DMBM617050 - Pre-enforcement: Fast Track recovery action for important and significant cases: recovery and enforcement action

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It is imperative that you take swift and effective action to recover payment of any charges referred to you under the fast track procedure.

England, Wales and Northern Ireland

The DMB Field Force Enforcement Team will

  • issue a distraint warning letter, which will include the Compliance caseworker’s contact details (Please notify the Compliance Caseworker the letter has been issued)
  • allocate the case to a DMB Field Force collector for an enforcement call (usually for the week following the deadline date mentioned in the letter)
  • copy the email to the relevant DMB Field Force Technical HO.

Where appropriate the DMB Field Force Technical HO will advise the DMB FFC on the most effective approach to take. It is important to note that you cannot use distraint action to enforce Contract Settlement charges.

No response to distraint warning letter

Where payment is not made the Field Force collector will call on the customer to

  • collect payment or
  • levy distraint and
  • encourage them to submit the required information to Compliance.

TTP should not be accepted.

Customer is not present when the Field Force collector calls

If the customer is not in when the FFC calls, leave the standard letter (but include the name and phone number of the Compliance caseworker so that any questions regarding the charge or its validity can be answered by them).

If the Compliance caseworker is contacted by the customer then they will alert the relevant DMB Field Force Enforcement team by emailing the relevant mailbox.

Charge disputed

The DMB Field Force collector will have the Compliance caseworker’s name and contact details when making the call. If the customer disputes the charge the FFC can contact the Compliance caseworker either in advance or from the customer’s premises in order to resolve issues about the validity of a debt.

Insufficient effects for distraint or sale does not clear the debt

Where there are insufficient effects for distraint, or distraint and sale does not clear the debt, the FF collector will return the case to FF Enforcement Team with the template.

The FF Enforcement Team should:

  • for England and Wales:
  • progress the case as in DMBM605450 (This content has been withheld because of exemptions in the Freedom of Information Act 2000) 
  • request a ‘CPC claim’ via IDMS
  • note IDMS “DMBM617000 Compliance Case”
  • forward the template to BEU Postbox: DL-DMB Bradford CFT referral 
  • for Northern Ireland:
  • for all areas:
  • consider DMBM685020 where other enforcement methods are not feasible.

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Scotland

DMB Enforcement and Insolvency Services (EIS) Scotland will

Where the customer is not present when a call is made or disputes the charge, follow the guidance as for England, Wales and Northern Ireland above.

Do not allow TTP for these cases.

If payment is not made, refer the case for summary warrant action where appropriate.