Hi All,

I left Dubai a year ago leaving behind approximately 75k (Stirling) in debts (loan and credit cards). I was basically put in a terrible position by my UAE employer and ended up taking the easy way out - probably not the right thing to do but I didn't really fancy seeing what the inside of a UAE jail looked like.

On return to the UK we sold our home and moved to a different part of the country.

I have recently been contacted by a DCA by email and I am now worried that I could be hit with court action / repossession etc. Can they touch our assets?

If the debt was in your sole name and the assets are in your wifes name, then I cannot see what arguments could be made in a court that you have acted in a way to deny any creditors a chance of making a recovery. At the time you sold the property and assets were then registered in your wifes name, as long as there were no ongoing court proceedings, I think you should be ok.

In your position, if you have only had an email, I would wait for a letter through the post. I suspect that your new address will show up on your credit record in due course, so it is just a matter of time before you receive the letter. If any of the Dubai financial agreements allow them the right to seek recovery in any country you are reside in, subject to the consent of the courts in the country of residence, then it is possible it could go to a UK court. I am sure I have read of companies trying to enforce Dubai debts in the UK with mixed success. Even if you were taken to court and lost, if you don't own any assets at the time the court action is commenced, then it would be a case of looking at what you could afford to pay from any income.

When you get the letter, just write back to explain your situation ( retired due to war injuries on limited income, with no assets held in your name) without any admission of owing any debt and ask for copies of any agreements you had with the original creditors, together with statements of account. Perhaps ask them to fulfill any rights you have under Dubai law in relation to disclosure of information and to provide information on Dubai law that applies. Send recorded delivery and keep a copy. Then if they ever went to court, you will have a letter to confirm that you did make requests for information in response to their letter. Many of the Solicitors (debt collectors in reality) in the UK who chase the Dubai debts, appear to just try to collect on the debts, but are no great at providing information. This is going off what I have read previously stated by those chased.

Are these debts with UK based companies?

It is essential to give us the following information so that we can advise fully other wise all is speculation and waffle.

1. Are these accounts with UK based companies?

2. Which companies are these?

3. Which DCA has contacted you?

For any 'enforcement' action to be taken on any debt, the creditor must first exhaust 'normal debt collection' procedures, then the possibility of a County Court Claim is their next move, they have to win the claim, if you do not pay as the judge orders then the creditor may seek to enforce the judgement by warrant of execution to seize goods to sell to pay the debt.

Attachment of Earnings Order to deduct payment from salary/ wages.

Or a charging order on property to secure a debt.

Ultimately for debts over £750 a statutory demand for payment is made, the first step to bankruptcy.

ALL a very long way from where you are now.

The debt (credit cards and loan) is with an Abu Dhabi bank - I owe no money to any UK or international companies.

The email was sent to an email a/c that I no longer use (it was the one I registered to my UAE bank) they claim to be acting for the bank in question but will not disclose details unless I confirm my identity or contact them via telephone.

If they want to chase me they can (and probably will) but can't get much! What worries me is that they could go after assets that are in my wife's name.

If your wife had nothing to do with these debts, then they cannot touch her assets. It would be a different matter if you were aware of court proceedings in Dubai before you transfered any assets to your wife.

the DCA will not discuss the case with me unless I prove my identity I still do not know what has happened regarding court proceedings in Dubai - I can only assume I have been convicted of something as defaulting on debt is a criminal offence in Dubai.

To give a bit more detail

- before I left Dubai my company had promised me a promotion, raise and bonus for bringing in a large project on time

- a month before the contract was due to finish (on time and on budget - very rare for Dubai) my company terminated my contract - via telephone when I was back in the UK for a long weekend.

As the contract had not finished they withheld my bonus and refused to pay me my termination pay until I returned to Dubai and cleared with the company.

I got in touch with a UAE solicitor who told me I didn't have a leg to stand on and my best bet was not to come back because if I couldn't settle my debts in full I would be arrested.

The debt (credit cards and loan) is with an Abu Dhabi bank - I owe no money to any UK or international companies.

 

The email was sent to an email a/c that I no longer use (it was the one I registered to my UAE bank) they claim to be acting for the bank in question but will not disclose details unless I confirm my identity or contact them via telephone.

 

If they want to chase me they can (and probably will) but can't get much! What worries me is that they could go after assets that are in my wife's name.

Is this by 'phone or e-mail.

If by e-mail : just 'bounce' their mails

If by phone:

"they claim to be acting for the bank in question but will not disclose details unless I confirm my identity or contact them via telephone."

Do neither. Let "them come to you" by writing to you : if they aren't sure who you are when they call you, why should you give them any details.

If I phoned you out of the blue why should you give me any of your personal info? Why should them calling you be any different?.

Repeat (to them), as required : "I don't disclose my personal details on the 'phone. I'm unsure if this is a matter that relates to me, but if you are sure it does: write to me"

Thanks guys - I don't plan on disclosing anything unless I have to. But does anyone actually know where I would stand (legally) if this was pursued through the courts?

I believe in the court claims form sent out you are able to challenge immediately that the UK courts do not have jurisdiction to hear any case regarding a debt incurred in Dubai. The claimant would then have to make their case as to why the UK courts are able to deal with it.

Can I suggest that you start to research juridiction issues regarding foreign debts, so you can be prepared if they do ever issue a court claim.

I'm fairly happy that I could challenge on grounds of jurisdiction, especially as the credit/loan agreements are both governed by the law of the UAE. I really want to know if anyone can tell me if assets in my wife's name are vulnerable or not. Also I can find lots of stories on the internet regarding people being threatened etc - but I can find nothing anywhere regarding successful prosecutions for debts based in the UAE - if anyone can point me to anything I would be very grateful.

I think you are looking for someone to provide a magic piece of information that says that 100% the assets in your wifes name cannot be touched. I am not sure this is possible, as if there was an existing court proceeding in Dubai at the time you transfered assets to your wife, then I expect that the claimant would look at this. It is then up to arguments being made at the time of any court hearing.

Here is a previous thread about jurisdiction which is worth reading.

http://www.consumeractiongroup.co.uk/forum/showthread.php?385979-Dubai-Debt-through-UK-Courts

I think you are right - i'll probably approach a solicitor directly and see what they have to say. Thanks for the advice.

Previous post and The touting and wrong advice regard interpol to generate business has been removeddo not be spoofed by it

Just to add to what dx has said.

Interpol has a page for the UAE, where the current red warnings are viewable. These warnings relate to very serious criminal matters such as murder.

https://www.interpol.int/Member-countries/Asia-South-Pacific/United-Arab-Emirates

If anyone has concerns about information online about UAE authorities listing debt as fraud and obtaining red warnings through Interpol then they should think about whether information online is real or not. Just look at official information sources and news sources that you trust. Some information online is fake or deliberately misleading. If you have any concerns about Interpol notices regarding issues you might have had in the UAE, then you can always contact Interpol to check.

it turns out that the disruption we've seen in the last 24hrs is not isolated to tUK

there are numerous companies in the USA doing this too

claiming to not want money to 'solve' the really scary debt collector letters

and potential unknown Interpol red notices. [they use that as the clincher if you don't use their services.]

only to fwd you on to NWNF solicitors that want £375 for writing a one letter reply to whatever DCA wrote to you about your UAE debts.

if you dig a bit deeper into these claimed red notice stories, you never actually find proof at all.

we must be hurting their fleecing income by for want of a better word...ignoring a powerless DCA.

dx

its one big fleecing exercise.

From what i could find out from Interpol online and other reliable media sources, there has been an increase in red notices worldwide over recent years, but there is a robust process in place. They must relate to serious crimes, must have gone through a judicial process in a country and must comply with interpol rules to be accepted. Last year, there were only 12,500 issued worldwide and they related to the most serious crimes you could imagine.

It is possible UAE authorities have obtained red notices for very serious financial crimes, such as a director of a company stealing money from a company, but they are not being obtained for standard consumer credit situations. Most of the debt cases we have seen reported on CAG are consumer debts, which have simply been sold by UAE Banks to UAE based debt collectors. It is very unlikely any reports have been made to interpol, but of course if UAE courts have the debts recorded, then the UAE have agreements with other Islamic countries, who also still treat some debts as criminal matters. If you travel to other Islamic countries with a UAE debt, then you might well be detained at the border.