Section one: Contracting entity
one.1) Name and addresses
THAMES WATER UTILITIES LIMITED
Reading
RG1 8DB
Contact
Thames Water Utilities Limited
procurement.support.centre@thameswater.co.uk
Country
United Kingdom
Region code
UKJ11 - Berkshire
Companies House
02366661
Internet address(es)
Main address
https://www.thameswater.co.uk/
one.2) Information about joint procurement
The contract is awarded by a central purchasing body
one.3) Communication
Access to the procurement documents is restricted. Further information can be obtained at
https://www.thameswater.co.uk/about-us/our-suppliers/procurement
Additional information can be obtained from the above-mentioned address
Tenders or requests to participate must be submitted electronically via
https://www.thameswater.co.uk/about-us/our-suppliers/procurement
one.6) Main activity
Water
Section two: Object
two.1) Scope of the procurement
two.1.1) Title
Debt Collection Agencies
Reference number
FA2017
two.1.2) Main CPV code
- 79940000 - Collection agency services
two.1.3) Type of contract
Services
two.1.4) Short description
As part of our commitment to collecting unrecovered debt, we have redesigned our customer debt journey focusing on delivering "right customer, right treatment path" and ensuring our financially vulnerable customers are supported at all stages of the journey.
We intend to outsource our unrecovered water debt, provided mainly on a commission basis with some specific customer outcomes chargeable on a fee structure. Both collect and trace solutions are required within various parts of the portfolio.
Litigation and field services will also be required at the later stages of the process, where any unrecovered debts will be assessed and selected depending on their suitability.
With the cost of living rising, we recognise the importance of collecting debt in a socially responsible manner and as result we are seeking partners who are committed in supporting our customers on this journey while helping Thames Water achieve our goals.
We are offering a 3-year contract with the ability to extend up to an additional 2. Field service will be offered at an initial 1-year contract. After year 1 there's a potential for this to be brought inline with the with other contracts mimicking their contract terms.
two.1.5) Estimated total value
Value excluding VAT: £17,500,000
two.1.6) Information about lots
This contract is divided into lots: Yes
Tenders may be submitted for all lots
Maximum number of lots that may be awarded to one tenderer: 4
The contracting authority reserves the right to award contracts combining the following lots or groups of lots:
Thames Water reserves the right to award a single or multiple lots to the most suitable provider(s).
two.2) Description
two.2.1) Title
Placement 1 - Active and Final including trace and collect
Lot No
1
two.2.2) Additional CPV code(s)
- 79940000 - Collection agency services
two.2.3) Place of performance
NUTS codes
- UKI - London
- UKJ - South East (England)
Main site or place of performance
Whole of Thames Water region.
two.2.4) Description of the procurement
Lot 1 will see circa 218 thousand active customer accounts and circa 54 thousand closed customer accounts placed annually, spread across 8 segments. 6 of these segments relate to the active customers and are allocated to the segment based on Equifax scoring.
2 of the segments relate to the closed customer accounts and are split by the accounts that have a forward address and require a collect solution and those that have no forward address and require a trace and collect solution. The successful supplier will be required to move the accounts with no customer contact from the collect strategy to the trace and collect strategy within their own system after the placement period has expired.
Cases in all segments will be placed to the successful supplier daily along with account updates, closures and any new debts that are now at the recoveries stage for customers previously placed.
Performance scorecards will determine the allocation % throughout the contract to award the higher performing suppliers with higher allocations.
two.2.5) Award criteria
Price is not the only award criterion and all criteria are stated only in the procurement documents
two.2.7) Duration of the contract, framework agreement or dynamic purchasing system
Duration in months
60
This contract is subject to renewal
Yes
Description of renewals
This contract will be for 36 months with a further two 12 months optional extension(s).
two.2.9) Information about the limits on the number of candidates to be invited
Envisaged number of candidates: 10
two.2.10) Information about variants
Variants will be accepted: Yes
two.2.11) Information about options
Options: Yes
Description of options
This contract will be for 36 months with a further two 12 months optional extension(s).
two.2) Description
two.2.1) Title
Placement 2 - Active and Final
Lot No
2
two.2.2) Additional CPV code(s)
- 79940000 - Collection agency services
two.2.3) Place of performance
NUTS codes
- UKI - London
- UKJ - South East (England)
Main site or place of performance
Whole of Thames Water region.
two.2.4) Description of the procurement
Lot 2 will see circa 156 thousand active customer accounts and circa 47 thousand closed customer accounts placed annually, spread across 5 segments. These accounts have been returned as uncollected from Lot 1. 4 of these segments relate to the active customers and are allocated to the segment based on Equifax scoring.
The other segment relate to the closed customer accounts and require a trace and collect solution.
Cases in all segments will be placed to the successful supplier daily along with account updates, closures and any new debts that are now at the recoveries stage for customers previously placed.
Performance scorecards will determine the allocation % throughout the contract to award the higher performing suppliers with higher allocations.
two.2.5) Award criteria
Price is not the only award criterion and all criteria are stated only in the procurement documents
two.2.7) Duration of the contract, framework agreement or dynamic purchasing system
Duration in months
60
This contract is subject to renewal
Yes
Description of renewals
This contract will be for 36 months with a further two 12 months optional extension(s).
two.2.9) Information about the limits on the number of candidates to be invited
Envisaged number of candidates: 10
two.2.10) Information about variants
Variants will be accepted: Yes
two.2.11) Information about options
Options: Yes
Description of options
This contract will be for 36 months with a further two 12 months optional extension(s).
two.2) Description
two.2.1) Title
Placement 3 - Litigation - Active and Final
Lot No
3
two.2.2) Additional CPV code(s)
- 79940000 - Collection agency services
two.2.3) Place of performance
NUTS codes
- UKI - London
- UKJ - South East (England)
Main site or place of performance
Whole of Thames Water region.
two.2.4) Description of the procurement
Lot 3 will see circa 73 thousand active customer accounts and circa 40 thousand closed customer accounts placed annually for assessment of litigation potential. Accounts that are unsuitable for a litigation process will be closed and returned at no cost to Thames Water, and those selected to move into strategy will be initially placed through a pre-litigation strategy before moving into a formal litigation process. We expect a 3 staged approach and the customers to be reassessed before moving onto each stage and those not suitable to move to be closed and returned at no cost to Thames Water:
Pre-Litigation = Contact attempts to resolve the debt with the customer before legal processes begin Litigation = Formal LBA/PAP and the issuing of the claim and judgement Enforcement = Enforcement end to end process.
Closed customer accounts may require a trace solution in addition. All customer contact, plan management and payment processing to be handled by the supplier.
Cases will be placed to the successful supplier once per month with daily account updates, closures and any new debts that are now at the recoveries stage for customers previously placed.
This lot will be awarded on a commission basis, with alternative arrangements for defended cases which will be agreed and charged on a case by case basis.
two.2.5) Award criteria
Price is not the only award criterion and all criteria are stated only in the procurement documents
two.2.7) Duration of the contract, framework agreement or dynamic purchasing system
Duration in months
60
This contract is subject to renewal
Yes
Description of renewals
This contract will be for 36 months with a further two 12 months optional extension(s).
two.2.9) Information about the limits on the number of candidates to be invited
Envisaged number of candidates: 5
two.2.10) Information about variants
Variants will be accepted: Yes
two.2.11) Information about options
Options: Yes
Description of options
This contract will be for 36 months with a further two 12 months optional extension(s).
two.2) Description
two.2.1) Title
Placement 4 - Field Services - Visit and Call Handling
Lot No
4
two.2.2) Additional CPV code(s)
- 79940000 - Collection agency services
two.2.3) Place of performance
NUTS codes
- UKI - London
- UKJ - South East (England)
Main site or place of performance
Whole of Thames Water region.
two.2.4) Description of the procurement
Lot 4 will receive active customer accounts only that are unsuitable for a litigation process and or that have been closed and returned throughout the litigation process with an unsuccessful outcome. Placements will be made monthly and accounts should be assessed for suitability for a field visit. The volume of accounts passing through into the field strategy should be a joint decision between the supplier and Thames Water each month.
Performance will be managed via KPIs assessing the positive outcomes of visits with a strong focus on governance and oversight to ensure the right customer outcomes. All customer contact, plan management and payment processing to be handled by the supplier.
The commercial structure is expected to encourage a culture of fair customer outcomes and value for Thames Water.
two.2.5) Award criteria
Price is not the only award criterion and all criteria are stated only in the procurement documents
two.2.7) Duration of the contract, framework agreement or dynamic purchasing system
Duration in months
60
This contract is subject to renewal
Yes
Description of renewals
This contract will be for 12 months and if successful, the contract will continue for an additional 24 months with a further two 12 months optional extension(s).
two.2.9) Information about the limits on the number of candidates to be invited
Envisaged number of candidates: 5
two.2.10) Information about variants
Variants will be accepted: Yes
two.2.11) Information about options
Options: Yes
Description of options
This contract will be for 12 months and if successful, the contract will continue for an additional 24 months with a further two 12 months optional extension(s).
Section three. Legal, economic, financial and technical information
three.1) Conditions for participation
three.1.1) Suitability to pursue the professional activity, including requirements relating to enrolment on professional or trade registers
List and brief description of conditions
As detailed in the PQQ.
three.1.2) Economic and financial standing
Selection criteria as stated in the procurement documents
three.1.3) Technical and professional ability
Selection criteria as stated in the procurement documents
three.1.4) Objective rules and criteria for participation
List and brief description of rules and criteria
As detailed in the PQQ.
three.1.6) Deposits and guarantees required
Bonds and/or parent company guarantees of performance and financial standing may be required.
three.1.7) Main financing conditions and payment arrangements and/or reference to the relevant provisions governing them
As detailed in the ITN.
three.1.8) Legal form to be taken by the group of economic operators to whom the contract is to be awarded
Consortia may be required to form a legal entity prior to any award.
three.2) Conditions related to the contract
three.2.2) Contract performance conditions
As detailed in the ITN.
Section four. Procedure
four.1) Description
four.1.1) Type of procedure
Negotiated procedure with prior call for competition
four.1.3) Information about a framework agreement or a dynamic purchasing system
The procurement involves the establishment of a framework agreement
Framework agreement with several operators
four.1.4) Information about reduction of the number of solutions or tenders during negotiation or dialogue
Recourse to staged procedure to gradually reduce the number of solutions to be discussed or tenders to be negotiated
four.1.8) Information about the Government Procurement Agreement (GPA)
The procurement is covered by the Government Procurement Agreement: No
four.2) Administrative information
four.2.2) Time limit for receipt of tenders or requests to participate
Date
6 July 2023
Local time
12:00pm
four.2.4) Languages in which tenders or requests to participate may be submitted
English
four.2.6) Minimum time frame during which the tenderer must maintain the tender
Duration in months: 9 (from the date stated for receipt of tender)
Section six. Complementary information
six.1) Information about recurrence
This is a recurrent procurement: Yes
Estimated timing for further notices to be published: Between 2 and 5 years
six.2) Information about electronic workflows
Electronic ordering will be used
Electronic invoicing will be accepted
Electronic payment will be used
six.3) Additional information
All suppliers who wish to respond to this notice must request a pre-qualification questionnaire (PQQ) by using the link in Section I.3 of this notice, i.e. https://www.thameswater.co.uk/procurement
All bidders will receive an email from procurement.support.centre@thameswater.co.uk containing their log on details into our Smartsource Portal in order to access the PQQ documents.
Note that your client may be Thames Water Utilities Ltd or another company within the Kemble Water group structure.
six.4) Procedures for review
six.4.1) Review body
Thames Water Utilities Limited
Reading
RG1 8DB
procurement.support.centre@thameswater.co.uk
Country
United Kingdom
six.4.3) Review procedure
Precise information on deadline(s) for review procedures
Thames Water Utilities Limited will incorporate a standstill period at the point information on the award of the contract is communicated to tenderers. That notification will provide full information on the award decision. The standstill period, which will be for a minimum of 10 calendar days, provides time for unsuccessful tenderers to challenge the award decision before the contract is entered into.
The Utilities Contracts Regulations 2016 (SI 2016 No 274) provide for aggrieved parties who have been harmed or are at risk of harm by a breach of the rules to take action in the High Court (England, Wales and Northern Ireland).