Times are tough enough just now without having to add mounting debt and angry-letters into the mix.

Receiving threatening letters from debt collectors or credit companies requesting a debt payment in full, or asking you for money that you do not owe, can cause significant stress and anxiety.

However, rather than fork over the money – as the letters may insist – it is always advisable that you speak to an expert debt advice company.

Doing so will ensure that an agreeable debt solution is made that is in your best interest.

This agreement may even result in a solution which will write off a large portion of the debt you owe!

Did You Know You Can Write Off Up To 85% Of Your Debts?

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Table of Content

1 Who are CL Finance?

Who are CL Finance?

CL Finance is a UK registered debit collection company that handles debts owed on behalf of larger corporations and smaller businesses. They also offer debt management services.

If you receive a letter from CL Finance which says you owe money don’t panic!

There are plenty of free debt solutions that are readily available that will get them off your back for good – without having to pay excesses of money or go to court.

Where are they based?

CL Finance registered address is Kingston House Centre 27 Business Park, Woodhead Road, Birstall, Batley, West Yorkshire.

The correspondence address is Po Box 166, Cleckheaton, West Yorkshire, BD19 4WN.

Are they a legitimate company authorised and regulated in the UK?

CL Finance is an FCA (Financial Conduct Authority) registered company.

As the financial conduct authority regulates them, they are a legitimate business within UK law’s confines.

Their full name Hoist Finance UK Limited and have been in operation since 12th April 1973.

As a registered debt collector, CL Finance is not the sort of company that will leave you alone eventually if you continually ignore them.

Doing so can often worsen things and lead to them calling up continually, or even taking you to court.

That is why we recommended that you contact a debt solutions expert as soon as a CL Finance letter arrives.

What legal powers do they have over me?

Being debt collectors, the legal powers that CL Finance possess are no greater than those of your debt’s original creditor.

They have the right to write letters, contact you through the phone (although not at unreasonable hours), and send debt collection agents to your property or residence.

However, these debt collectors are NOT bailiffs and do not have the right to enter your home without your explicit permission. They must also leave as soon as they are instructed to do so.

Additionally, CF Finance debt collectors are not permitted to remove or reclaim any property without your permission.

To do any of the following, CF Finance must first take you to court:

Reclaim any property as payment of a debt.
Apply for a charging order or an attachment of earnings order.
Invoke a County Court Judgment against you.

Why is a third party contacting me about debt collection?

It can often come as a surprise if you are contacted by a third party debt collection agency you have not had direct dealings with.

However, all this means for you is that a third party debt collection agency will now handle all contact concerning your outstanding debts.

Anyone who is contacted by a third party debt collectors, such as CL Finance, should view it as a fresh opportunity to come to a new credit agreement if possible.

It may be alarming to receive letters from debt collectors; you should keep in mind that you do not owe CL Finance any money.

They have not taken on the debt, but have been hired on the original loaner’s behalf to help them reclaim some or all of the debt.

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How do I contact CL Finance?

You can contact CL Finance through their PO. Box listed above, or through emailing their parent company Hoist Finance at [email protected].

If you are struggling to get in touch with CL Finance or have a grievance to make against them, you can contact the Financial Ombudsman on 0800 023 4567 or 0300 123 9123

How do debt collection agencies operate?

When people think of debt collection agencies, there is a tendency to conjure up imagery of questionable-looking angry men with baseball bats.

In reality, all debt collection agencies that are FCA registered agree to adhere to specific conduct guidelines set by the Credit Services Association (CSA).

These guidelines help prevent debt collectors from harassing people or causing them undue distress.

All CSA registered debt collectors should therefore refrain from any of the following practices:

Contact you at unreasonable hours – such as late at night.
Call you at your work or place of business without permission.
Pressure you into taking on additional debt to cover payments owed.
Deliberately use only jargon and technical terminology to confuse you.
Talk to your family or employer about outstanding debts.
Take payments from you without being granted permission.

If a debt collector such as CL Finance employees any of the above techniques when attempting to reclaim a debt, you should immediately contact the FCA or the Financial Ombudsman.

Why is a debt collection agency contacting you?

If a debt collection agency contacts you, it is essential to remember that they do not have any special legal powers beyond that of the original lender.

Generally speaking, debt collectors work in two different ways:

1) The debt that you owe is sold or ‘assigned’ to a debt collection agency by the original lender. The actual lender sells off the debt for a lump sum, and the debt collection agency then becomes the legal owner of the debt. They then make a profit by recouping the debt in full from you.

2) The original lender still retains ownership over the debt but hires a debt collector on their behalf to contact you. The debt collector then receives a percentage of the debt that they recoup as their payment.

You can quickly determine which of these methods applies to your debt by checking where the debt collecting agency asks you to pay the money.

If it is to the original lender, then there is a high chance they are still the debt owners.

What if I cant afford to pay back a debt?

You should never have to pay more than you can feasibly afford.

As CL Finance are also a debt management service, they will likely be open to making a reduced payment plan that meets your financial capabilities.

However, making reduced payments to a creditor can come with some consequences.

For example, it may cause the creditor to begin taking action in reclaiming the debt you owe.

Reducing payments to a creditor may also affect your credit rating, leading to increased interest rates and charges and making it harder to get any further financial aid from creditors.

If you continue to make reduced payments to a creditor, your loan will eventually become default as you are no longer making the payments that were agreed when you took on the debt.

Before you start looking into making reduced payments it is always advisable to speak with a finance debt advice expert.

Through just a simple phone call, you can attain free, impartial financial debt advice to help work out an affordable solution.

Can pay but won’t pay?

If you owe money that you are not willing to pay, there are a few options open to you.

The easiest and most convenient way to settle an outstanding debt is to make an amicable finance debt arrangement with CL finance.

Given the nature of debts and finance in general, there are always several factors that can weigh into working out a financial debt agreement:

The nature of the outstanding debt.
The total number of outstanding debts that you owe.
The amount of money that you can put towards the outstanding debt.

If you can contribute in part towards any debt you have, it may be possible to arrange a payment plan with CL Finance in which you pay the debt off gradually.

Depending on the nature of the debt, you may also qualify for an Individual Voluntary Agreement (IVA).

An IVA is a legal arrangement formed between you and the creditor in which the creditor divides the debt into 60 or 72 manageable payments.

However, before you seek an IVA, it is always advisable that you reach out for non-partial debt help from a free debt advice expert.

What happens if you don’t pay

Flatout ignoring a debt collector such as CL Finance is never a good idea.

They will continue to use multiple letters, emails and any other way they can to contact you.

If you do not write back or contact CL Finance in any way about your debt, they can peruse legal action.

This initially involves sending a final notice letter to your home, encouraging you to pay the debt or arrange a financial debt arrangement.

Following this, they can take the matter before the county court and issue a County Court Judgement (CCJ) against you, which will arrange for you to make payments.

However, this only happens if you take no action in contacting CL Finance.

If you speak to an expert financial advice service, it may be possible to write off as much as 80% of your debts, or clear them entirely!

While debt collection agencies like CL Finance may come on strong, you should keep in mind that they don’t have the legal powers to repossess your belongings, enter your property without your permission or contact you at unreasonable hours.

Getting expert debt help from a financial advice agency is always the most advisable option for those who have debts that CL Finance is chasing.

How to deal with debt collectors:

Debt collectors are known to employ some questionable methods when chasing a debt.

While CL Finance has to adhere to specific conduct guidelines set out in The Office of Fair Trading (OFT, 2012), this sadly doesn’t stop them from still using some underhand approaches and tactics.

Understanding the standard approaches that debt collectors such as CL Finance often use to wear customers down can be an effective way of knowing how best to deal with them:

Friend-and-Foe tactics: Otherwise known as the ‘good cop, bad cop’ routine, this is a form of psychosocial persuasion that is common practice with debt collecting agencies. This generally takes the form of numerous harassing phone calls, followed by a politer attempt.

Informing others about your debts: OFT regulations prohibit this. However, it is sadly something which many debt collecting agencies such as CL Finance do regularly. Debt collectors are known to inform employees and other members of your household about your outstanding debts in an attempt to embarrass or humiliate you into paying.

Misleading information and lies: If the above tactics prove unsuccessful, debt collecting agencies such as CL Finance are known to resort to deception and lies. They do this to confuse and pressure people into paying and can often lead to severe stress and anxiety.

Taking a stand against a debt collecting agency such as CL Finance may seem like an impossible task. However, this is what they want you to think, but it is quite far from the truth.

Seek debt advisor help:

Debt advisors exist to help people who are struggling to make payments or cover any debts they have.

Getting impartial finance debt advice has never been easier, and help relieve the strains and mental pressures of being harassed by a third party debt collectors such as CL Finance.

It is even possible to write off in the entirety of their debt through an IVA.

Most IVAs involve either a one-off lump-sum payment of a reasonable amount you can afford or several smaller monthly payments. After around five years, they write off the remaining debt.

IVAs and other debt recovery schemes can have an immense help on both your finances and stress-levels.

However, debt collecting agencies such as CL Finance deliberately overlook the possibility of seeking out an IVA. This is because they have a cash incentive in you making a full or partial payment directly to them.

Again, this is because CL finance is a business who receive bonuses for each debt they bring in.

IVAs are a form of insolvency, and therefore must be carried out by an insolvency practitioner.

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Check if you owe a debt collection company money:

If you are unsure if you have any outstanding debts to collection agencies, then have no fear.

We have created a simple and quick survey that can determine whether you owe any money and your eligibility for government schemes that could write of as much as 85% of your debts!

Dealing with debts can be immensely stressful – especially when debt collectors repeatedly call your home, but don’t let the heavy-handedness of debt collectors such as CL Finance get the better of you.

Help is out there.

By doing something as simple as a phone call to an expert debt advice agency, it may be possible to get CL Finance off your back once and for all – without costing an arm and a leg!

List of Debt Collection Agencies UK

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