Help MEE, Please!! Debt letter regarding fees for University and Accomodation

[evilgrant]

Hi,

Im new to the forum, but thought it would be a great place to seek advice.

Ill give you the scenario, i received a letter from debt collection agency called STA Graydon requesting the amount of - £2053.86 and the named creditor is University of Abertay Dundee.

This came as a complete shock to me as I was completely unaware of any debts to the University.

I contacted the University and they advised me that the total amount outstanding is £1142.66, the person apologised for the wrong amount being sent by the debt collectors.

She advised me that the breakdown is as follows:

University accomodation outstanding - £275.16 - this amount must be for some unpaid rent, which i am unaware of, at the time when i signed for the accomodation, the accomodation officer said that i was unable to sign for this as i was under 18 and could not enter into the agreement, then however accepted my signature.

The amount of £867.50 is for first semester fees which i am supposedly liable for because i withdrew from my course on the 21st of November and therefore do not qualify for SAAS - Students Awards Agency for Scotland to pay my fees, they would have paid them if i had left on or after the 1st of December according to SAAS Policy, which i was advised on by their telephone advisor today.

However when i withdrew from the course for personal circumstances i was advised by the University that i would not qualify for another years funding from SAAS as i have incurred two false starts and would have to fund the first year or university myself if i decided to return, this however has turned out to be wrong information

I advised the woman of this at the University and she asked if i had anything in writing to support this, i do not however.

I contacted SAAS to confirm that this was true and they have in fact advised me that i qualify for full funding if i decide to go to university again as the two false starts havent actually been counted as they havent paid any fees for me.

Abertay said that they had written to me about this debt, but i have never received anything, i asked them for dates when this was supposed to have been sent and they could not provide me with that information as there is no record.

This now leaves me in a situation where i am being chased for debts that i didnt know about. Or that i would see as being unfair. Will this have made an effect on my credit history, any advice would be greatly appreciated.

I am now going for a job where they have to do a credit reference check and i am unsure now as to whether i will get this.



Grant

[IdaInFife]

I think you would need to send an S.A.R - (Subject Access Request) to the university to get all the info for dates and amounts etc
(template for S.A.R - (Subject Access Request) is avail you would need to amend as you req and send £10 along with it)

You would need to send a letter to the dca to say the account is in dispute as your are requesting more info from the uni.

Idax

[rory32]

I have unapproved your duplicate thread as it's best to keep all advice to one thread. As suggested you need to send a S.A.R - (Subject Access Request) to the university (template here), obviously amend to suit your situation.

Will this have made an effect on my credit history,

It's highly likely, but that doesn't mean your credit rating will necessarily be dreadful. It's best to get your credit reports from Equifax, Experian and Callcredit.

University accomodation outstanding - £275.16 - this amount must be for some unpaid rent, which i am unaware of, at the time when i signed for the accomodation, the accomodation officer said that i was unable to sign for this as i was under 18 and could not enter into the agreement, then however accepted my signature.

What age are you now?

[Tuscans666]

I was just searching on google and found this topic. I too recieved a letter from this collections agency claiming I owe them £488 of fees from when I attended Abertay Uni.

Problem is I attended there in 1998/1999 and only stayed there for a year. I was meant to go back to repeat 1st year but after seeing my head of department, never got a start date so never went back.

I don't remember having to pay fees but then again it was 10 years ago now so really not sure what to do.

Do know I have never had any correspondence from Abertay since before I left.

Anyone got any ideas what I should do as I don't even know who to contact at Abertay.

[rory32]

Tuscan you need to start your own thread on this. If you are not sure how to do this have a read here. If it is from 1998/1999 it may very well be statute barred and you can tell them to get lost.

[evilgrant]

i've only just turned 18... so you think i should write to abertay?

[rory32]

Yes. You need to get details of the alledged debt and a breakdown of what they are charging you for. Your age is important as you may be able to set aside the transaction under The Age of Legal Capacity (Scotland) Act 1991 as you were under 18 when you entered into the contract. You can only apply for the set aside if the transaction is prejudicial and if you are still under 21 at the time of applying for the set aside.

[evilgrant]

how do i do that?

[rory32]

You'd get details of the alledged debt by sending a S.A.R - (Subject Access Request) with ten pounds to Abertay. Post #3 contains a template for this which you will need to adapt to your situation. Send the SAR recorded delivery. You will need the details of the debt before looking at any set aside.