Can a debt collector write to you at work?

heretolearn_2

Hi

I open the post for our firm - I open all post centrally no matter who it is addressed to. A company called Experto Credite Limited has sent a debt collection letter to one of our employees at our office address. Of course I'm just going to pass the letter on to them discretely but it's got to be an embarrassing situation for them. Which I suppose was the reason they did it. Are they allowed to do this though? The letter wasn't even marked Private & Confidential so they must have known it was going to go through the company's internal post system.However we still open Private & Confidential letters too. All post coming to our address is for our firm, not an individual.

Should I tell my employee to scream blue murder at them for doing this? Have they broken a data protection law or anything. I now know how much this person owes and to whom.

FireWyrm

In a word, no, they shouldnt, but debt collectors are a bunch of shysters anyway. It could be that your employee has given the work address to keep the mail from going to the home address. My OH did this to me until he slipped up and they called me at home one day. If this enquiry is genuine and it's not a 'my friend has this problem' type question....I wouldnt get involved in this. The poor person is probably worried sick anway and doesnt need all and sundry nosing through their personal problems. If your 'friend' is you, I'd be raising holly hell with the debt collection company.

[edit]. How well do you know this person? Given your sig, you might be well placed to offer some gentle advice or support.....

FredWhispers

Yes they can. The key thing is whether they INTENDED to embarrass the debtor.

Do they have the debtors home address? If no, perfectly reasonable to write to the work address.

Did they know it was a work address? If yes, they should have put 'private and confidential'.

Without knowing the full facts we would not be able to say whether or not this was a breach of OFT Debt Collection guidelines.

Frd

heretolearn_2

No, its definitely not me, it's someone who works for me. I feel so sorry for them, I don't want to know their personal details! I'm not going to get involved but I just feel it's really wrong of the debt collector to do this and wondered if they are allowed to?

FireWyrm

Do they directly work for you? If so, then a private (in a closed room) conversation on the QT might be in order. For a start, the person in question shouldnt be using your place of business for this type of correspondance, for second, you are now in a position that they should not have put you in. Persumably they knew that all letters are opened by the company as a matter of policy? Be gentle, there will probably be intense embarrasment and humiliation, perhaps even tears, be prepared. If they dont work directly for you, take them to lunch and give them the letter away from prying eyes. Judge the conversation and if you can, offer advice, perhaps even point them in the direction of this forum, otherwise, it's none of your business and you should keep quiet until your dying day about it.

It's wrong for the debt collector to do it, but it's done. Fred is right, they will pursue every avenue of contact regardless of consequences, but remember, the person must have given them the addresss in the first place - you dont have the full story obviously. I've seen people loose their jobs because of this sort of thing. If they work directly for you....can you help? Can you offer a little discreet overtime anywhere?

BigCraigJohn

OFT debt collection guidance.

Unfair practices

j. acting in a way likely to be publicly embarrassing to the debtor either
deliberately or through lack of care, for example, by not putting
correspondence in a sealed envelope and putting it through a letterbox,
thereby running the risk that it could be read by third parties.


In my opinion that covers it.

They are clearly trying to cause embarrassment to the debtor and nothing else.

chuckley

a lot of the time the work details are to 'check id'. so the employee could may well not know theyre contacting their employer.