It has been said that a debt management company in England must be registered as such in England. What are the implications of one operating despite apparently being registered in Ireland? And how can one find out whether a given company is duly so registered?
asked Sep 27, 2022 at 14:26
JosephCorrectEnglishPronounsJosephCorrectEnglishPronouns
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2 Answers
Debt Management is a regulated activity and has to be authorised by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA).
To find out whether a company is authorised, one may search the FCA's Financial Services Register.
If it is a limited company, a search of Companies House should reveal, among other things, its registered office.
The FCA also has a searchable Warnings List detailing those unauthorised firms and individuals that they are aware of. Note that:
If you deal with an unauthorised firm you will not be covered by the Financial Ombudsman Service or Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS) if things go wrong.
All searches a free.
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What are the implications of a debt being assigned to or pursued by a firm that is not authorised? Sep 27, 2022 at 19:33
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I feel that the question here was about the legality of a debt collector's place of registration rather than it's FCA authorisation status. Also, note that not all debt management is regulated. Only specific types are. Your average "simple" debt where you haven't paid someone for a good or service is unlikely to be covered.– JBentleySep 28, 2022 at 11:22
To add to Rick's answer; the place of registration is irrelevant. If the activity is regulated under the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000, then what matters is where the activity takes place, per Section 19(1) (emphasis mine):
No person may carry on a regulated activity in the United Kingdom, or purport to do so, unless he is —
(a) an authorised person; or
(b) an exempt person.
