Account Management & Debt Recovery Officer

Job description

Job responsibilities

Specific duties and responsibilities include:

Provide support to both the team leader and other members of the team regarding the scheduling of key events and ensuring the service is adequately staffed to maintain the production of statements, invoices and reminders.

Responsible for supporting the wider team, providing knowledge and guidance on more complex areas of debt recovery, and debt collection whilst monitoring an allocated number of more complex customers who have been financially assessed to contribute toward the cost of their care packages.

Ensure that the appropriate amount of debt is being recovered on behalf of the council, supporting and protecting the financial status of the organisation.

Using detailed knowledge of the benefit system with consideration to a number of financial factors, understand how the contribution is calculated (including Welfare benefits and NHS Funded Nursing Care - FNC and Continuing Healthcare - CHC), work closely with colleagues to maintain information on client benefits, other council debts etc. and provide a sound but responsive financial standing through the maintenance of relationships with the client and or their representative, attorney or Deputy.

Assess and review customers personal and financial circumstances, ensure that the best interests of the client are served in terms of appropriate payment plans that are manageable in line with their financial portfolio and mitigate the need to progress with third party debt recovery. Record decisions, conversation and any communication to ensure information held about the customer is up to date and in a format that can be understood by others should debt need to be escalated to Debt Management Panel and to the satisfaction of the Legal Department.

Understand and inform ASC Finance teams of changes in customer circumstances in terms of: -

financial capacity including annual income / pension/ benefit upratings, rising and falling capital, questioning significant changes in capital as well as change of address, and particularly sale of property/ assets, to ensure that the contribution is based on current financial standing and does not exceed the cost of their care and support packages.

Their needs for any addition or reduction in care due to a decline or improvement in health, change of care provision/ provider or death.

Ensure that all debts are paid / managed following the cessation of any care package

Negotiate payment terms for unpaid debt with customers / attorneys and work in conjunction with other departments to prepare statements and cases for county court claims where appropriate.

Assist with debt management procedures including the resolution of customer queries, working with the appropriate department to resolve queries. Managing competing priorities to ensure a timely and accurate approach on behalf of the council and clients.

Selecting and instigating appropriate recovery process, monitoring and updating customers accounts, pursuing payment and making arrangements or implementing appropriate debt recovery option according to customers circumstances within a pre-determined framework. This includes recommending debt write-off for unrecoverable debt according to the Debt Management Policy, Financial Regulations and debtors individual circumstances.

Offer guidance on debt recovery and the appropriate and timely passing of debt to third parties and external agents, (Enforcement Agents, Tracing Agents and guidance on the use of internal databases to gather debtor information).

Ensure direct debits are properly claimed and applied, BACS notifications are processed, investigate failed direct debits, unallocated payments, suspense accounts and reconcile payments on a monthly basis. To ensure that accurate payment information is maintained, and any issues are followed up to avoid non-payment of debt.

Ensure Wiltshire Council receives interest on late payments from agreed Customer Types, in accordance with the Late Payment of Commercial Debts (Interest) Act 1998.

Have oversight of cases as they progress and become more complex, responsible for attending and advising the Debt Panel and provide up-to-date evidence to agree suitable action on larger debts, recommend solutions or actions for the more challenging debts. The information and advice provided will impact the way in which the debt is recovered from the client.

Providing guidance and information to a number of partners and third parties, this may include clients, representatives, attorneys and solicitors. Responding to queries and supporting the council to recover debts.

Person Specification

Qualifications

Essential

• HNC or NVQ level 4 or equivalent experience/skills.
• ITQ 2 or equivalent skill and ability.
• Working towards relevant professional qualification.
• Licence / certificate / qualification required for the role.

Experience

Essential

• Educated to a minimum of NVQ level 4 standard (or equivalent) in a finance or debt
• recovery field.
• Previous experience of working in credit control, income collection or debt recovery.
• Evidence of ability to gather, interrogate, reconcile and balance financial records and to explain
• actions and findings.
• Accurate keyboarding skills and experience of working with a various financial software
• packages and systems ( Agresso, Sage, Controcc, Paris, Civica and Web Based Direct
• Debit systems)
• Excellent ability to communicate, influence and negotiate with external agencies
• A thorough understanding of welfare benefits, how they are claimed and how they are paid
• Have a broad knowledge of Local Government
• Excellent communication skills being able to communicate effectively at all levels, including
• when others have communication difficultiesand explain complex matters using the most
• appropriate means and format, by telephone, letter or e-mail.
• Sensitive to vulnerable customers needs and able to prioritise debts but resilient to
• challenges presented by challenging customers.

Desirable

• Have a working knowledge of software systems, specifically ContrOCC, SAP, Civica and
• Northgate
• Adult Social Care Experience
• Working knowledge of the Mental Capacity Act 2005
• Awareness of Adult Safeguarding and indicators of Financial Absue or Fraud

Certificate of Sponsorship

Applications from job seekers who require current Skilled worker sponsorship to work in the UK are welcome and will be considered alongside all other applications. For further information visit the UK Visas and Immigration website (Opens in a new tab).

From 6 April 2017, skilled worker applicants, applying for entry clearance into the UK, have had to present a criminal record certificate from each country they have resided continuously or cumulatively for 12 months or more in the past 10 years. Adult dependants (over 18 years old) are also subject to this requirement. Guidance can be found here Criminal records checks for overseas applicants (Opens in a new tab).

UK Registration

Applicants must have current UK professional registration. For further information please see NHS Careers website (opens in a new window).

Employer details

Employer name

Wiltshire Council

Address

County Hall

Bythesea Rd

Trowbridge

Wiltshire

BA14 8JN

Employer's website

http://www.wiltshire.gov.uk/ (Opens in a new tab)