Ultimate Guide to Trace Debt Recovery

If you have received a call or letter from Trace Debt Recovery it may leave you feeling lost, anxious and stressed, but it doesn’t have to be this way.

Debt doesn’t have to take a hold of your life, there are many easy ways to take back control of your finances.

Our Ultimate Guide to Trace Debt Recovery will answer all your questions and provide you with many helpful tips and advice on how to deal with Trace Debt Recovery. So, if you are interested in learning how to deal with debt collectors and reduce your debt by up to 85%, then fill out the quick and easy form below.

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Don’t let debt weigh you down, read our Ultimate Guide to Trace Debt Recovery to learn how to decrease your debt and increase your happiness.

Table of Content

1 Who is Trace Debt Recovery?
2 Is Trace Debt Recovery a legitimate company authorised and regulated in the UK?
3 How do I contact Trace Debt Recovery?
4 Why have I received a letter or call from Trace Debt Recovery?
5 What legal powers does Trace Debt Recovery have over me?
6 What can’t Trace Debt Recovery do?
7 What if Trace Debt Recovery breaches regulations?
8 What if I cant afford to pay back a debt?
9 How to deal with debt collectors
10 Where can I find debt advisor help?
11 How to check if you really owe a debt collection company money?
12 List of Debt Collection Agencies UK

Who is Trace Debt Recovery?

Trace Debt Recovery is a debt collection company, based in Northampton, in the UK.

Their main focus is on reclaiming outstanding parking fines and they have over 30 years of experience in this field.

Trace work for various parking institutions, such as hospital parking lots, residential locations, local councils and NCP car parks.

Alongside working with parking enforcement services, Trace Debt Recovery also work with the British Parking Association (BPA).

They are registered on Companies House and their company number is 10079126.

Their company address is as follows: Suite S2, Barratt House, Kingsthorpe Road, Northampton, England, NN2 6HT.

If you would like to have a look at their company information, you can click here.

Is Trace Debt Recovery a legitimate company authorised and regulated in the UK?

Trace is a legitimate company in the UK and is governed by the International Parking Community(IPC), the Credit Services Association (CSA) and the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA).

They are regulated in accordance with the CSA code of practice, if you want to learn more about the CSA code of practice click here.

The FCA work to protect consumers, you can read the FCA guidelines here.

Trace Debt Recovery only works for companies listed as part of the IPC or BPA.

How do I contact Trace Debt Recovery?

You can contact Trace Debt Recovery via the following methods:

Call their payment line on 03300 080 477.
Call their enquiry line on 01604 968 123.
Send a letter to Trace Debt Recovery UK Limited, PO Box, 1448, Northampton, NN2 1DW.
Complete an enquiry form on their website.
Request a call back on their website.

Their payment phone line is open 24 hours, however, their enquiry line’s opening hours are Monday to Friday, 9 AM to 5 PM.

So, if you have any enquiries be sure to call in the noted time frame to ensure your query gets answered.

Why have I received a letter or call from Trace Debt Recovery?

Receiving a letter or call from Trace Debt Recovery can be confusing at first as it may not be a company that you recognise or have ever dealt with before.

The most likely reason that Trace will be reaching out to you is due to an outstanding payment on a parking ticket.

Trace Debt Recovery is a specialist in the collection of Parking Charge Notices (PCNs) which have been ignored and unpaid.

Trace’s website states that they provide a ‘streamlined approach and robust route to court’, meaning they collect debts via legal action.

Not only is there the threat of stressful court proceedings, but Trace also provide a tracking service to locate debtors who have changed address, so there really is no escape.

Keep reading our Ultimate Guide to Trace Debt Recovery to learn how to deal with debt collectors.

What legal powers does Trace Debt Recovery have over me?

To begin with, Trace will reach out to you via letter, call or email, however, if they keep getting dismissed and no payments are being made, then matters will be escalated to the court.

Legally, they can do the following:

Build interest on top of your payments.
Attempt to claim a County Court Judgement (CCJ).
Request for action from bailiffs to repossess belongings from the debtor.
Initiate the process for bankruptcy.

The steps listed above are, obviously, very scary and serious, so, it is important to deal with your situation in a sensible and timely manner to avoid adverse outcomes.

What can’t Trace Debt Recovery do?

As Trace Debt Recovery is governed by the CSA and the FCA, there are certain rules and regulations which must be adhered to.

Debt collection companies, like Trace Debt Recovery, are unable to do the following:

Call debtors outside of reasonable hours.
Threaten debtors with bullying behaviour.
Take payment from a debtor without their permission.
Enter a debtors property without their permission.
Lie about the legal powers which they possess.
Pressure a debtor to take out further loans to make a repayment.
Discuss the debt with anyone other than the individual.

If Trace breaches any of these rules, then you should file a formal complaint.

If you want to find out how you can raise a complaint about Trace Debt Recovery then continue reading our Ultimate Guide to Trace Debt Recovery.

What if Trace Debt Recovery breaches regulations?

If Trace Debt Recovery deviates from any of the rules, then you are entitled to file a formal complaint about their conduct.

The first thing you need to do is raise the complaint directly with Trace in writing.

You can send a letter to Trace Debt Recovery UK Limited, PO Box, 1448, Northampton, NN2 1DW or you can send your concern online via their enquiry form.

Make sure you keep a copy of your letter and the date on which you sent it. It’s important to keep documentation of all your interactions with Trace, just in case the matter escalates to legal action being taken. As keeping records can help your case against Trace.

Once you have sent your letter or email to Trace, they have an obligation to acknowledge your concerns and attempt to find a suitable resolution to the matter.

If you feel like the appropriate steps to resolve the matter haven’t been taken, you can then escalate your complaint to the Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS), who can explore the claim independently.

You can learn more about the FOS’s complaints procedure here.

What if I cant afford to pay back a debt?

First of all, don’t panic! If you don’t think you have the funds to pay back your debt, there are various options that can be explored to help you out.

The most popular option is a payment plan, which can be agreed upon with the debt collection agency.

A payment plan, typically, allows a debtor to pay small instalments each month until the debt has been paid in full.

If you wish to set up a repayment plan, then it is advisable to contact Trace Debt Recovery directly, as ultimately it is their decision whether they accept this method of payment or not.

To consider what other options you may have, speak with a debt advisory charity, that will help you assess your finances and find a method of repayment that will work best for you.

Continue reading our Ultimate Guide to Trace Debt Recovery to find our list of recommended debt advisory services.

How to deal with debt collectors

Debt collectors can be difficult at times and their techniques can often be sly.

So, we have made a list of top tips on what you should and shouldn’t do:

Respond to their communications in a timely manner.
Never ignore debt collectors, they will keep pestering you until they get what they want.
Speak with a professional debt advisor or debt advisory service.
Don’t rush, it’s okay to take some time to explore your payment options.
Make sure you know your rights.
Never agree to a payment plan which isn’t realistic.
Ensure you update your credit file when the debt has been cleared.

Continue reading our Ultimate Guide to Trace Debt Recovery to find out how to check if a debt is really yours.

Where can I find debt advisor help?

Debt advisory services aim to provide assistance and guidance to individual’s who are struggling with debt,

Our recommended debt charities are listed below:

How to check if you really owe a debt collection company money?

You can double-check that debt is definitely yours by sending a Prove the Debt letter to the debt company which has been chasing you.

A Prove the Debt letter will prompt Trace Debt Recovery to send you documented evidence that the debt is yours, how much it is for and the name of the original company to which it was owed.

Do not pay any money to the debt collection agency, unless they are able to present you with authentic documentation, such as an original credit agreement.

If you are struggling to write a Prove the Debt letter, you can find various templates online to copy.

Another thing to consider is whether your debt can be classed as stature-barred debt.

Statute-barred debt is a debt which:

Is over 6 years old.
No payments have been made in the previous 6 years.
No attempts to chase the debt have been made in the previous 6 years.
Has never been issued with a CCJ.

If your debt ticks off these traits, then you are no longer liable to make this payment and, legally, Trace Debt Recovery isn’t able to chase you for these funds.

However, refusing to pay debts, even if they are six years old, can impact your credit score, so if you have the funds available to make a payment, it is advisable to pay off all debts, even if they are classes as a stature-barred debt.

List of Debt Collection Agencies UK

Here is a list of all the debt collectors in the UK.