Tracing a debtor who has moved or gone quiet

Some debtors do not refuse to pay. They simply become hard to find. They move without leaving a forwarding address, change their number, close a business premises or stop opening the post.

Many people assume that is the end of it. It rarely is.

Signs you need a trace

• Letters are returned marked "gone away" or "not known at this address".
• The phone number is disconnected or never answered.
• Emails bounce, or go unread for weeks.
• The business premises are empty or under new occupation.

The clock keeps running while they are missing

What helps us find someone

Every detail you can give us shortens the search. The most useful are:

• full name, and any other names they have used;
• date of birth, if you have it;
• every address you have ever had for them, not just the last one;
• phone numbers and email addresses, old and current;
• their employer, trade or the places they work;
• a vehicle registration;
• bank details from any payments they made to you;
• for a business, the company name and number and the names of its directors.

If the debtor is a limited company, a lot of information is already public. Anyone can search the Companies House register for a company's registered office, filing history and officers.

How tracing works

We use up to date tracing techniques and information that can lawfully be used for the purpose, and we handle personal data in line with data protection law. Where we have addresses linked to the debtor, our field agents can visit them in person, as part of the same sequence we follow on every case, described in what happens after you instruct us.

We will not promise to find everyone. No honest firm can. What we can say is that someone who has stopped answering a known number and a known email has often not stopped being connected to an address, a business or a set of records.

Once they are found

A traced debtor is treated like any other case. Contact is made, the debt is put to them, and the case moves forward step by step, with every action logged where you can see it.