Vanquis Debt Recovery – Must You Pay?Collection Agencies?

Are you feeling puzzled by a letter from Vanquis Debt Collection you’ve just received? You’re not alone. Every month, more than 170,000 people come to our website seeking advice on how to handle such debt issues. In this article, we’ll guide you through this situation in a simple and clear way. We’ll cover:

• Who Vanquis Debt Collection is and what they do.
• If you really need to pay the debt they are asking for.
• Ways to deal with them if you can’t afford to pay.
• Steps to take if you are unsure about the debt.
• How to get free advice if you need more help.

We know that getting a debt collection letter can be worrying. You might be wondering where this debt came from or if you really have to pay it. Don’t worry, we’re here to help. We have lots of experience in offering guidance to people and helping them understand and deal with debt collection issues. We’re on your side, and we understand how you feel. Let’s work through this together.

Next steps

So now you know who Vanquis debt recovery are, and how you can contact them. We’ll go through the next steps to dealing with them, and even beating them at their own game.

Be active

Make sure you get in touch with Vanquis debt recovery as soon as you receive their letter. The sooner you do this, the sooner you can sort the situation out. 

Follow my ‘prove it’ guide with letter templates and get them to prove that you owe the money.

If you are worried about your financial status, you can also discuss this with them. They may agree to a repayment scheme where you pay off the debt in monthly instalments. 

If you have continued worries about your finances, there are several different charities and services available to you that are in place to help you out. Take a look at Citizens Advice, National Debtline and the StepChange Debt Charity.

Gather information

As soon as you get the letter from Vanquis debt recovery, you should try and dig out as much information as you can. Cross-reference all the figures on all the correspondence that you can find with the debt letter. If there are any discrepancies between the numbers, you may not have to pay the debt.

Similarly, if you don’t believe that the debt is yours, you can ask Vanquis debt recovery to prove the debt with a ‘Prove the Debt’ letter. There are some great templates for these on our article on proving the debt letters.

Check your payment history

As part of your information gathering, you should check the date of your last payment or written communication about the debt in question.

If it has been 6 years – or 5 years in Scotland – since you last paid towards your unsecured debts and you have not written to your creditor about your debt during this time, it is statute-barred.

This means that the debt is not enforceable. It still technically exists, and you still technically owe the money, but there is no legal way for you to be forced to pay or for the debt to be enforced.

Keep in mind that not all debts become statute-barred!Any HMRC debts, for example, will stay enforceable for decades. Any debt that had a County Court Judgement (CCJ) attached to it during the 5 or 6-year window it will be enforceable for the duration of the CCJ.

Pay the debt

If you are certain that the debt is yours and you have the funds to pay it in full, you should pay Vanquis debt recovery as soon as you can. This will stop them from hassling you with further phone calls and letters. 

There is also a chance that they might reduce the debt slightly too, so it’s worth trying to sort it out as soon as you can.

I can’t afford to pay Vanquis Debt Recovery

If you can’t afford to pay off your Vanquis debt in one go, they have to offer you a few different payment plans or structures.

I always recommend getting any payment plan agreement in writing before making any payment, so it’s harder for them to argue about the debt in the future!

But sometimes, managing unsecured debts feels impossible and their offered payment plans aren’t helpful enough!

If you are in a similar situation and can’t afford to follow one of their suggested payment schemes, you may need to look at a debt solution.

There are several in the UK, so you will need to speak to a debt charity for some free financial advice before you start a debt solution. I have linked some charities that offer these services at the bottom of this page.

Debt Management Plan (DMP)

A DMP is an informal debt solution that lets you pay off your debts via a single monthly payment.

Because it is informal, it is not legally binding so you are not tied into a DMP for a minimum number of payments.

Individual Voluntary Arrangement (IVA)

An IVA is a formal agreement between you and your creditors. You agree to pay a monthly sum that is distributed amongst your debts, and your creditors agree not to contact you during your IVA.

IVAs typically last for 5 or 6 years, and any outstanding debt is wiped off when it ends.

Keep in mind that IVAs are not suitable for everyone. You need to owe several thousand pounds to more than one creditor to be eligible. You also need to demonstrate that you have some disposable income every month.

Trust Deed

IVAs are not available in Scotland. Instead, you will need to opt for a Trust Deed.

Trust Deeds work in the same way as an IVA – you pay an agreed sum each month that is shared amongst your creditors, they can’t contact you, and any leftover debt at the end of your Trust Deed term is written off.

Debt Relief Order (DRO)

A DRO is a good option for those facing financial hardship with no assets and little income.

For 12 months, you make no payments, but your creditors freeze your interest and don’t contact you.

If your finances haven’t improved during this year, you may be able to write off your unsecured debts.

Bankruptcy

If you have debts but no realistic possibility of ever paying them off, you may need to declare bankruptcy.

Bankruptcy has an unfair stigma attached to it as it may be your only way of getting a financial fresh start. That said, it is a serious financial situation that should not be taken lightly.

Sequestration

Sequestration is the Scottish version of bankruptcy.

If you have little income and no valuable assets, you may be able to apply for a minimal asset process bankruptcy (MAP). A MAP is a quicker, cheaper, and more straightforward version of sequestration, so worth considering.

Thousands have already tackled their debt

Every day our partners, The Debt Advice Service, help people find out whether they can lower their repayments and finally tackle or write off some of their debt.

Natasha

I’d recommend this firm to anyone struggling with debt – my mind has been put to rest, all is getting sorted.

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How do I Make a Complaint About Vanquis?

If you think that Vanquis Debt Recovery 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 Vanquis 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

You can make any secondary complaint to the Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS). They will investigate and, if your complaint is upheld, Vanquis may be fined. You could even be owed compensation.

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FAQs

We answer some of the more commonly asked questions about Vanquis debt recovery and debt collectors in general.