Account Analytics for NEC Housing 

Account Analytics builds a clear picture of residents who are at risk of falling into rent arrears using the data in NEC Housing. The system is helping PA Housing’s income team to identify the residents who are in most need of support, and to provide help and advice.

PA has used our housing management system for many years but relied on a third party for data on arrears risk. This process had become unworkable, with income officers struggling to manage an increasing caseload, especially when the Covid-19 pandemic began to impact on household finances.

The team needed a more effective way to be able to intervene early, helping residents before rent arrears became a bigger problem. So, when PA paused recovery action for the COVID-19 lockdown, they used the time to work on rolling out our Account Analytics solution. Unlike third party systems, it’s part of NEC Housing. This means:

• The PA team doesn’t need to extract, match or manually update data
• Information is always accurate because it updates with every action
• Team members always have access to the full picture, so they can make better decisions
• They don’t need to flick between systems when dealing with a case
• They have complete control over how caseloads are generated

Great results, fast

Since going live in October 2020, PA Housing has been able to:

• Reduce the volume of cases by more than 60% because the data is more accurate
• Reduce debt by more than £300,000 in one 12-week period through effective interventions
• Cut the debt in new tenancies by £170 per household by staying closer to customers from the start
• Reduce the overall cost of their systems

For income manager Katherine Hiscock, it’s the quality of customer interventions that’s made the biggest difference. Now everyone has access to accurate information, they can offer the right advice at the right time:

CONTINUAL IMPROVEMENT

For Katherine, the new solution has been a catalyst for wider improvements. The team has been able to support more customers by adding new income assistant roles to the contact centre. They’re also using the data to review how they communicate; for example, creating messaging for different age groups. Soon, Katherine and her colleagues be sharing their improved knowledge with PA’s Neighbourhoods Team, providing more detailed information on income, which will help when they are working with individual residents.