Thread: Car reposession British Credit Trust - Help Please - urgent

Hi, in a spot of bother re BCT.

We had a 4 year finance deal which is now just over 2 years old.

We have been in terrible difficulty this last 12 months but kept the payments going until July time as we were trying to get to the half way mark as we understood you could hand a car back at that point irrespective of value and walk away.

Unfortunately we didn't manage to go the whole way although were hoping to still make up the payments at the last minute so we weren't in arrears and had managed the full 50% payments.

We have been in contact with them to advise we were going to do a voluntary termination - having looked it up on the forum - and make up the payments and they advised we needed to put it in writing but they also stated that the car would be examined before collection and then that once sold at auction that we would be liable for the difference in the auction price and debt owing?

This wasn't my understanding but they have repeated that in 3 seperate calls.

We then tried to make an agreement to either make reduced payments - they said that only full plus arrears was acceptable - or to renegotiate the payments over a longer period - again they said no. We were paying £360 a month.

I was sure this was wrong so asked for a copy of the CCA, they agreed to it but only gave us until tuesday - when it arrived - to sort things out.

Having got it they sent the page with my signature on but the contract text was pretty much unintelligible - and they obviously thought this too as they sent a blank copy so you could read it. They also sent some other pages which don't seem to be part of the same agreement as the text and logo are subtly different to the page with the signature.

They also sent a Notice of Termination on the Tuesday.

We still rang to see if we could negotiate but they said that now they were going to send a company to collect the car - this was on wednesday.

We didn't hear anything but in the last 5 minutes I have had a call from our tenant - we rented our house out as we couldn't afford the mortgage - to say a guy had come to 'recover' the car. This after some other thugs had told them they were from the court (a lie) and that we owed a lot of money - but that's another thread.

What I'm hoping someone can help with is to advise whether what they are doing is legal.

I'm sure on one of the threads I saw they couldn't reposess the car without written notice and a court order and also whether they can get us for the auction value of the car as in this climate I am sure we will be stung for thousands.

Lastly, I will scan the paperwork they sent in case there are any flaws in it we might be able to negotiate with.

Thanks for any help.

Hettie2

Hi, this is the paperwork - can anyone advise me what I should do next?

Oh, and also, for what its worth, they definitely haven't phoned me about collection and they have written the termination agreement to another address I gave them so I am suprised they didn't go there.

There was one more attachement - the last page of the agreement.

Hi - sorry cant read your images as they are small - generally though I think that once you have paid a third of the car off it cannot be repossessed. You were saying that you'd paid half but that might be half of the term and if its front loaded that could be mostly interest - I also think that there should be a list of the detailed figures saying how much you should have paid off to reach that 'point of no return'. Once there the debt on the car is to be paid off by arrangement or court order but the car would stay with you. This debt along with any others would be looked at by the court and a payment would be set that you can reasonably afford.

Can you type up the figures involved? Certainly if they have not taken the car yet and you have paid the first amount specified then you should not allow them to take it.
* Any one else confirm pls???

Thank you campari2, I thought I'd read something like that. I will retype up the figures and try and do better scans in a minute. Thank you for replying.

I did ring them because I didn't want the recovery man going back to the house and upsetting the tenants again and said I was extremely upset, that I'd been communicating with them and trying to work something out and if it was going to be taken I wanted the opportunity to have it's condition independently assessed plus that they should have called me on the number they had plus contact address on file. The lady sounded aplolgetic and agreed that they shouldn't have just sent the heavies in, said they would contact to find out what happened and volunteered where to write to complain - can't particularly see that that will be more than lip service but I will once I have sorted out how to tacle this.

Really appreciate your help.

Hettie2

Hi, had a real job working out how to get the scans big enough to read and ended up importing them into word so sorry thats a bit long winded but would be hugely grateful if you could look at the agreement and let me know what you think.

The signature page is so poorly reproduced you can't read the text so they included a freshly printed one and, from the look of what they sent me pages 3 and 4 weren't copies but reprints. Even the first page is a different size and quality to page 2 but does seem to be a copy.

Anyhow I would very much appreciate any thoughts as to whether they can just bully us into returning the car - we were intending to terminate the agreement and hand it back as I said before but it really annoyed me that they sent reposession agents 'FIS' to our old home who told the tenants they were there to repossess our car and where could they find us and then apparently did come to our house - I didn't know that previously - because they went to the neighbours - they had our contact details so were obviously out to intimidate us and get us to hand it back and be at the mercy of their terms which is what stalled things in the first place as they say we will be liable in the difference between the auction price and what we owe which will undoubtedly add £1000's to the debt.

That is what we are trying to resolve - can we make up the missed payments and hand the car back with nothing further to pay - we will have definitely done 50% of the payments that way? They have issued a Notice of Termination even though we were sorting it out and I think that was deliberate by them to get more money out of us than if we had been able to just hand it back but they take the loss on value?

Do you think by hanging on to the car we could force them to come up with a more sensible payment plan? They flatly declined to allow anything less than full payments plus the arrears previously.

Also can I stop them sending the DCA's in by sending one of the letters on the forum with a bit about needing a court order in?

Thanks

Hettie2

Hi, just in case it helps here is their termination letter.

Please can anyone help - only just finished getting the scans on and have had another call from the tenants at our old address to say the bailiffs have gone back to them a few minutes ago even though on friday BCT said they shouldn't have gone at all and would stop them (yes I know, probably lies), I'm really worried - I don't want to have to face them if they turn up again here or for them to take the car - please can anyone say whether I should just let it go or should try and fight it off? Thanks.

Thank you Campari - gosh but it helps so much to get a reply - really appreciated. I will take a look at the thread and get something together in case they call.

I also was reading another thread - not sure if I'm going to quote it correctly - trying below..

Originally Posted by pt2537

AA99

was there any deposit paid for the car? if so how much

also if there was a deposit, is the deposit set out Anywhere on the documents you have??

Id be very very interested as if there was no deposit id argue that the amount of credit or the cash price ( both of which are prescribed terms) one of them is incorrectly stated thus rendering the agreement improperly executed and unenforceable

and I still rather amazingly have the original sales invoice and deposit we paid and part exchange details of the car we traded in for this one - it isn't mentioned on their agreement and was £2500 trade in and £1075 in cash.

Does that help in anyway?

I'm also not quite sure how they have calculated the figures payable - we made £6510 in payments before we had to stop - on page 1 of the agreement they state their estimated settlement figure for half payments is £6573.06 - if we get in the extra £63.06 does that make any difference to anything?

We have at least paid more than a third or £5000 as they have in the Repossession rights box.

Basically, my mum has said she will lend us the money to make the payments up to half but that's no good if they still clobber us for more - on page 2 of the agreement is states as long as reasonable wear and tear then no more to pay if £7500 has been achieved but they kept telling us on the phone that we would have to pay the difference between that and the auction price.

Thanks

Hettie2

Hi Campari - just read that thread - fantastic - almost wish they had taken it now - lol.

If anyone can give me some advice and what to do next it would be wonderful - am sorting a bailiffs letter from the templates. Thanks.

hi hettie

have you paid more than a third off the agreement

Hi, yes we have, very nearly half and thought that if we could get to this 50% they'd have to take it back end of story but when we started to make arrangements to do this they slapped the termination notice on us - we've missed 3 payments now.

We had asked if they would allow reduced payments or extend the terms but they say absolutely not.

Any thoughts on what I should do next?

Thanks

Hettie2

They didn't come back here by the way - it is only a correspondence address which they know but am staying with my sister

well if they take the car

it will be an unlawful recession of contract

you will get back all your payments at 8 % apr
get to keep the car or replacement value as well

they need a court order

dont surender the vehicle voluntry
sign nothing dont give them the keys

stay calm and polite and think of it as hitting the jackpot

Well, that sounds pretty good - lol - however now they've tried and haven't come back again today what should I do next please?

i would let them do the repo if they come back
but sign nothing

but thats me

Well to be honest having read your advice and the thread campari sent I'd be well chuffed if they did now! But if they don't come back what should I be doing - sorry to be a pain but having been terrified of them coming, now I want them to reposess it, knowing my luck lately I won't see them until they obtain a court order!

Hi, no sign of the repo men but don't kow what I should do next - any ideas please please?