Planning

Debt Collection

LONDON BOROUGH OF HOUNSLOW

This public procurement record has 1 release in its history.

Planning

29 Jul 2025 at 09:35

UK2 - Preliminary Market Engagement Notice
Summary of the contracting process

The London Borough of Hounslow is in the planning stage of a public procurement process, with the aim to commission Sundry Debt Collection Services. This initiative encompasses multiple debt types such as sundry, leasehold, major works, housing benefits overpayments, former tenant arrears, and Adult Social Care debt. The procurement process focuses on enhancing the council's income through an efficient debt collection approach, incorporating advanced technologies like automation and AI. The procurement method involves market engagement planned for August and September 2025, demonstrating a proactive approach to refining service specifications. The process is classified under the 'General public services' and 'Collection agency services' categories. The buying organisation is located in Hounslow, London, United Kingdom, with the contract expected to commence on 1 October 2027 and conclude by 30 September 2032.

For businesses specialising in debt collection, this tender presents significant opportunities for growth, especially for those adept at employing modernised systems and analytical methods to enhance performance management. Firms that offer robust automation, quality data reporting, and innovative debt recovery strategies are strategically positioned to compete in this tender. In addition to generating revenue, successful bidders will contribute towards the efficiency and effectiveness of public services in Hounslow. The council's objectives include reducing contract costs by at least 10%, modernising systems, and improving performance monitoring, all of which align well with companies prepared to deploy cutting-edge technology and management practices.

How relevant is this notice?

Notice Information

Notice Title

Debt Collection

Notice Description

LBH is seeking to commission Sundry Debt Collection Services, including the collection of sundry debt, leasehold debt, major works debt, housing benefits overpayments, former tenant arrears (FTA) and Adult Social Care debt. Vision: To maximise income to the council through a proactive, seamless and efficient Sundry Debt Collection service that operates with clarity, control, and flexibility. We will maintain a commitment to timely billing arrangements, transparency, data-driven decisions, alignment with court protocols and the consistent application of the relevant debt policies in the delivery of the service. Service data will be of a good quality and used to build a single view of debt. The service will have measures in place to encourage the right behaviour from our debtors. We will have an effective recovery process in place which will provide debtors with a clear understanding of the consequences of non-payment, as well as ensuring that effective support is provided to people in debt, such as providing or signposting them to debt advice. Departments will be able to navigate the processes in place easily, enabling them to respond to queries about charges or to confirm payment status and provide or withhold the service if applicable, however we will promote self-service options to reduce the need for queries. Current performance 30,630 sundry debtor invoices were raised in 2024/25, with a total value of PS85m Currently collecting 97.8% of sundry debt within 60 days of the due date and their The overall sundry debt, at the end of March 2025, is PS9.17m The overall Adult Social Care debt, at the end of March 2025, was PS8.37m, 82.5% Approximately 30% of Adult Social Care contributions are paid via Direct Debit. Approximately 10% of payments by clients who are not 'Appointee and Deputyship' clients are paid by Direct Debit whereas most 'Appointee and Deputyship' clients pay via Direct Debit The overall leasehold and major works debt at the end of March 2025 was PS5.34m, compared to PS5.02m last year - PS2.30m of the PS5.34m debt related to major works PS6.06m of leasehold and major works debt was collected in 2024/25 compared to PS6.53m collected the year before, collection in 2024/25 is 7.2% lower than collection in 2023/24 Issues with the NEC system resulted in no FTA collection activity in 2024/25 being undertaken prior to January 2025. In January, February and March 2025 PS107.8k has been collected. 1,293 new debtor requests and 424 requests to change the address or name of a debtor were received in 2024/255 On average all sundry debtor invoices raised via Business World On are dispatched in under a day, meeting the 3 days SLA Current contract cost Annual core contract cost: PS570k Objectives Lower contract cost by min 10% Modernise the systems being used, introduce more automation and explore the use of AI and robotics Develop better reporting and a better understanding of the data that should be requested for monitoring to improve the performance management of debt collection in all areas

Planning Information

The Council intends to hold a series of online interviews with interested providers during August/September 2025. It should be noted that this engagement is not a formal tendering process. The information we gain through our market engagement will help to inform our commissioning intentions and refine our specification for this service.

Notice Details

Publication & Lifecycle

Open Contracting ID
ocds-h6vhtk-0567c3
Publication Source
Find A Tender Service
Latest Notice
https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/043739-2025
Current Stage
Planning
All Stages
Planning

Procurement Classification

Notice Type
UK2 - Preliminary Market Engagement Notice
Procurement Type
Standard
Procurement Category
Services
Procurement Method
Not Specified
Procurement Method Details
Not specified
Tender Suitability
Not specified
Awardee Scale
Not specified

Common Procurement Vocabulary (CPV)

CPV Divisions

75 - Administration, defence and social security services

79 - Business services: law, marketing, consulting, recruitment, printing and security

CPV Codes

75110000 - General public services

79940000 - Collection agency services

Notice Value(s)

Tender Value
£3,420,000 £1M-£10M
Lots Value
Not specified
Awards Value
Not specified
Contracts Value
Not specified

Notice Dates

Publication Date
29 Jul 20254 months ago
Submission Deadline
Not specified
Future Notice Date
5 Sep 2025Expired
Award Date
Not specified
Contract Period
30 Sep 2027 - 30 Sep 2032 Over 5 years
Recurrence
Not specified

Notice Status

Tender Status
Planning
Lots Status
Planning
Awards Status
Not Specified
Contracts Status
Not Specified

Buyer & Supplier

Contracting Authority (Buyer)

Main Buyer
LONDON BOROUGH OF HOUNSLOW
Contact Name
Not specified
Contact Email
beatrice.uhlir@hounslow.gov.uk
Contact Phone
Not specified

Buyer Location

Locality
HOUNSLOW, LONDON
Postcode
TW3 3EB
Post Town
Twickenham
Country
England
Major Region (ITL 1)
TLI London
Basic Region (ITL 2)
TLI7 Outer London - West and North West
Small Region (ITL 3)
TLI75 Hounslow and Richmond upon Thames
Delivery Location
TLI75 Hounslow and Richmond upon Thames
Local Authority
Hounslow
Electoral Ward
Hounslow West
Westminster Constituency
Feltham and Heston

Further Information

Notice Documents

Open Contracting Data Standard (OCDS)

View full OCDS Record for this contracting process

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The Open Contracting Data Standard (OCDS) is a framework designed to increase transparency and access to public procurement data in the public sector. It is widely used by governments and organisations worldwide to report on procurement processes and contracts. 

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