Should I Pay or Ignore Arvato British Gas Debt Collection?

Have you received a message from Arvato about a British Gas debt? It can be concerning to get a message from debt collectors. But don’t worry; you’re not alone. Each month, over 12,000 people come to this site for advice on money problems.

In this article, we’ll answer some important questions, such as:

• Who are Arvato Financial Solutions?
• Do you need to pay Arvato Financial Solutions?
• Can you lower your repayments to them?
• What happens if you do not pay?
• How can you get free debt advice?

We understand that debt can be hard to deal with. You might be worried about how it will affect your life. You may also be unsure about your rights. Our team knows what you’re going through, as some of us have had debt problems too. Let’s dive in and learn more about dealing with Arvato and British Gas debt.

Why would Arvato debt collectors contact you?

You’d likely get a letter from Arvato because you fell behind with your payments to British Gas. Chances are the energy provider tried to get in touch with you and sent you payment reminders.

However, if you didn’t respond to British Gas, they could send your details to a debt collection agency. That said, they may have sold the debt to Arvato Financial Solutions.

When this happens, you’d no longer deal with British Gas directly. Instead, you’d have to deal with the debt collector. In short, you should try to settle the outstanding debt with Arvato if you can and if the debt is yours!

Plus, you may find the money owed is too old to enforce because it’s deemed statute barred!

Should you respond to Arvato?

Yes. You should respond to the debt collector whether Arvato contacted you by text, email, letter or phone.

The reason you should get in touch is that there could be important information that you would not otherwise be aware of.

For instance, Arvato may have purchased older debts in a portfolio. The one they’re pursuing you for could be too old to enforce in the courts. Plus, you could find the debt isn’t yours!

As such, you should write to Arvato to let them know you’re disputing the claim you owe anything because you didn’t pay a British Gas bill.

Don’t sign the letter. Instead, print your name at the bottom of the letter.

Do you have to pay Arvato Financial Services Limited?

You may have to pay Arvato but only when the debt collection agency proves you owe the money. Plus you’d have to pay if the debt is still current and not statute-barred!

However, before admitting, signing or forking any money out, you should check the following:

• Is the debt too old to enforce through the courts?
• Do you owe money to British Gas, or is Arvato pursuing the wrong person?

Make sure you do the research before writing to Arvato to let them know what you’ve found out about the debt.

If necessary, seek advice from an independent debt management company or one of the leading UK Charities!

How serious is a Letter Before Action?

Arvato sends out a Letter Before Action (LBA) which is a notification of intended court action. The letter could just be an idle threat to get you to settle an outstanding debt.

But it might not be!

You shouldn’t bin the letter and forget all about it because you could receive a summons to attend court. If you don’t attend, a judge will issue a Court Order to pay what’s owed.

The court order makes you liable for the payment and if you still don’t pay, enforcement officers could pay you a visit at home!

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Is the debt yours?

When Arvato Financial Solutions can’t prove the debt is yours, they can’t make you settle it. Maybe the debt collector already provided authenticated proof that the amount is yours to pay.

But if they did not, you have the right to send them a ‘prove the debt’ letter. Arvato must respect the request and put things on hold until they send you the proof.

Is the British Gas debt too old to enforce?

If you find the debt is too old to enforce because it’s passed its sell-by-date in accordance with the Limitations Act, tell Arvato. Write to them and send the letter by registered post and don’t sign it!

Tell the debt collector to stop chasing you over a statute-barred debt!

Can you ask Arvato to prove the debt?

Yes. It’s not good enough for Arvato Financial Solutions to say you apparently owe something to British Gas. They must provide hard proof that you do. This could be a copy of a contract or agreement which must be authenticated by British Gas!

Without proof, you can’t be made to settle a debt you apparently owe.

What happens if the debt can’t be proven?

If Arvato fails to prove you owe money to British Gas, you won’t have to pay. A judge would find it hard to rule in Arvato’s favour if they can’t prove you owe any money!

So, if the debt collector takes you to court, you can tell the judge you’re still waiting for Arvato to provide proof you defaulted on payments to British Gas.

What if the debt is proven?

When Arvato Financial Solutions proves you defaulted on payments to British Gas, the next step is to contact the debt collector. Sooner rather than later.

Write to them and say you’re seeking advice from a debt expert. That you’re establishing which debt solution might be best for you!

Arvato must allow you enough time to seek debt advice and should put everything on hold. But don’t keep them in the dark, stay in touch with them or they might begin legal action against you.

What can Arvato Financial Solutions legally do?

Debt collection agencies like Arvato Financial Solutions can contact you in several ways which are perfectly lawful. For instance, debt recovery companies can:

• Send you emails, texts, and letters and they can call you on the phone
• Visit you at home when all other methods of contacting you fail
• Discuss things with you politely and sympathetically
• Ask you to settle the debt with them and not British Gas if they’re acting on the energy provider’s behalf

You can’t stop a debt collector from doing any of the above when they contact you over an alleged debt. It’s in line with the CSA strict code of conduct and UK laws.

What can’t a debt collector do?

Arvato Financial Solutions, as mentioned, must follow the CSA code of conduct and respect UK laws relating to privacy and your rights!

That said, a debt collectors would be acting unlawfully if they did any of the following:

• Force their way into your property, seize your possessions, or clamp your vehicles
• Pretend they have more powers than they really do. For instance, infer they are enforcement officers appointed by the court
• Show you documents and other papers which seem to be issued by the courts when they aren’t
• Discuss things with your employer or visit you at your place of work
• Talk to your friends, neighbours or a family member about money owed to British Gas
• Harass you with phone calls, texts, emails etc
• Pressure you into applying for more credit to settle what’s owed

If debt collectors do any of the above when they contact you, they’d be breaking the law. You have the right to file a complaint with Arvato and allow them to put things right.

But if they don’t and they fail to address your complaint correctly, you can then report the debt collector to the Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS).

You must do it in that order, first to Arvato, then to the FOS!

Will the ombudsman investigate your complaint?

Yes. The ombudsman should launch an investigation into your complaint. Moreover, if they find that Arvato acted unlawfully, you could receive compensation.

Debt collectors could lose their licences to operate in the UK!

Should you ignore a Letter Before Action from Arvato?

No. When you receive a Letter Before Action from Arvato, you should take it seriously.

As mentioned, it might be an idle threat to take you to court, but it might not be too! It’s always a risky decision to think that an LBA is just an idle threat to scare you into paying!

You could end up with a court order to pay and a County Court Judgment!

What happens when you ignore Arvato debt collectors?

Things can spiral out of control when you ignore Arvato debt collectors. Moreover, you’d not find out about important things like the debt isn’t yours.

Or that it’s statute barred!

Arvato will just keep sending you more demanding letters which get more threatening each time. You could be bombarded with texts, emails and phone calls which can be stressful, to say the least!

You could end up with a County Court Judgment which will harm your credit report. It’d make it hard to borrow money, get a loan or credit card. You may have trouble getting a mortgage too.

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Will Arvato take you to court?

There’s always a chance that Arvato will take you to court if they purchased the British Gas debt. 

If they’re acting on behalf of British Gas, they could advise the energy provider to start legal proceedings against you. In this instance, it’d be up to British Gas!

Can an Arvato debt collection agent come to your door?

Sadly, yes. Arvato could send a debt collection agent to your home. However, they can’t just turn up. They must let you know when they intend to visit your property.

Plus, you don’t have to open the door to Arvato debt collectors. In fact, you should not open the door. Instead, talk to the agent from an upstairs window or through the letterbox.

Also, you have the right to ask Arvato debt collectors to leave your property which they must respect!

Can British Gas write off debt?

British Gas could write off a debt if you’re experiencing financial hardship and struggling to pay. You could be eligible for a grant to clear the debt from the British Gas Energy Trust!

Can you prevent Arvato from contacting you?

Sadly no. You can prevent Arvato Financial Solutions from contacting you over an alleged British Gas debt.

However, you can dictate how and when you want to be contacted by the debt collectors. Plus, they must abide by your request. If they don’t, their actions could be deemed harassing behaviour.

It’s against the law for debt collectors to harass someone over an alleged debt!

Will Arvato stop chasing you?

Again, sadly no. Debt recovery companies rarely give up pursuing you over an alleged debt. These days they have tools that help track debtors down and Arvato, it seems, are specialists at tracing debtors!

Can I complain about Arvato?

Yes. You have every right to lodge a complaint with Arvato Financial Solutions when you feel they acted unlawfully. In short, if the debt collector harassed you or failed to abide by the law, you can file a complaint against them.

If Arvato fails to put things right and doesn’t deal with your complaint in a timely manner, you can then report them to the Financial Ombudsman Service.

How do you contact Arvato?

I’ve listed ways to contact Arvato Financial Solutions Limited in the table below: