I`ve been very very silly and ignored letters about a debt for too long.

A letter arrived this morning from Northampton county court very official looking and looks like a ccj.

The amount is for over 4000 on an old credit card - there is no way i can pay it off in the 14 days i think would mean it wasnt registered.

The thing is i was just sorting my finances out after returning this week to work after maternity leave and i really wanted to spend a year or 2 making my credit file a1 as we would like to sell up and move house in next couple of years-so it is really really going to have a massive impact on my life.

The letter is entitled a Claim form with a county court stamp and claim no. with various options of response and times - court fee of 85.00 and solicitir costs of 80.00 are added to the debt.

Is there anyway i can prevent this from beng registered against me if i only agree to a payment plan or am i well and truly done for ?

Any advice very welcome.

i know its wrong that i ignored the letters so please dont have a go at me .

Thanks again

I'm afraid once a CCJ has been obtained & if it's not paid within a month it will be registered.

Is there any way you can defend this such as the amounts claimed are incorrect because of mis-sold PPI or unfair charges added?

moved to legal forrum

please answers the above questions

dx

thanks.

Claimants are arrow global ltd and its 4.536.42for a credit card with HBOS x

Missold PPi - not sure if i had it or not.

Also slight niggle in back of my mind that i may be heading for or over 6 years ?

How can i find out either of above ?

Do you have any statements.. ? If so, you will see whether PPI has been added to the account.

Are there any late payment charges/fees on this account, again, if you have statements then ou will see if they have been added.

What is the date of issue on the claim form - Top right hand corner under the claim number. We need to know that in order to work out how much time you have to play with.

Did HBOS ever issue a default notice to you.. it would have been a letter issued in respect of s87(1) and you would have been given a certain amount of time to repay any arrears.

You say this is an ex HBoS debt which has been sold to Arrow Global, were you ever sent a Notice of Assignment advisign that the account had been sold on ?

What exactly does it say on the Particulars of Claim.. eg.. what are they claiming for. If you can type up exactly what it says.. inserting xxx's where personal information or £amounts are concerned.

Thanks for reply.

I have no statementsbut have just opened an envelope full of letters.

Arrow bought the debt in Oct 2010.

I`ve been ignoring letters and phonecalls .

I know it sounds mad but i am completely and utterly phobic of answering the phone and have buried my head ibn the sand.

As i`m typing this it has started a panic again that i once had years ago when my husband got made redundant and we lost our home.

This is very difficult for me because i start to panic and i need to sort this.

I have 1 statement from Halifax One.

No added charges.

I did get a default i`m sure.

Particulars of claim as follow >

The claimants claim is for the sum of 4.536.42 being monies due from the defendant to the claimant under a regulated agreement between the defendant and HBOS.

(no. xxxxxxxxx) and assigned to the claimant on oct 8 2010, notice of which h been provided to the defendant.

The defendant has failed to make a payment in accordance with the terms of the agreement and a default notice has been served persuant to the consumer credit act 1974.

And the claimant claims the sum of 4,536.42.

I wrote to the halifax a couple of years ago asking for written communication and a payment plan but they only continued to phone me..

The date on the northhampton court claim is 6 june 2011.

can i contact Arrow Global and offer payment terms for full amount and ask them to drop the case ?? is that a stupid question ?

Oh crumbs i cant beleive i`ve let this happen.

Please can someone tell me what to do in very simple terms-i`ve not only got this going on but huge things going on at home and at work so has come at worst possible time x

Please dont panic.

Yes, you can admit the debt and enter into a repayment plan. I will try and find someone to help. It might not be right now.. but certainly soon.

Thank you- will i still have it registered against me for 6 years now tho. Is there anything i can do which will mean i dont actually get the ccj registered - am not in a position to find all that money but could prob pay it over 12 months

Hi Mooshy,

Have you done a CCA Request for this credit card?

Elsa x

Seems to me you need to act quickly and arm yourself with as much information as you can about this account so you can make an informed decision whether to defend or not.

You need to find out whether they hold a valid credit agreement, whether there are unfair charges or missold Payment Protection Insurance (both of which could be claimed back to reduce the balance) and, importantly, when you made the last payment or acknowledgement of this debt (as you mention the possibility of it being Statute Barred).

Just my opinion, but I would send a CCA Request to Arrow Global, and a Subject Access Request to Halifax. Links to template letters are in my blog, linked below.

This won't affect whatever way you decide to go with this, but it will set things in motion so you can get the info you need to see how things stand.

kind regards,

Elsa x

Thanks Elsa,

If i do none of above and just accept and negotiate payment terms is there anyway they could stop the ccj being registered without paying the whole lot upfont ? I really dont think i`ll have the time/ guts to defend because tbh i did sign an agreement and should have paid. I`m not after a get out clause i just dont want a ccj . I`ll do as you say but the whole defence thing sounds complicated and very scary-whats the worse case sxenario if i defend and lose ?

I totally understand your feelings and anxiety, Mooshy. You need to do what's right for you.

If you defended and lost then you'd have the CCJ, and would need to ask for an instalment order.

The Statute Barred aspect really should be looked at though as that would be a complete defence. Do you have any idea when you last made payment?

Any ammunition you have that would throw doubt on the outcome would make them more likely to negotiate.

Sending a SAR to Halifax carries no risk at all and would give you all the info you need. You can do this independantly of your decision to defend or not.

Should they agree to drop the case on consideration of an agreed payment plan, once you got the info from the SAR you could renegotiate payments or reclaim unfair charges direct from Halifax in order to reduce the debt. If you found from the SAR that there had been six full years between your last payment and when payments recommenced, then you could legally stop paying and they couldn't take you back to court.

Hence Information is crucial.

See what my good friend CitizenB has to say about the best way to negotiate in order to try to get them to withdraw.

It's often a game of who blinks first..they try to intimidate you (and have unfortunately succeeded) but if you arm yourself with info and fight back, demanding that they authenticate the debt, the amount and whether its SB or not, they sometimes discontinue. You can drop your defence and negotiate or go to mediation at any stage up to the court date, as far as I'm aware.

Take your time, do your research, calm yourself and be very sure what you want to do before you do it

Whatever you decide to do, you must do it BEFORE the 25th of June.

You say you think you can repay it over 12 months ? That might be acceptable to them.

CitezenB thank you.

When you say it MAY be acceptable to them who do you mean-HBOS or the court or the Court ?

Who exactyly should i make the offer to or do i have to file a defence to enter into ANY negotiation ?

Thanks

You might consider a time order

http://www.nationaldebtline.co.uk/england_wales/factsheet.php?page=06_time_orders

http://www.consumeractiongroup.co.uk/forum/entry.php?186-Time-Orders-A-guide-for-the-rest-of-us

From reading post 2 - it looks like you have received a CLAIM FORM NOT a CCJ Judgement. Does it say that you have 14 days to acknowledge and 28 days to defend??

Can you scan and post up what you have received with personal details and all ref numbers removed? Or type up the Particulars of Claim?

If it is a Claim form you can defend this and ask for documents etc under CPR but need to know what you have received

Hi Coaldog-i hope your right i think you may be.

I have scanner here but no idea how to use it !

havent told my husband yey but will do if you really need document scanning as he will do it for me later tonight.

Its a blue and white a4 size-4 pieces of pare in total

claim form

response pack

admission

defence

no other documents.

It does say on the response form.

if you file an acknowledgement of service but do not file a defence within 28 days of the date of service of the claim form or particulars of claim if served separetely judgement may be entered against you.

If you do not file an application within 14 days of the date of filing this acknowedgement of service, iy will be assumed that you accept the courts jurisdiction and judgement may be entered against you.

Please tell me there is someway i can stop this being on my file still for 6 years ?

And thank youx

Some kind of Tomlin order could avoid a CCJ but there are 'side effects'. Google the phrase and learn what you can.

What is the Issue Date?

Who is the Claimant and Address for sending documents

Can you type up what is in the 'Particulars of Claim' Box?

Hi Mooshy,

It's definitely a claim form. You haven't got a CCJ yet.

Here's a run down..

you don't know when it was last paid..could be over 6 years ago

you don't know how much of this is in unfair charges

you don't know if a Default Notice was issued

you don't know if they can supply a copy of the agreement

Did you receive a Notice of Assignment from Arrow?

Whichever way you go...You need this info. You could have a strong case, or rattle them enough to make them discontinue. Charges could negate part of the debt. Any discrepancies could help negotiations and make them more likely to accept affordable payments or a low full and final settlement.

It's got to be your call. No one will pressurise you, and we'll help whatever you decide.

All I can do is tell you what I'd do if it was me.

If it was me, I would acklowedge the claim, stating I was going to defend all. I would send off a SAR to Halifax immediately.

I would send a CPR 31.14 letter to Arrow, requesting a copy of the agreement, the default notice, the notice of assignment and a statement of account detailing how they have come to the amount claimed. I would also send a part 18 request asking for confirmation of the date of last payment or written acknowledgement.

They would have 7 days to supply this. If they fail to supply it you can apply to have the claim struck out.

If they know they can't supply all these, or that the debt is statute barred, they may discontinue.

If they DO come up with the goods, and your defence is weak, you can still admit the debt and negotiate out of court before the hearing date, indeed it's encouraged.

If you do nothing else today, whichever way you decide to go, please think about sending the SAR

Elsa x

Also - if you give us the Issue date I can tell you when this has to be sorted by

You might consider a time order

 

http://www.nationaldebtline.co.uk/england_wales/factsheet.php?page=06_time_orders

 

http://www.consumeractiongroup.co.uk/forum/entry.php?186-Time-Orders-A-guide-for-the-rest-of-us

Please tell me there is someway i can stop this being on my file still for 6 years ?

And thank youx

A time order will do this, as long as you stick rigidly to the terms of the order. You apply for this and it's on your terms with the agreement of the court. Look at the links provided.

Have you been on a lower income during your maternity leave? If so you will be able to demonstrate how you can afford to pay it in the time that you ask for.

The links I provided above advise you how to get a time order.

I believe that this will be quicker and less stressful than defending this claim, unless you believe that this money isn't owed. If there is missold PPI and charges you could claim these back and use the payment to reduce the debt, or use it as a bargaining point to try and negotiate a settlement.

Mooshy,

You've received a lot of advice on here and I appreciate that its difficult to cope with everyone firing things at you, however I'm afraid that now you have received a court claim you have a limited time to react.

You DO need to work out the dates, you have 14 days to respond to the claim from the date of service, this is 5 days after the date on the claim form. If you wish to acknowledge the claim you get a further 14 days to decide what to do prior to letting the court know. So you need to mark down either the 19th day after the date on the claim form or the 33rd if you aknowledge the claim online and seek the further 14 days. If the date falls on a weekend, you can usually use the next working day as the date but you might want to confirm with the court this, dont worry about asking them this on the phone they are used to people asking for the final filing date.

You state you have an inkling this might be stat barred, that is a 6 years gap where you have neither paid anything or acknowledged in writing this debt to a creditor, if this is so its paramount that you confirm this ASAP, its a complete defence to a claim but you MUST be certain. Do you have a copy of your credit file? does that show a default or last payment date? Do you have original chasing letters from the creditor showing the default?

IF not stat barred then the Time order suggested by Caro is a good option here I feel, Time orders tend to be given when the defendant has suffered a loss of earning that is temporary and that will change in the future to allow repayments to be increased. This agreement is set in stone by the judge and ensures so long as you keep to the agreement they can take no further enforcement options against you.

S.

The shadow - thanks . if i get a time order would it stop the ccj going down against me ?

You say 5 days after claim date . Thats 6th June on claim date !

Coledog -

Particulars of claim as follow >

The claimants claim is for the sum of 4.536.42 being monies due from the defendant to the claimant under a regulated agreement between the defendant and HBOS.

(no. xxxxxxxxx) and assigned to the claimant on oct 8 2010, notice of which h been provided to the defendant.

The defendant has failed to make a payment in accordance with the terms of the agreement and a default notice has been served persuant to the consumer credit act 1974.

And the claimant claims the sum of 4,536.42.

The date on the northhampton court claim is 6 june 2011.

Elsa - thanks again- you say

"you can still admit the debt and negotiate out of court before the hearing date, indeed it's encouraged. " - - - would this negotiation if tey agreed mean i still had a ccj ?

Thanks all-i need to sort this tomorrow as back to work wed x