC 7.9 Contact with customers