London House News

As mentioned last month, we are now pleased to confirm that we have opened two new Franchised offices. 

Chris Metalle and Chris Richards have joined us as the Franchise Owners for South East London. Chris M has a Corporate Finance Director background with such firms as BZW and Deloitte & Touche whilst Chris R was formerly a Chartered Engineer and latterly held senior positions with both Whitbread Plc and Cap Gemini Plc. They will be covering the SE postcode area.

 Meanwhile, Deborah Braithwaite has joined us as Franchise Owner for Bolton & Oldham. Deborah's recent background is as an HR Manager with Greater Manchester Police where she led a team of 10. Her earlier career included over 10 years retail experience mainly in the construction industry at Director level. Deborah will be covering the BL and OL postcodes. 

Welcome to you all. 

Interest in becoming a Franchise Owner with London House remains very strong. We have training booked for November for a further two Franchise Owners. More information on this next month. 

You asked us

"As part of my information on an individual, I have a National Insurance number. Can you do anything with this?" 

In a word - No. It is illegal and in breach of Data Protection rules for us to use this information for enquiries. However, it can on a rare occasion be valuable for confirming a persons identification. The same also applies to Passport numbers.

Focus on......Road Traffic Accident Reports

A service that some of you may not know we provide is that of RTA reports. We are receiving an increasing number of requests for this service and all of our managers are experienced at preparing details of the scene of an accident which can be produced in Court if necessary. We are qualified to prepare plans and reports and take a series of detailed photographs to be produced with those plans as evidence. This can be difficult and complex work and in some cases the smallest detail can make all the difference to the outcome of an insurance claim or court case. We also take detailed statements from witnesses and all parties involved.

Mirror, Signal, Manoeuvre

We have all been there.....a multi lane roundabout, rush hour traffic, and drivers blindly swapping lanes and dodging traffic as if on the dodgems at the fair. We were recently instructed to provide a report on such a scenario to assist the Court in making a judgement for the insurance companies as to who was liable. This accident had occurred at the roundabout that marked the junction with the A11 and the A406 (the start of the North Circular) and was due to drivers being in the wrong lane to make their turning correctly.

As you can imagine, this is a major junction and we had to have our wits about us as we prepared diagrams, took measurements, photographs of all entrances and exits as well as the accident site to provide the information needed by our instructing client. We even had to measure the lanes on the roundabout, no easy task. Whilst the bulk of the work was completed during the day we had to return to the location during the evening to measure the lanes, so that we could stop the traffic while causing as little disruption as possible.

November 2011

The Consumer Credit Counselling Service (CCCS) has revealed that more than one million young Britons are struggling to cope with debt. The report "Debt and the Generations" says that consumers under the age of 40 are struggling against higher built up debts, reducing real incomes and increasing difficulties in saving. The research found that more than 1,000,000 households in the 18-39 age group are already struggling and a further 893,000 are at risk of falling into difficulty. Amongst other things, the report goes into detail about unsecured debt volumes and makes for unpleasant reading.

We acknowledge of course that these are difficult, indeed unusual, times but does lead me again to reiterating my views that the basics of personal finance should and must be taught to our younger generations from an early age. There is nothing wrong in teaching people how to manage their funds and what the consequences of failing to do that may be.

London House News

We have now started training for two new Franchise Owners. Full details will be released next month following completion of the training, but our newest recruits will be covering the South East London area and Bolton & Oldham.

We are of course in Conference season and we have attended two this month. The Civil Court Users Association (CCUA) and the London Fraud Forum are both excellent days, full of topical debate, with high quality speakers, informative sessions and up to date information. It is also time well spent in meeting colleagues and peers from the industry to compare notes and network.

You asked us

"What type of information do you need from us to allow you to begin your enquiries?"

Whilst we do many different types of investigations the core information that we require is typically the same - Full name, d.o.b. and last known address. This basic information allows us to begin work on the majority of the instructions that you send to us e.g. trace, discreet investigations and status reports or means interviews. Dependant on the specifics of the case other types of data that are often needed or of help are:

• Account/payment  history (for means interviews or shortfall counselling)
• Known or rumoured asset details if we are instructed to try and find further assets or report on lifestyle etc
• Copy invoices and correspondence to support our visit when recovering commercial debt
• A description, if known, of the subject can often help when serving legal process - as you know some do try to deny their identity!
• Phone numbers are always advantageous. Even old ones found in files can sometimes lead us to the subject
• A few lines of background information to your case is invariably a help. It provides us with an outline understanding of the issues you are facing and often an understanding of the subject!
• Previous or linked address information if you have it and date of last contact with the subject can assist with our efforts to trace or serve the subject

Of course, each case is different and we are always happy to chat through cases with you and decide what is likely to be the best course of action for you. Please do not hesitate to pick up the phone and give us a call.

Focus on......Commercial Property Repossession

We undertake many repossessions during the course of our work but some of you may not know that we do commercial repossessions as well as residential. Our work in this sector is varied with us repossessing many types of property from farms, shops and warehouses to hotels, pubs, guest houses and even a whole industrial estate.

As with a residential property repossession we attend with a bailiff and when he has executed his warrant we take over. We take meter readings and liaise with the utility companies, drain down systems, change locks and make the property secure according to our clients instructions. A full schedule of anything left in the property is taken along with photographs. If required we also arrange for clearance of the site and then undertake weekly security visits.

All in a days work

As can probably be imagined we come across all manner of things to be dealt with on a commercial repossession. Normally potential complications are identified on a pre-repossession visit and solutions put in place ready for the day of the repossession. On occasion however, we are not asked to visit the property before the day and we don't know what we will find until we get there. For instance, we were instructed to take possession of a farm that was used for breeding chickens. On arrival the occupier had vacated the property but kindly left behind his stock of several thousand chickens. You have a limited number of options in such an instance but our local Franchise Owner saved the day (and the chickens) by getting them rehomed with another farmer in the region.

Similarly, we recently took possession of a livery stable and on this instruction we had visited beforehand. There was no livestock at the property. However, on the day of the repossession when we arrived we were greeted by a fully grown pig, weighing over 20 stone, that had been raised as a pet. Clearly the former occupier was keen to make our job that much harder. Legally the owner had 21 days in which to collect his goods and in the meantime the pig had to be looked after. You cannot move a pig without a carrier licence and our local manager arranged contact with a nearby farmer who was able to move it to his own farm. However, this could not happen until after we had the involvement of a vet, Trading Standards and DEFRA.

October 2011

What a varied month! 30 degree temperatures in Milton Keynes whilst at the same time snow was falling in The Cairngorms. England go crashing out of the Rugby World Cup amidst background controversy, Greece secures another loan, unemployment figures reaching a 17 year high, UK banks downgraded, Belgian bank Dexia gets a bailout and MPs and their working relationships all keep the press occupied. Times are certainly not dull.

London House News

As you read this we are in the process of training another new Franchise Owner.

Julia Bradbury has joined us and will be our Franchise Owner for the Leeds area. Julia is a qualified Accountant with a background of senior managerial experience. Welcome Julia. In addition, further training programmes are now booked for later in the year, and more details about these next month.

Our latest edition of The Score is now out and you can access an on-line copy by clicking on the link in the left hand column. We hope you enjoy it. If you would also like to receive a hardcopy, please let us know.

Finally, we attended this month the Annual CSA Conference in Birmingham. As ever, an excellent conference with good speakers, informative workshops and great networking opportunities.

You asked us

"The latest UK Debt figures have been released this month. They don't make for pleasant reading. Any thoughts?"

The figures do indeed give reason for concern with a number of startling statistics. There is obviously nothing we at London House can do to influence them, but the information can help when it comes to considering the way ahead. The industry can use them when lobbying or for just raising awareness. I am a firm believer that personal finance should be taught at school, in depth, and the younger generations made aware of the consequences of poor financial control. Alas, the current parlous financial state of many individuals means that there will always be plenty of work for London House and its clients.

If you have not seen the figures, here are some highlights:

Total UK personal debt at the end of July 2011 stood at £1,451bn. Individuals currently owe nearly as much as the entire country produced between Q2 2010 and Q1 2011.

UK banks and building societies wrote off £8.0bn of loans to individuals in the 4 quarters to end Q2 2011. In Q2 2011 they wrote off £2.06bn (£1.15bn of that was credit card debt). This amounts to a write-off of £22.54m a day.

Average household debt in the UK is ~ £8,055 (excluding mortgages). This figure increases to £15,491 if the average is based on the number of households who actually have some form of unsecured loan.

Average household debt in the UK is ~ £55,814 (including mortgages).

Today in the UK

• 334 people every day of the year will be declared insolvent or bankrupt. This is equivalent to 1 person every 59 seconds during a working day.  
• 1,391 Consumer County Court Judgments (CCJs) were issued every day during Q2 2011 and the average judgment amount was £3,345.
• Citizen Advice Bureaux dealt with 9,072 new debt problems every working day in England and Wales during the year ending March 2011.
• The average cost of raising a child from birth to the age of 21 is £27.50 a day.
• 99 properties were repossessed every day during Q2 2011.
• 112 new people became unemployed for more than 12 months every day during the 12 months to end June 2011.
• 1,688 people reported they had become redundant every day during 3 months to end June 2011

197 mortgage possession claims will be issued and 154 mortgage possession orders will be made today.

Focus On.....Vehicle Recovery

We are often asked if we can help with recovery of a vehicle following the finance plan falling into arrears. Historically this has always been a service offered by London House and, although we no longer undertake the "routine" recovery of cars, we are happy to help our clients with the more complex or demanding of cases. This may involve for instance, larger vehicles or one off cases where some investigation or surveillance is also required to locate the subject and the vehicle.

We are always happy to chat through individual cases with our clients and advise where necessary on the proposed way forward.

A Weekend in Belgium

A banking client phoned and asked if we could help with the recovery of some bank property. They had lent money under a finance arrangement for the purchase to a gentleman who had then defaulted on the repayments. The bank ascertained that the debtor had then given the asset, a Winnebago, to his son who was a Motocross Rider and he had taken the vehicle out of the country. Therefore, there were two breaches of their arrangement and they wanted the vehicle back.  The bank found that the son was likely to be competing in an event in Belgium that weekend and could we help?

We telephoned the event organisors and they confirmed that the subject was riding that weekend, so we set about our plans. Two of our Franchise Owners packed their bags and went to Belgium. Their first task was to find the vehicle when they got to the venue. Unsurprisingly, there were 300+ Winnebagos at the venue and they could not identify the bank's asset. It transpired that both the decal and the plates had been changed. Therefore, they watched the racing and waited for the subject to finish his race and return to the vehicle. He wheeled his bikes into the back of it and then went inside. When we knew we had got our man, we knocked on the door and advised him why we were there and that we wanted the keys. 

At this point his father, the actual debtor, appeared and wanted to know what was happening. After much discussion the father disappeared for a few moments and then returned with an offer of cash to bring the account up to date. Although a Sunday, our banking client was available on the phone and, after discussing the proposition with them, they agreed to take the money on offer to bring the account up to date.

September 2011

Now that the holiday season is over the phone calls and post to London House are back to their normal high levels following the usual August dip. A number of people have commented this year on how quiet August seemed to be. 

These are interesting times for the industry with a number of debtors making the most of the continued low Base Rate to make inroads into their debts. Indeed, a study on behalf of solicitors, Irwin Mitchell, of data from 12,500 households in mortgage arrears showed that more than half of those borrowers, who had received a home visit about their default, paid off some or all of their arrears during the second quarter of 2011.

The study also showed that the amount of these borrowers paying off their arrears had increased 7% compared to the same quarter in 2010. It had also shot up by 43% compared to two years ago.

London House News

Following Mike King joining us last month, we now have 38 Franchise Owners who between them own 48 regional offices and cover 63 postcode territories. A number of our Franchise Owners have more than one territory and cover a range of postcode areas for us. We have offices as far apart as Exeter & Glasgow and provide a full UK coverage.

We are delighted to advise that following a successful tender process we have been appointed to the panel of TLT Solicitors in Bristol. We will be undertaking a variety of instructions on their behalf (the work is already flowing in) but will be focusing predominantly on trace and process serving

You asked us........

"We are currently in the banks half yearly reporting period and the City is braced for a big dip in profits, largely due to PPI. Bearing in mind your client base, does this have any effect on London House?".

The Payment Protection Insurance mis-selling scandal will no doubt have a huge bearing on the half yearly results of the UK banks. Already we have seen Lloyds, RBS and Barclays show sliding results. HSBC have bucked the trend with a slight increase in profits but there is no doubt that it has been a gruelling six month period. Massive provisions have been set aside to offset or cover the position but it will have long running effects. Further pressure for the banks comes in the form of lending targets, job losses, branch sales and severe financial pressures among the eurozone fringe countries. It is not a happy picture.

The PPI issue in itself does not have any direct bearing on the work we do here or indeed our relationships with our banking clients. As with any business in the spotlight and under financial constraints, the banks need to be aware of costs and look at how best to reduce losses or maximise profits. It is in this way that we can help them directly. The banks continue to ask us to trace "gone away" debtors, find assets, serve documents, interview debtors and recover assets. The more successful we are, the better the impact on our client's balance sheet. In these pressured times, our work often proves to be a cost effective course of action.

Focus on.......Trace & Discreet Investigations

When a client has lost contact with a debtor, we are often asked to trace the debtor's whereabouts and then try and investigate what assets they may have without raising their suspicions.

As you will know, trace is one of our areas of expertise and our Franchise Owners are highly skilled in field trace work. We often overcome a number of difficulties in locating people who do not want to be found, but we remain determined and our success rate of c70% confirms our abilities.

When found, we may be asked to investigate the debtor's assets. Obviously, this would normally be their residential property but we also look out for such things as vehicles, other property investments, business interests etc. Where possible we will also seek to gather information from neighbours in an effort to perhaps confirm our thoughts or just provide us with a little snippet of detail. It should be remembered, of course, that there are also occasions when there is no new information or details to find!

What's in a name?

Following a bank repossession of a property, we were instructed by the bank's solicitors to trace the former owner and ascertain whether she had any other assets as there was a shortfall following the sale.

In trying to locate the subject, enquiries into the name given became difficult because the bank's understanding was that she was married and that all correspondence was in the matrimonial name. It subsequently became apparent that the subject wasn't married and only used the name as an alias. We therefore tried to trace the subject using her maiden name and established several people in the UK as possibilities, from which we narrowed the list down to 3.

Further extensive enquiries followed and after a series of discreet investigations at the appropriate locations we managed to obtain a positive match. Our enquiries tell us that she owns the property (in her maiden name) as well as other assets. The bank can now consider their position in light of this information thanks to the strengths of a field force investigation.

And so it continues!

So, the News of the World issues have been knocked off the front pages by crashing stock markets, more Eurozone problems and now riots throughout the country. Where will it all stop?

Furthermore, according to our friends at Begbies Traynor, 5179 companies in the UK were facing critical problems in the second quarter of this year representing liabilities of nearly £60bn. Their Red Flag report, issued in July, tells us that the number of companies in critical condition shows a 12% increase on the previous quarter. As possibly expected, the sectors which have continued to suffer are retail, hotels & accommodation, and travel & tourism.

London House News

I am delighted to announce that our newest Franchise Owner is just about to finish his 2 week residential training programme.

Mike King has a background in the design and print industry and more recently as Manager of major UK companies at Senior Executive level responsible for operations and staff in multi-site locations.  

Mike will be our Franchise Owner for the Cheltenham & Gloucester area covering the GL postcodes. Welcome!

We have further training dates scheduled for August and September for more new Franchise Owners.  

It is worth mentioning that all of our Franchise Owners are CRB checked, fully insured, registered for Data Protection , hold a Consumer Credit Licence and are members of the CSA. 

Focus On......Customer Interviews

Latest statistics from the financial education charity, Credit Action, show that 829,000 people have been unemployed in the UK for more than 12 months and that £55,862 is the average household debt including mortgages. As consumers begin to focus on their debts and tighten their belts, the figures also tell us that the CAB are dealing with 9,072 new debt problems each working day, while 1,271 people on a daily basis are being made redundant.Staggeringly, the Banks and Building Societies are writing off £20.71m of loans every day.  

Here at London House we interview many individuals on a daily basis on behalf of our clients in an effort to get their up to date financial position. Wherever possible we meet them at home and complete a detailed income/expenditure/assests/liabilities breakdown. If our client has asked us, we will also negotiate a repayment programme on their behalf within agreed parameters.

Evidence of Means

The figures are what they are

As you might expect, by interviewing subjects at their home address we often find and see details that they have omitted to tell our clients...the new car on the drive, the home multi media centre, the valuable antique collection.

On one occasion we were asked by a bank to visit a customer who owed them £2m and with whom they had had no contact for 9 months.

We expected to begin by having to trace the subject but, on visiting the last known address, we were delighted to meet with him there. He told us that he was surprised the bank had not been in contact because he had not moved and had received no correspondence from them.  

When we interviewed him we were able to ascertain that he had assets of £1.9m and was very happy to prove his worth and show all documentation to the bank. A mutually acceptable agreement was reached.  

So, not everything is bad news. Sometimes it is simply a case of lack of communication.

You asked us

"In light of all of the current spotlight on the investigations industry, why are you different from investigators working for the news media?".

This is a good question and one that I feel will be asked not only to ourselves but also to a number of other reputable investigators around the Country.

Our industry is highly regulated and we are governed by the Data Protection Act 1998, Regulation of  Investigatory Powers Act (RIPA), Human Rights Act (HRA) , the OFT, OFCOM, the FSA and our own industry Code of Practice as members of The Credit Services Association. It is important that London House maintains its integrity in the industry and therefore we are happy to adhere to these regulations. It is important for our own reputation but also that of our clients. As is currently being seen, reputational risk is not to be ignored.

There are legal and ethical boundaries to be respected and this has clearly not happened with the News of the World case. We are asked, on occasion, what can we do with mobile phone numbers (we can only call them!), NI numbers, passport numbers, bank account details and the simple answer is "nothing".  It is illegal for us to try and access these records or to obtain subject information using these records. 

  

Nor are we swayed by the fees paid for this illegal activity. No amount of money is worth me, or our team, spending our days enjoying the hospitality at one of our Majesty's establishments.

If it is illegal, London house will not be involved.

What an interesting month

What an interesting time to be in our industry! Private Investigators very much in the spotlight, the News of the World being closed down, alleged payments to police, arrests, political debate and it's still only the middle of the month. This one will run and run.  

Please be assured that not all Private Investigators, London House included, obtain information using illegal methods. 

  

Hot off the press is the news that the Payments Council has reversed its original decision to abolish the cheque as a payment method by 2018. This follows a public outcry over the original decision. The Council, whose members include banks and payment organisations, said cheques would continue as long as customers needed them.

London House News

I am delighted to announce that our newest Franchise Owner has just completed his 2 week residential training programme.

Allan Fern has a long background in the construction industry at executive level and will be our Franchise Owner for the Dudley area covering the DY postcodes. Welcome aboard!

We have more training dates scheduled for June and September for further new Franchisees.

It is worth mentioning that all of our Franchise owners are CRB checked, fully insured, registered for Data Protection , hold a Consumer Credit Licence and are members of The CSA. 

You asked us........

"A topic of interest to me would be to have a clear idea of how far you can go to track down information about people bearing in mind data protection constraints".

We have to work within the 8 principles of the DPA 1998, however the real guidelines for practical purposes are twofold:

-          We can get any information on the public record - sometimes using our databases there is more than first imagined

-          We can use any information freely given by a member of the public (telephone or in the field) providing we do not hold ourselves out to be anybody other than who we truly are - this is where the skill of the right conversation/approach is helpful

Very often a linked address on a database sets us off on another path or we discover additional property owned. Neighbours sometimes give clues - away at their holiday home , on their boat etc

In the end it comes down to cost and value of the case.

We also have all the surveillance resource as you will have seen from last months e-newsletter and can give advice re best/most cost effective deployment. Following someone to another address or different place of work sometimes produces the result but if there is nothing to find we will not find it ! Also assets offshore are difficult to pin down.

There are many variables and we are always happy to discuss individual cases. 

Focus on.......Drug Screening

In association with a world leading forensic accredited laboratory, London House can provide our clients with informative lectures, advice and consultation as well as comprehensive screening and testing services.

Amongst other things, research has shown that drug screening can reduce accidents in the workplace, increase the quality of work, reduce absenteeism and sickness and increase productivity.

Full details are available via our head office or please see our website for more information.

Are your staff part of the 8.6%?

During 2009/10, 8.6% of adults in the UK had used one or more illicit drug during the last year! A startling figure and as we know the knock on effects can and do have serious implications.

A large, multinational manufacturing company had noticed from their accident book that most of the accidents in their forklift truck area happened after the lunchbreak periods of 12-2.30pm.

Unable to locate the problem themselves, London House were called in and after a period of investigation, recommended that a drug & alcohol screening exercise be undertaken to which the employer agreed. All of the drivers were tested and amazingly it was found that 24% of the team tested positive in the afternoon for cannabis. They were all enjoying more than a sandwich for lunch! They were soon looking for new jobs.

London House News

We enjoyed a spectacular day last month at The Grosvenor House Hotel in London to celebrate St Georges Day.

This is our annual trip to the event where we entertain clients and friends and is a wonderful occasion. 1500 people gather in the Great Ballroom and are entertained by the band of The Blues & Royals and various speakers, have a delicious lunch and celebrate the day. Pomp and pageantry at its best!

    By now, if you are on our mailing list, you will have received the latest edition of The Score  and this is also available through our e-newsletter, our website and this blog. We hope you enjoy it.

     As part of our continuing work on raising the London House profile in the multi media world, we now have our own corporate channel on YouTube. At the moment we are showing videos that were taken at recent Franchise Exhibitions, but who knows how this project could develop for us over time. Have a look and let us know your thoughts.

London House on YouTube

Focus on... Surveillance

Surveillance has always been a strength of the London House network and we continue to see demand for this service.

A large number of our instructions come from either Family Law Solicitors or revolve around employment law matters and whether the subject is working outside the terms of their contract or breaking any agreements whilst on gardening leave for example.

As you would expect, London house has access to a full array of equipment to help us and all of our evidence is fully detailed and catalogued, including DVD and photographic evidence, to allow our clients to proceed down the legal route if required.

Planning is key to these operations, and full site surveys are undertaken beforehand to help the operation go as smoothly as possible. Do please contact us if you would like more information about this specialist service.

Where are you going?

Working on a Family law matter, we were asked to undertake  surveillance on a male individual whose partner was becoming increasingly concerned about his working habits and whereabouts.

A two man team was deployed and we followed him from his home address to the local train station. There, our operatives stood behind him at the ticket kiosk and purchased the same tickets as the subject, before following him on the train to a neighbouring city. Keeping a safe distance, and all the while taking photographs and documenting activity he was seen making his way to a property in the city and letting himself in. Some time later the subject was seen leaving the property holding hands with a female and a child. It seems our man was leading a double life, unbeknown to each of the females.

The Business end of the Season

As a lifelong Southampton supporter I am of course delighted that they are fighting hard for promotion to The Championship. Also involved in the race for the play off places are the MK Dons. The Dons, under the shrewd leadership of Pete Winkelman have performed wonders for such a new club (they were founded in 2004).

As we approach the business end of the season, whilst my dreams are for Southampton, I will also be following The Dons. They epitomise the hard working, committed and enthusiastic persona that is Milton Keynes.  

Focus on... Repossessions

London House Franchise Owners undertake many instructions to repossess property. Of course, the national number of properties being repossessed is a general reflection on the economy but we find that our numbers remain fairly constant. We are well versed in properties of all types and undertake both residential and commercial repossessions. We arrive on site and after the bailiff has executed his warrant we take over. Working to a detailed report form we make all the arrangements to ensure the property is suitable for our clients needs. From reading the meters, advising the utility companies, changing locks, securing the windows, clearance, repair etc we organise it all to leave the property safe, hygienic, secure and ready for resale.

Repossession service

A Tale of Two Cottages

We were asked to locate an individual and recover a shortfall of £50,000 following repossession and sale of the property by our banking client. Our only starting point was the property sold but following our motto of "Never Assume", we visited the property, "Rose Cottage", one of a pair of semi-detached cottages in rural Oxfordshire and a lady came to the door saying our man was not there, wrong address, he was next door.

Finding this strange we conducted further searches including recent planning applications and there we had our answer.

Once upon a time, he owned the whole house but when his business started to fail he divided it into two and the bank sold only half the security they had - he was still living in the other half!

London House International - Franchise Sales interview

Franchise Sales interview with London House International at The Franchise Show '11

0. Godfrey Lancashire intro
1. A Turn-Key business
2. The Investment
3. Return on Investment
4. What We're looking for
5. What you need

Franchise Opportunities