Getting a message from a debt collection agency is alarming, and it is exactly the kind of moment scammers try to exploit. So here is the honest picture: when an account would ever reach a third party, how to tell a genuine contact from a scam, and — most usefully — how to take the account back into your own hands by talking to us first.
While we are working with you on a repayment arrangement, and for as long as a request for extra support is active on the account, we do not pass it to a third-party collector. Reaching out to us is the single most reliable way to keep an account in our hands.
When — and whether — an account ever reaches a third party
Our strong preference is to resolve things directly with you. A third party only becomes a possibility after an account has been left in arrears, with us unable to reach an agreement and contact attempts going unanswered — and even then it is a last resort, not an automatic step. There is no fixed trapdoor and nothing happens behind your back: we would always rather agree something workable than escalate.
Two situations take escalation off the table entirely:
- You are in an active arrangement. If we have agreed a repayment arrangement, a payment freeze or a hardship variation, we hold collection activity while that plan is running.
- You have asked for extra care. If you have told us you need extra support, we will not pass your account to a third-party debt collector while that flag is active — see how to tell us you need extra support.
How to check a contact is genuine — and not a scam
Debt-collection pretexts are a favourite cover story for fraudsters, because urgency and a little fear make people act before they think. A genuine contact and a scam behave very differently, and a few simple checks settle it.
- We tell you in advance, and in writing. If a third party were ever going to contact you, we would let you know first, in writing, who they are. A collector arriving out of the blue with no prior word from us is a reason to stop and verify, not to pay.
- We never tell you to move money to a "safe account". There is no such thing as a "safe account". Anyone — claiming to be us, a collector, or your bank — who tells you to move money to protect it is running a scam, full stop.
- We never pressure you or demand secrets. A genuine contact does not threaten you into paying within minutes, and never needs your full card number, PIN, online-banking password or a one-time code. See how Credicorp will — and won't — contact you.
- Check independently before you act. Do not use a link or phone number from the message itself. Go to credicorp.co.uk yourself, sign in, and check, or contact us through the official site. A real matter will still be there; a scam falls apart the moment you check it. The tell-tale signs of a fake message are in recognising phishing and smishing.
The 100% cost cap still applies — even in collections
Escalation does not change the price of the loan. The total cost of a single loan stays capped at 100% of what you borrowed — you will never repay more than double the amount borrowed on one loan, whether the account is on track, in arrears, or with a collector. There is no penalty-rate uplift for falling behind: interest does not jump or compound because an account has been escalated, and a third party cannot add charges that breach that cap. Many high-cost lenders let default charges balloon past the principal once an account is "in collections" — we do not, and the cap holds throughout.
How to bring the account back on track
The most powerful thing you can do is talk to us first. Almost any account heading toward escalation can be steadied with an arrangement, and asking for one is sensible, not a black mark.
- A repayment arrangement. A reduced-payment plan or a short payment freeze reshapes the schedule around what the business can manage — see what a repayment arrangement is and how to set one up.
- A payment extension. If only a single due date is the problem, a short payment extension may be all you need.
- A hardship variation. For longer-term difficulty — a lost contract, a downturn, an unexpected cost — a hardship variation changes the terms more substantially so the plan is sustainable.
Use the Payment Arrangement Request form, or tell us through your portal or by phone. Telling us you are struggling, or asking about an arrangement, is not a penalty and is not reported to credit reference agencies as a missed payment — and once a plan is in place, the account stays with us. For the wider picture, see what happens, step by step, if a payment is missed.
Free, independent help
You do not have to work this out alone, and independent advice is free. Business Debtline gives free, impartial debt advice to the self-employed and small businesses (businessdebtline.org, 0800 197 6026). For personal money worries, the government-backed MoneyHelper (moneyhelper.org.uk) and Citizens Advice (citizensadvice.org.uk) can both help. Getting advice never affects how we treat your account, and it often makes an arrangement easier to agree. For the full list of services, see where to get free, independent debt advice in the UK.
A Credicorp loan is credit to a UK limited company or LLP for business purposes — the company is the borrower, with no personal guarantee. As lending to a company it sits outside FCA consumer-credit regulation under Article 60B of the FSMA Regulated Activities Order 2001, so it is not covered by the Financial Ombudsman Service or the Financial Services Compensation Scheme. The protections described here — the 100% cost cap, no penalty-rate uplift, and not passing customers in an arrangement or extra-care flag to a third party — are commitments we make regardless.
See also: Can my accountant or another representative deal with you on our behalf?, Can my company make a partial payment if it cannot pay in full?, Can I pause payments if my company hits a cash-flow gap?.