In debt recovery, there are a lot of rules to follow, and with good reason. They’re there to protect businesses, to protect the public, and to make sure the job gets done fairly. At Churchill Recovery Services in Merseyside, we don’t see compliance as red tape—it’s just part of how we work every day.
We train our staff regularly, not just once and done. Everyone on the team has to pass a yearly compliance test, and we keep records and audits so we know we’re staying on track. It’s not about making life difficult for our staff, it’s about making sure that when we deal with the public, we’re doing things properly and professionally.
We’re regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), and we stick to the Treating Customers Fairly principles. That’s really important to us, because we know most people don’t wake up one day and decide to get into debt. Usually something’s happened in their life, and we’d rather help them find a way out than make things worse. We also support the advice sector—charities like StepChange and the Money Advice Trust—because they do brilliant work helping people see the bigger picture.
On the technical side, yes, there are more boxes to tick. We meet PCI DSS standards so credit card details are always safe, and we follow Ofcom’s rules when we’re making outbound calls with predictive dialling. We’re also proud to be members of the Credit Services Association, which means we’re part of a wider community working to raise standards across the industry.
Why does all this matter? For our clients, it means peace of mind—you know your case is being handled the right way. For the people we’re chasing, it means they’re treated with respect and fairness, even when the conversations are tough. Compliance is what keeps that balance in place.
And if you’re reading this because you’re struggling with debt yourself, you don’t have to face it alone. There are free, independent organisations out there who can help:
StepChange Debt Charity – 0800 138 1111 – www.stepchange.org
National Debtline – 0808 808 4000 – www.nationaldebtline.co.uk
Citizens Advice – 08444 111 444 – www.citizensadvice.org.uk
At the end of the day, compliance isn’t a line on a website for us. It’s the way we make sure our clients are protected, our staff are confident in what they do, and the people we deal with are treated fairly. It’s not about ticking boxes—it’s about doing things right.