1. We try to keep the “small print” to an absolute minimum! However, there is a need for the main points to be put into writing, and these terms are legally binding on you and us.
2. If you refer a debt to us, and the customer is solvent and traceable, and if the debt is owing in law (that includes there being no legal ability of the customer to counterclaim, or “set off” or “contra” a separate debt owing to the customer), we will use whatever methods we believe are appropriate to collect that debt on your behalf.
3. We will charge commission whenever any part of the debt is collected. “Collected” means that part or all of the debt is paid, whether by the customer or a third party on their behalf, to you, paid to us, or paid to some third party for your benefit. It also includes goods being returned to you, where you accept the return of goods in lieu of payment. If you accept work to be carried out free of charge by your customer to discharge your debt, either in full or in part, then we are entitled to charge commission on the value of the work carried out, which unless evidence is provided to the contrary, will be valued as the whole of your outstanding debt or the sum that the debt is to be reduced by, following the work being carried out. This applies to any collection after the debt is referred to us (even if made direct to you).
4. If a payment plan is offered on the debt and you decide to accept the same then we are entitled to commission on each payment made, regardless of whether you subsequently instruct us to close our file, given that we have facilitated the same. If you do instruct us to close the file then payment of the commission due will be required to be paid in full within 30 days of closing our file
5. The amount we will charge is the commission rate set out on page one applied to the amount of the debt actually recovered, including any VAT, interest, costs or any other money. Where a debt or part of it is recovered by return of goods or free work as described in paragraph 3, the commission will be payable on a reasonable assessment of the value of the goods/work.
6. Unless the debt or part of it is collected, no commission is charged! If the debt or part of it is collected, the commission is payable by you within 30 days of the collection. We refer the right to charge interest on overdue accounts at the rate of four percent per annum above HSBC Bank’s base rate until paid calculated daily. Payments obtained from your customer will be remitted to you after 3 weeks, so as to clear the insolvency claw back period.
7. We aim to deduct our commission from any payments received by us from the customer. If that sum is recoverable from the customer by law (and we can give no guarantees as to that), we will add the amount of commission we charge to the amount of the debt we seek to recover for you so that where we are successful, when payment is remitted to you, you will receive the full amount of your debt. We cannot guarantee to collect our charges from your customer and if we can’t then the commission will fall to be paid by you.
a. For commercial debts we will also add the statutory debt recovery costs allowed under the Late Payment of Commercial Debts Regulations 2013. If applicable and we add statutory compensation to debts, that additional fee is only payable to us by the customer and will never be paid by or recovered from you. We will not add statutory interest unless this is calculated and submitted by you. The commission rate payable by you for commercial debt recovery is stated on page 1 of your contract.
b. For consumer debts you also authorise us to seek repayment by the customer of an administration fee of £35 plus VAT to cover a proportion of fixed unrecoverable costs, where the amount of the debt is less than £600. Although we retain this fee if paid by the customer, that administration fee is only payable by the customer and will never be paid by, or recovered from you. Please note that if you have signed up with us to refer commercial debt only and you subsequently refer consumer debts to us, then the commission rate charged by us to you will be 20% plus VAT, unless otherwsie stated.
8. To assist us, particularly with paragraph 6 above, you hereby agree that we are entitled to authorise and request any third party (for example a customer’s solicitor, representative or debt management company) to deal with us rather than you, and make payments due in respect of the debt to us. We will not accept any reduced offer in settlement of the debt without your written confirmation.
9. Where our standard collection methods are unsuccessful, we can offer you - without obligation - additional services to assist you in collection. You do not have to take up any additional service, and you would never incur any fees for such services unless you instruct us to do so in writing. If you do instruct us, you agree that you will pay the charges at the prevailing rate. If you don’t instruct us, and we think that there is no alternative option, we can deem the matter closed and take no further action.
10. If you are a gym client and you withdraw the case after we have reconnected you with your customer, we will charge you a £20 plus VAT revoke fee which is payable within 30 days of the invoice
11. The purpose of this contract is to entitle you to become one of our clients for the “life” of your business / company. It is not for one specific matter (even if you have one matter in mind when you enter into this agreement). As a result, once incurred, the administration fee on page one is not refundable. However, if Daniels Silverman Limited considers that, for whatever reason, it is unable to assist you further in respect of a debt collection service, it reserves the right to terminate the agreement by providing 7 days written notice to you, after making every attempt to collect your debt/s for a minimum of 3 months.
12. This contract allows you access to services such as debt collection, credit checking, insolvency management, tracing, and legal assistance. It does not amount to a guarantee we will successfully recover any particular debt. We do reserve the right to refuse to continue acting for you if your cases prove to be un cost effective to recover, if we receive a high number of disputes or your supporting documentation is not adequate to prove your cases, or if there is any risk to our reputation or to continue to act on your behalf could be deemed to be in breach of our regulator’s rules and regulations.
13. Once you have been set up as a client with us your account will only become active once an audit on your account has been completed and you have referred your first debt to us. Until this time, you agree that the use of Daniels Silverman Limited should not be used on any of your own correspondence to customers. You are of course free to confirm that debts will be passed to a debt collection company during this time. Once you are signed up as a client, the use of Daniels Silverman Limited will be permitted for use on your correspondence provided that the debt is referred to us within 3 months
14. We will follow your instructions and will provide professional advice on debt recovery. However, information we provide should not be treated as a full and authoritative statement of the law. We cannot be responsible for incorrect provision of information, or any problems caused by third parties (including any court, agent of ours or the postal service). Any liability of ours to you is expressly limited to either £50,000 or the amount of the debt you referred to us (whichever is the lower sum). If this is an issue, you may wish to obtain appropriate external insurance cover.
15. We and you agree to submit to the jurisdiction of Liverpool County Court in resolution of any issue under this agreement. All monies payable by you are payable in full without deduction or set-off, or withholding for counterclaim, for any reason whatsoever and we reserve the right to contra-charge any payments due to us from any monies owing to you.
16. You warrant that you have not relied on any representation of fact or collateral contract in entering into this agreement, unless the said representation / contract is made in writing and signed by both parties. You further warrant that the undersigned has full authority to bind the contracting party herein.