Income Recovery Officer

JS/EXE/COM_1724402204

Salary Package: Negotiable
Location: Exeter, England
Consultant: Jade Singh
Posted: 23/08/2024

Description:

Job Title: Income Recovery Officer
Service: Financial Services, Debt Recovery

Liaison With: Customers, Council Officers and Councillors, Landlords, DWP, Enforcement Agents, External Collection Agencies, Other Local Authorities, Customer Representatives, Community & Voluntary Organisations, and Stakeholders.

Purpose of the Job:

To effectively manage and recover sundry debtor invoice balances, ensuring efficient and appropriate debt recovery procedures are followed.

Main Responsibilities:

1. Account Monitoring: Oversee and manage customer accounts in arrears, issuing reminder letters and escalating recovery actions as required.


2. Arrears Recovery: Ensure debt recovery actions are appropriate, proportionate, and in compliance with regulatory requirements and procedures.


3. Customer Financial Assessment: Assess each customer’s financial situation and establish sustainable payment plans to clear outstanding debts.


4. External Collaboration: Provide relevant information to third-party customer representatives, including advice agencies and community organisations, concerning arrears cases.


5. Absconder Tracing: Locate absconders, gather necessary information, and make recommendations for cases to be considered for write-off.


6. Invoice Management: Process invoice cancellation requests and ensure the timely production of monthly periodic invoices.


7. Reporting: Generate management reports related to outstanding invoices and arrears analysis.


8. Administrative Support: Perform administrative tasks such as managing incoming post and emails, adjusting payment arrangements, reviewing escalated cases, updating customer records, and other related duties.


9. Other Duties: Undertake any additional responsibilities that align with the grade of this position.

Person Specification

Qualifications:

• Essential:




• Minimum of 5 GCSEs (Grade C or above) including Maths and English.




• Desirable:




• Credit Control & Debt Management – QLS Level 3 qualification or equivalent proven experience in debt recovery.

Experience, Knowledge, and Skills:

• Essential:




• Experience working in a high-pressure income recovery and customer-focused environment.


• Knowledge of financial solutions available to customers, including the ability to establish sustainable payment arrangements to maximise council income.


• Understanding of financial regulations related to customer payments, such as the Direct Debit Guarantee.


• Familiarity with security protocols for processing customer payments and handling sensitive information.


• Strong communication skills to manage frequent inquiries related to income collection from customers, colleagues, members, and third-party representatives.


• Ability to proactively contact customers and confidently discuss their debts.


• Flexibility to adapt to changing demands in customer service and daily collection tasks.


• Independent decision-making skills when negotiating payment arrangements with customers.


• Excellent negotiation skills to communicate the seriousness of debt situations to customers.

Special Requirements:

• Essential:




• A