Collections Representative - Lending

Are you searching for a new opportunity? We have an opening for a Collections Representative!   

You’ll probably know Hastings Direct as a digital insurance provider, but did you know we also have a growing unsecured lending business? We have a competitive product on market-leading systems offering customers guaranteed eligibility and real rates through price comparison websites (PCWs).    

We have over four million customers but know there’s an even bigger opportunity out there and have ambitious plans to become The Best and Biggest in the UK market. We’ve made huge investments in our data and tech capabilities over the past few years, along with nurturing our 4Cs culture.   

Working Hours/ Shift Patterns: You will work 37.5 hours per week on a Monday to Friday 9:00 – 17:30 No weekends or bank holidays.  

Training: The main training period runs for the first 4-6 weeks and takes place face to face in the office.  

Our approach to Hybrid Working: With hybrid working, you have more flexibility, as you usually only have to visit our office once or twice a week and work remotely for the rest of the time. You can always opt to work from the office more frequently if that suits you better. When we organise training and events you may be required to attend in person for the duration.  

Salary: The starting salary is £26,850 plus benefits. There will be opportunities for further salary progression with the right focus on personal development.  

Location: Leicester

Team Overview   

As a Collections Representative in Lending, you will support customers who have fallen behind on their loan repayments, helping them understand their options and agree sustainable solutions that reflect their individual circumstances. 

This is a specialist collections role and requires a minimum of two years' experience working within a financial services collections, recoveries or arrears environment. You should be confident having conversations about arrears, affordability, vulnerability and financial difficulty, whilst delivering positive customer outcomes. 

You will engage with customers through inbound and outbound calls, email and digital channels, working to understand the reasons behind financial difficulties and identifying appropriate repayment or forbearance solutions. You'll play an important role in supporting vulnerable customers, helping customers regain control of their finances and reducing arrears, whilst balancing business objectives and regulatory

requirements. 

Job Details  

• Manage inbound and outbound collections activity across a portfolio of customers in arrears.  

• Understand the root cause of a customer's financial difficulty and identify the most appropriate support strategy.  

• Negotiate affordable and sustainable repayment solutions that meet customer needs and business requirements.  

• Utilise the range of available forbearance options to support customers experiencing financial difficulty.  

• Identify, support and appropriately manage vulnerable customers in line with regulatory expectations and company policy.  

• Deliver fair customer outcomes whilst balancing commercial performance and arrears reduction objectives.  

• Manage customer complaints in an effective manner and in line with company policies.  

• Maintain accurate customer records and document all decisions clearly and comprehensively.  

• Be a self-starter and proactively manage work queues in an efficient and effective manner on a day-to-day basis.  

• Be a team player, supporting colleagues and suggesting process or system improvements where necessary. 

Transferable/Essential Skills We Would Love You To Have 

• A minimum of 2 years' experience working within a financial services collections, recoveries or arrears environment. 

• Strong customer communication and negotiation skills. 

• Ability to have challenging conversations with empathy, professionalism and confidence. 

• Experience assessing affordability and discussing financial difficulty with customers. 

• Experience identifying and supporting vulnerable customers. 

• Strong problem-solving and decision-making skills. 

• Ability to manage competing priorities in a fast-paced environment. 

• Excellent written and verbal communication skills. 

• Strong attention to detail and record-keeping standards. 

• Proactively identifying process improvements to help improve customer and business outcomes. 

What we offer 

Join us and you’ll find a different way of doing things. We call it the 4Cs. So, we focus on getting it right for our colleagues, customers, company and community.  

As one of our colleagues, you’ll be helping to drive our growth, so in return, we’ll give you all the support, training and development you need. That includes initial in-house training on our products and systems, as well as taking live calls alongside an experienced colleague, and regular, on-going training tailored to your individual needs. 

Benefits you’ll receive:   

• Up to 5% annual discretionary Bonus   

• Hybrid working (1 day per week in the office with the option to do more depending on your preference)   

• A fantastic open plan modern office   

• We promote a relaxed, friendly & diverse working environment   

• 'Harrys’ - a great onsite restaurant, with a wide range of choice at breakfast and lunchtime & an on-site Costa coffee   

• 25 days holiday and bank holidays equivalent (plus buy and sell up to 5 days)   

• Pension match up to 10% of your salary   

• Life insurance (4 x base salary)   

• Discounted Hasting Direct products   

• Discounts & cashback with well-known retailers   

• Tech scheme, cycle to work, health assessments, and skin check - on completion of probation   

• Refer a friend scheme - earn £500 for every friend you refer   

• We will provide you will all the tech that you need! Including a brand-new Microsoft Surface laptop   

As a Disability Confident employer, we’re committed to ensuring our recruitment processes are fully inclusive – what this means to you is if you’re applying for a job with us, you’ll have fair access to support and adjustments throughout your recruitment journey. For this position, we’re regrettably unable to accept applications through the Disability Confident Scheme (DCS) due to the extremely high volumes of applications we receive. However, what we put in place for these positions instead in order to remove barriers is an opportunity for all candidates to complete first stage assessments, in the form of some online exercises, which we can also provide adjustments for on a case-by-case basis.  

For more information on the DCS, please visit our inclusive business page on our careers site.   

If you require any reasonable adjustments to be made throughout the assessment process you should contact the recruitment team at [email protected] prior to starting any assessments, in order that adjustments can be considered.   

Hastings Group is an equal opportunities employer which means we treat people fairly. We welcome applications from all suitably skilled persons regardless of their gender, age, race, disability, ethnic background, religion/belief, sexual orientation, gender reassignment or marital/family status. Please also note that we have a thorough referencing process, which includes credit and criminal record checks.  

At Hastings Direct, we’re committed to creating an inclusive environment where everyone has the opportunity to succeed. If you require any reasonable adjustments during the recruitment process, we encourage you to be open with us. Our recruitment team is here to provide the support you need to ensure a fair and accessible experience for all.