http://www.csa-uk.com/assets/documents/compliance-and-guidance/code_of_practice.pdf

Common principles

1. Key requirements

 

Every Member shall:

 

a. conduct its business in compliance with all relevant legislation, regulations, regulatory guidance and requirements and this Code of Practice

 

b. conduct its business under names, titles and trading styles which are not intended to confuse, mislead or otherwise embarrass clients, creditors, customers or members of the public and which will not imply any association with other organisations, governmental bodies or persons which either do not exist or carry no association with the business

 

c. cooperate with the CSA, regulators and organisations that regulate or supervise the debt and/or recoveries industry

 

d. make available on their website (if they have one), or following a request, a copy of this CSA Code of Practice

 

e. provide adequate and sufficient training to its employees in order to ensure that they conduct themselves in accordance with this Code of Practice

 

f. regularly examine and audit their practices, strategies, communications and compliance culture against this Code of Practice

 

g. ensure that any communication complies with this Code of Practice and is in plain English

 

h. have and maintain clear and effective policies and procedures covering all business activities they are engaged in

 

i. not unlawfully discriminate against any person

 

j. have in place a separate business account for all monies collected on behalf of clients and instruct their bank that the account only holds client money

 

k. inform their clients of the true rates of charges for services rendered

 

l. distribute client money only as agreed by the client

 

m. report sums collected and remit to their clients at least once a month, or as otherwise agreed, all monies collected

 

n. ensure they undertake due diligence and audit any third party agent on a regular basis to ensure adherence to regulatory requirements and this Code of Practice regardless of whether they are a CSA Member

 

o. comply with all reasonable requests for information made by customers or their representatives, regulators, clients and creditors, whether statutory or not, and upon payment of the statutory fee if applicable

 

p. not place restrictions or time limits on the legitimate querying of unallocated payments

 

q. treat businesses with whom they deal fairly and transparently

 

r. provide prior written notice to customers when outsourcing accounts, to ensure the customer’s awareness of who will be contacting them

 

s. make contact at reasonable times and at reasonable intervals, taking into consideration the reasonable wishes of the customer, which may include the preferred method of communication. Where possible, make customers aware of business opening times and highlight contact periods

 

t. where automated dialling systems are used, ensure compliance to the Ofcom Statement of Policy*

 

u. take appropriate steps to ensure the accuracy of data processed by it and in particular data relating to individuals and their debts

 

v. when an account is reasonably disputed or a complaint is received, suspend collection activity and investigate and where applicable refer the matter to their client

 

w. ensure that it does not put any customer under undue pressure to borrow money

 

x. take reasonable steps to ensure that the person being contacted is in fact the customer

 

y. communicate with customers fairly and transparently, and not intentionally mislead them

 

z. cooperate with customers and their authorised third parties in line with regulatory guidance, and not act in a manner intended to publicly embarrass or cause them distress

 

aa. treat customers fairly and not subject customers (or their authorised representatives) to aggressive practices, or conduct which is deceitful, oppressive, unfair or improper, whether lawful or not

 

bb. exercise forbearance and consideration of customer’s circumstances, of which they are aware, in particular in relation to those who are particularly vulnerable or experiencing severe financial hardship

 

cc. take into account the customer’s circumstances and ability to pay when seeking to recover debts

 

dd. ensure that they take into account the customer’s domicile and the law applicable to the agreement underlying the debt

 

*Ofcom Statement of Policy on the persistent misuse of an electronic communications network or service

 

Common principles

2. Dealing with customer difficulties

Financial difficulties

 

Every Member shall:

 

a. unless instructed otherwise, accept all reasonable offers by customers to pay by instalments provided such customers have supplied (i) evidence of inability to pay in full, and (ii) accurate income and expenditure information demonstrating the maximum amount they can afford to pay

 

b. be empathetic with customers experiencing financial difficulties

 

c. encourage the customer to engage with the Member or offer appropriate signposting to money advice organisations who can assist

 

d. allow the customer to apportion income to the payment of priority debts such as mortgage or rent when assessing the customer’s ability to repay

 

e. suspend any debt collection and recovery activity where the customer demonstrates they are seeking financial assistance and provide the customer breathing space of at least 30 days

 

f. be prepared to accept a token offer made by the customer or their representative when evidence has been provided that they cannot afford to pay more

 

g. consider reducing or stopping interest, charges or fees being applied to the account if the customer has demonstrated financial difficulties

 

h. ensure information in relation to the customer’s financial circumstances is passed on to any third party agency subsequently instructed to collect the debt.

 

Mental health

Every Member shall:

 

i. obtain and use sensitive information only with the explicit consent of the customer. Processing such information must be in accordance with the Data Protection Act 1998 and any guidance published by the Information Commissioner’s Office

 

j. when requesting evidence of mental health problems, seek appropriate information including, where necessary, requests for the completion of the Debt and Mental Health Evidence Form, or similar, from an appropriate/authorised person

 

 

k. in instances where the customer is experiencing mental health problems, only initiate court action to pursue the debt if it is reasonable and proportionate to do so

 

l. ensure information in relation to the customer’s mental health problems is passed on to the instructing client or any third party agent subsequently instructed

 

For the full document : -

code_of_practice.pdf

Previous versions of the CSA code of conduct can be found in the following link.

http://www.consumeractiongroup.co.uk/forum/showthread.php?158567-2008-regs-CSA-Codes-of-conduct-Enforce-the-rules./page4