New joint venture to target £20bn in debts
For a number of years, HMRC and other Government agencies have been working with private sector organisations to collect debt owed to the Government. Following a review of the debt collection services a new joint venture has been launched with the private sector. A new company, called Integrated Debt Services Limited (that is jointly owned by the government and TDX Group, an Equifax company) will launch in 2015.
The company will use a range of debt management services to support debt recovery with a focus on increasing returns, while using detailed analytics so that individuals are treated appropriately and fairly. TDX group is based in Nottingham and the joint venture will initially create between 30 and 40 jobs in the area.
It is estimated that the total debt owed to Government stands an astonishing £22.6 billion. This is from many sources including unpaid fees, taxes, fines and loans, ineligible benefits or grants and unrecovered costs from court cases.
The service will launch initially with 6 customers – HMRC, the Department for Work and Pensions, the Home Office, Student Loans Company, the Legal Aid Agency and the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency. In time, the joint venture will also offer services to the wider public sector.
Announcing this move, Minister for the Cabinet Office Francis Maude said:
‘As part of our long term economic plan we are working to get a grip on tackling the billions of pounds of uncollected debt owed to government. Establishing this company is an innovative approach which will build a sustainable and world-class recovery service for the public sector, and intelligently tackling a complex problem.’