Letter from Medina Credit Management? Read this before you pay or sign

A letter from Medina Credit Management typically lands for one of two reasons: an unpaid commercial invoice that’s been referred to them by the supplier, or a personally-guaranteed business debt where the company has failed and the guarantee has been called in. Either way, the calm response is the same — verify what’s owed, who is actually liable, and what realistic routes are open before paying anything.

This page explains who Medina are, what they can legally do under the FCA’s CONC rules, how personal-guarantee debts interact with formal solutions, and how an IVA treats accounts that Medina are pursuing.

Who Medina Credit Management are

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Medina Credit Management is a UK debt-collection business regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. Their work focuses on contingent collection — pursuing accounts on behalf of an original creditor for a fee, rather than buying portfolios of debt outright. Typical client work includes:

• Commercial / B2B invoices — unpaid trade accounts, supply contracts, equipment leases
• Personal-guarantee enforcement — directors and sole traders who personally guaranteed a business obligation that the company hasn’t paid
• Consumer accounts referred by the original creditor

Because Medina are typically a contingent collector, settlement decisions usually need ratifying by the original creditor. That changes negotiation: you are effectively dealing with two parties.

What Medina can and cannot legally do

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Medina are debt collectors, not bailiffs. They can:

• Write to you and call you on numbers held by the original creditor
• Apply for a County Court Judgment (CCJ) if the debt is within the limitation period and they believe it’s enforceable
• After a CCJ, apply for attachment of earnings, charging order, or High Court enforcement
• Refer the matter to solicitors for litigation

They cannot force entry to your home, take goods, threaten arrest (the matter is civil, not criminal), continue contacting you after a written request that they stop, or invent fees beyond the original contract.

For consumer-credit debts, the FCA’s CONC rules apply. For pure commercial debts owed by a company, CONC doesn’t strictly apply, but the Tribunals, Courts and Enforcement Act 2007 and pre-action protocols still constrain how the matter can be escalated.

Personal-guarantee debts and IVAs — the key point

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A common scenario: a limited company you ran has failed, the supplier or lender wasn’t paid, and Medina are now pursuing you personally because you signed a personal guarantee. This is the most consequential check on a Medina letter:

• If the debt is purely the company’s — and you didn’t sign a personal guarantee, give a director’s loan, or expose yourself through misfeasance — you are not personally liable, even if the company has wound up. Reply in writing and ask Medina to direct correspondence to the company or its insolvency practitioner.
• If you signed a personal guarantee, the personal liability is unsecured personal debt for IVA purposes. It goes into an IVA on the same basis as a credit card or personal loan and is written off at the end of the term alongside everything else.

Many directors of failed companies discover that their personal-guarantee exposure plus residual personal credit puts them comfortably over the £5,000 IVA threshold.

Two checks worth running first

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1. Verify personal liability. Ask Medina, in writing, for a copy of the personal guarantee or original credit agreement, plus the statement of account. For consumer-credit debts the section 77/78 CCA request gives you a statutory route — Medina has 12 working days to respond, and the debt is unenforceable until they comply.
2. Check the dates. Most debts become statute-barred in England and Wales after six years (five in Scotland) without a payment, written acknowledgement or court action. Don’t make a part-payment — even a small one — before checking; a single payment resets the limitation clock.

How Medina typically pursue accounts

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Medina’s contingent model means escalation tends to follow this track:

1. Demand letters with progressively stronger language and (sometimes) a settlement-discount offer
2. Letter Before Action — formal pre-claim notice giving 30 days to respond
3. County-court claim form through Northampton — 14 days to acknowledge, 28 to defend
4. Default CCJ if you don’t respond
5. Enforcement — attachment of earnings, charging order, or High Court enforcement on the CCJ

The window of maximum leverage is before a CCJ is entered.

Routes out

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• Settle in full with a written discount, ratified by the original creditor
• Affordable instalment plan agreed in writing
• Tomlin Order — court-approved settlement that only converts to a CCJ if you default
• IVA if you have £5,000+ of total unsecured debt — legally stops Medina pursuing the included balance, including any personal-guarantee element
• Debt Relief Order for total debt under £50,000 with very low spare income
• Bankruptcy where no realistic monthly contribution is possible

Pitfalls when Medina are involved

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• Don’t admit personal liability before checking the paperwork. Limited-company debts are not your personal liability unless something specific exposes you.
• Don’t ignore a Letter Before Action or claim form. Default CCJs are entered automatically if you don’t respond within 14 days.
• Don’t make a token payment before checking limitation status — it can reset the clock.
• Don’t accept the first settlement offer. Counter in writing — Medina’s pricing usually leaves room.

Frequently asked questions

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Are Medina bailiffs? No. Medina are debt collectors. Enforcement requires a separate court-instructed enforcement officer acting on a CCJ.

Can Medina take me to court? Yes — either directly or by instructing solicitors. If you have a defence, raise it in writing on time.

Will an IVA include a personal-guarantee debt? Yes. Personal-guarantee liability is unsecured personal debt and goes into an IVA on the same basis as any other unsecured debt.

The debt is years old — can Medina still enforce? If six years have passed in England and Wales (five in Scotland) since the last payment or written acknowledgement and there has been no court action, the debt is statute-barred and unenforceable.

Related guides

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• How to stop debt collectors chasing you
• How long can I be chased for a debt?
• Can debt be written off?
• How do I apply for an IVA?