London Borough of Hounslow Council recovered £1.4m of outstanding social care debt over three years using Liberata’s static debt solution.
Overview
The London Borough of Hounslow, situated in West London, covers an area of about 22 square miles, including Feltham, Isleworth, Brentwood, Gunnersbury and parts of Chiswick. It was formed in 1965 from an amalgamation of districts included in Middlesex. The council provides a range of services to approximately 275,000 residents.
Hounslow has been in a long-term partnership with Liberata across several service areas, and Liberata was a natural fit to support the council with debt recovery within social care and related (and sensitive) areas of the organisation.
The Requirement
However efficient the council had been in collecting outstanding debt, there was a need for specialist and dedicated support against Social Care. The number of untouched historical cases equated to significant amounts of money owed to Hounslow Council without any indication of action to repay. Though legal support was available for authorities, the need for management of the entire process was significant.
The Solution
Liberata has been providing Debt Recovery Services to local authorities for many years. This is a fully managed service that follows the protocols of statutory legal guidance while liaising directly with the client on behalf of the council. The process for Hounslow specifically involved an initial case review investigation, a financial assessment of the individual in debt, an expenditure analysis to develop a repayment plan or an agreement to settle and reconciliation with the Finance Income department once funds had been received. There were even instances where Liberata worked with the DWP, client solicitors and lawyers, executors and estate managers, appointees and deputies to recover debts. In many cases, we would assist with completing Financial Assessments, which prevented errors from happening when calculating client contributions and ultimately stopped future debt from accumulating.
Highlights
Importantly, Liberata’s service included physical visits, which were essential in collating sufficient evidence and allowing the local authority to gain insight into the individual client’s circumstances when considering settlement options.
In addition, Liberata was able to identify issues that may be impacting other areas of the Council’s financial support, such as outstanding Council Tax, misuse of benefits, or perhaps the need for representation if the client is now lacking mental capacity or deteriorating in health.
My experience of using Liberata Debt Recovery has been very positive. The Debt Recovery Officer/s have been efficient, engaging and proactive. The funds obtained by the Debt Recovery Service have far outweighed the cost.
HELEN TAYLOR, HEAD OF SERVICE, ADULT SOCIAL CARE, LONDON BOROUGH OF HOUNSLOW COUNCIL
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