‘Significant’ number of brokers owed commission by failed debt firm

Manchester based debt management firm, TCF Debt Solutions, has appointed insolvency practitioners Clarke Bell, and has sold its assets for an undisclosed sum to another debt solutions firm – the MoneyPlus Group.
 
The website is still functioning and staff are answering the phones, although no one would comment on the firm’s current situation.

Instead, Debt Management Today was asked to contact Chris Davis, CEO of the MoneyPlus Group.

Chris Davis confirmed that his group completed the acquisition of TCF’s assets on the 9th of July, after being tipped off by an unnamed third party that the firm’s clients and back book might be for sale.

“We have bought the assets, not the business.” Mr Davis said. “Certain staff have joined us but I don’t know what will happen to TCF Debt Solutions.”

Mr Davis said that although the MoneyPlus Group was not responsible for paying TCF’s brokers any outstanding commission payments, all money owed to intermediaries would be paid as a sign of goodwill.
 
He added that there were a “significant number” of brokers with outstanding commission payments.

“I would say that there are around 35 brokers who need to be paid, and with the average debt referral commission being £200, that’s not an insubstantial amount for us to be paying out of goodwill,” he said.

One broker who worked with TCF Debt Solutions, told the industry publication Mortgage Strategy that he knew something was wrong when “dates of commission payments started to fluctuate”.

Managing director of TCF Debt Solutions, Andy Moody, was unavailable to comment. Something of a controversial figure within the sector, this is his third business failure in two years.

He closed his secured loan firm, Loanoptions.co.uk, in August 2008, leaving liabilities of £378,580, before re-launching the firm as Loan Options in an apparent phoenix operation. This was then closed in June 2009.

Source: Debt Management Today