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Hi all,

 

First post here after reading through your excellent site. Please be gentle. Apologies if it's in the wrong place.

 

I went through a disastrous divorce and had to move out of the family home. As a result my expenditure tripled and my income remained the same.

 

I approached the CAB who were most helpful and they organised an equitable payment schedule based on my income and expenditure form,

and I set up standing orders in favor of my creditors. All was well for about 2 1/2 years until I lost my job.

 

I wrote to my creditors, (including the DCAs), explaining my situation, that I was looking for a job

and that I would be reducing the standing orders to £5, but since I was 59 the prospects were not good.

 

My mother has alzheimers so with a view to her care I have moved back home and have survived on what little I have and her generosity.

I have a job now, but it's temporary and it will finish in July.

I will be 60 this summer, so the prospects are bleaker and my time here may be limited by my mothers' needs.

 

I have some questions, however:

 

1. Do I have to tell my creditors where I now live?

Given mother's increasing distress,

I do not want her worried and I certainly do not want anyone calling at the house.

 

2. Can any and all communication with my creditors be done by email?

 

3. Given the situation, I may come into a small amount of money.

How much, as a % of the outstanding debt,

could I reasonably expect my creditors to accept to consider the debt repaid?

 

You help will be gratefully received.

There is a tide in the affairs of men, which, taken at the flood, leads on to fortune;

Omitted, all the voyage of their life is bound in shallows and in miseries.

On such a full sea are we now afloat, and we must take the current when it serves,

Or lose our ventures.

 

:tea::tea:One the other hand......Sod this, I'm off!:tea::tea:

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Hi hamadryad, and welcome to CAG!

 

As mikeymack says above, please let us have details, listing all the creditors including DCAs.

 

If you are not registered to vote at your mother's home you can always say you are moving around friends, so cannot give an address.

 

You can communicate by email, but some will not communicate with you unless you give them an address or other security details.

 

The percentage creditors would accept to settle the debt will depend on the size of the debt.

 

If some of the debts are credit cards you need to check the credit agreements. If they do not have valid credit agreements you are in a better position to negotiate.

 

DD

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Welcome H,

 

Sorry to hear of your circumstances, life is never fair.

 

You can communicate with these tyrants in whatever way you want to.

 

Email and letter being the better options.

 

Depending on exactly what the debts are, then you could even pay them £1 a month.

 

I wouldn't be at all concerned with offering them a F&F payment just yet, or any time in the future the debts might not even be enforceable.

 

As for debt collectors turning up on your private property, they have absolutely NO LEGAL right to do so, and any such individual will be walking on extremely thin ice if they don't clear off when told to do so.

Have a read of the couple of links, one is for any telephone harassment they might like to do chance their arm at, and the other is to tell them that they cannot just turn up unannounced and if they do so you will have them removed by the police.

 

http://www.consumeractiongroup.co.uk/forum/content.php?493-Harassment-by-telephone-response-letter

 

http://www.consumeractiongroup.co.uk/forum/content.php?410-LETTER-USED-WHEN-A-DCA-THREATENS-A-DOORSTEP-VISIT

 

Above all else, remember that these lot are simply unqualified untrained debt collectors, they are NOT bailiffs, nor will they ever be, they have absolutely no legal rights or powers whatsoever. Concentrate on your Mum,these can take a back seat.

Who ever heard of someone getting a job at the Jobcentre? The unemployed are sent there as penance for their sins, not to help them find work!

 

 

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  • 1 year later...

Hi all,

 

I've been reading this thread with a great deal of interest due to a letter I just received from Capquest.

 

They say that I have a debt with arrow Global and that my payments should now be made to them. I have no such account and have been making no such payments! I propose to ignore the letter. Do you agree?

 

But to the relevance of the thread.

 

Post a disastrous divorce caused by a brain tumour, I was left saddled with about £30k of debt.

Via CAB I arranged for a repayment plan for my creditors and in due course all my creditors sold the debts on.

All was progressing as it should until I lost my job.

I told the new owners of the debts of my plight and explained why I was reducing the payments to £5 pcm.

 

That was in 2010. I am now 61 and am my mother's carer because she has Alzheimer's.

 

However, over the next month or so, I may come into some money and I would like some advice about what to offer my creditors to pay off the debts completely.

 

The answers I need are as follows:

 

1. What actions should I take with each of the creditors in order to establish exactly how much I owe? ie, is there a standard, guaranteed-a-response formula.

 

2. Are they liable to visit in the interim, (it would seriously upset my mother), and how can I stop that?

 

3. What is the likely response from my creditors?

 

4. Recognizing that my initial offer of 10% is likely to be rejected, how much should I go up to?

 

Your advice would be most welcome.

 

H

There is a tide in the affairs of men, which, taken at the flood, leads on to fortune;

Omitted, all the voyage of their life is bound in shallows and in miseries.

On such a full sea are we now afloat, and we must take the current when it serves,

Or lose our ventures.

 

:tea::tea:One the other hand......Sod this, I'm off!:tea::tea:

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Hi,

II have taken the liberty of moving your post from the end of a 5 year old thread and moved it to a thread of its owm. This is purely administrative and you need do nothing.

 

I feel the capquest issue should be dealt with separately on the debt collection forum.

 

I think it is pointless at this time to contact any creditor until you have the money available but once you do:

 

The first letter should be headed, "I acknowledge no debt to you nor to any company you claim to represent." This is in order to submit a CCA request to ensure they have the correct paperwork. If any of the debts were taken out post April 07 this may be pointless but you never know. They must send you an agreement and a statement of account. It may also be worth sending the original creditor a SAR to get a full breakdown of the account to show interest added and charges which may be reclaimed.

 

Whether or not they have the agreement(s) will dictate how much you offer.

 

Within your letters you should state that all contact to be made by letter (no phone or personal calls) as you have a vulnerable adult in the premises.

 

The creditors will want to maximise what they can get. They pay a small amount for these debts (sometimes less than 10%) so that should be your starting point. How far you go up to will depend on how much you will have to spare. Never say 'accept this offer or I will stay at £5 per month as this will just get their backs up.

If you are asked to deal with any matter via private message, PLEASE report it.

Everything I say is opinion only. If you are unsure on any comment made, you should see a qualified solicitor

Please help CAG. Order this ebook. Now available on Amazon. Please click HERE

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whats on your credit file?

please don't hit Quote...just type we know what we said earlier..

DCA's view debtors as suckers, marks and mugs

NO DCA has ANY legal powers whatsoever on ANY debt no matter what it's Type

and they

are NOT and can NEVER  be BAILIFFS. even if a debt has been to court..

If everyone stopped blindly paying DCA's Tomorrow, their industry would collapse overnight... 

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Hi Silverfox,

 

Thanks for that, it is most helpful. Sorry I posted the questions in the wrong thread, but all well etc.

 

I am grateful and I'll take on board what you've said.

 

 

I can't access either of these links. Says I have been blocked/disabled.

 

Had a call at home tonight from capquest. Don't know where they got the number from cos I moved back here to be my mother's carer.

 

Need the template to stop the calls an also to deny them access because my mother is defined as a vulnerable individual under the Mental Capacity Act.

 

Help

 

BTW, I am registered to vote here, that maybe where they got the details from!!!!!!

 

Bugger!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!1

There is a tide in the affairs of men, which, taken at the flood, leads on to fortune;

Omitted, all the voyage of their life is bound in shallows and in miseries.

On such a full sea are we now afloat, and we must take the current when it serves,

Or lose our ventures.

 

:tea::tea:One the other hand......Sod this, I'm off!:tea::tea:

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  • 1 month later...

Firstly when they ring again just hang up, or tell them to remove your number from their system and hang up.

 

You are under NO legal obligation to talk to these over the phone, whatever it is they wish to say can be committed in writing.

Here is the telephone harassment letter, send it 2nd class and obtain ''proof of posting'' which is FREE from the PO counter.

http://www.consumeractiongroup.co.uk/forum/showthread.php?387367-Harassment-by-Telephone-**Update-21st-April-2014**

 

And here is the doorstepper letter, however I would just print it off and keep it by the front door, OR you could send it in the same envelope as the harassment letter.

http://www.consumeractiongroup.co.uk/forum/showthread.php?387366-Harassment-amp-Threat-of-Doorstep-Visit-**Update-21st-April-2014**

 

The links posted previously don't work because they're old! They were posted two years ago!

 

Keep a diary of events, especially regarding the phone harassment, not date and time of call.

Use your phone providers 'malicious calls' procedure, and they may even change your number 'free of charge' for you too.

 

If you have any credit, mobile phone, broadband, etc then this will all be on your credit file so they will get the info off there.

Talking of which, have you checked your credit files to see what is on there?

Who ever heard of someone getting a job at the Jobcentre? The unemployed are sent there as penance for their sins, not to help them find work!

 

 

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To be fair, keeping your details updated (Even in this case by accident) is the BEST thing you can do.

 

If they cannot trace you all they need to have done is apply for a county court judgement in your absence which would give you a ccj!

 

The fact they know where you are means you can now face the issue, grab it by the balls and chellenge them on it.

PLEASE HELP US TO KEEP THIS SITE RUNNING

EVERY POUND DONATED WILL HELP US TO KEEP HELPING OTHERS

 

 

 

 

 

The SabreSheep, All information is offered on good faith and based on mine and others experiences. I am not a qualified legal professional and you should always seek legal advice if you are unsure of your position.

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Hi,

 

 

Thank you for all that.

 

 

From elsewhere on here I got a letter together,

post the call, and I have put it below for your information.

 

 

I do intend that I address the 'full and final' situation as and when I can too.

Not least to get this monkey off my back!

 

 

here's the letter. Amended to protect the innocent!

 

 

[removed - out of date and irrelevant old letter] - dx

 

Thank you for your advice. I thought that instead of letting sleeping dogs lie, I'd rattled their cage and woken a monster!

 

I'm planning to make an offer in the next few months of about 10-15% of the total bill & ask for a full & final settlement. I'll be 62 in a few months too, so the chances of them getting any more out of me a very slim. Very slim indeed!

There is a tide in the affairs of men, which, taken at the flood, leads on to fortune;

Omitted, all the voyage of their life is bound in shallows and in miseries.

On such a full sea are we now afloat, and we must take the current when it serves,

Or lose our ventures.

 

:tea::tea:One the other hand......Sod this, I'm off!:tea::tea:

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hi

please don't send that letter you have copied [now removed] that was above.

 

have you been and gotten you credit file?

 

might be an idea you do that

and come back and tell us what shows.

 

just remember DCA's are NOT bailiffs

 

dx

please don't hit Quote...just type we know what we said earlier..

DCA's view debtors as suckers, marks and mugs

NO DCA has ANY legal powers whatsoever on ANY debt no matter what it's Type

and they

are NOT and can NEVER  be BAILIFFS. even if a debt has been to court..

If everyone stopped blindly paying DCA's Tomorrow, their industry would collapse overnight... 

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Hi,

 

Sorry, I thought I was doing the right thing!

I've not sent the letter yet, it's in the car.

 

Is there a more appropriate letter I should send to stop any and all calls, either telephone or personal?

 

Hi,

 

I've checked my credit report. I score 1/5

There is a Late payment against my amex card cos I forgot last month. It's up to date now though.

All my Nationwide accounts are up to date.

The only outstanding issues are for the creditors.

 

Curiously, crapquest are not listed, just the prime owners of the credit. What does this mean?

There is a tide in the affairs of men, which, taken at the flood, leads on to fortune;

Omitted, all the voyage of their life is bound in shallows and in miseries.

On such a full sea are we now afloat, and we must take the current when it serves,

Or lose our ventures.

 

:tea::tea:One the other hand......Sod this, I'm off!:tea::tea:

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there is no magic letter

just encourages them.

 

 

want does you mean by prime owners? original creditor you mean?

 

 

dx

please don't hit Quote...just type we know what we said earlier..

DCA's view debtors as suckers, marks and mugs

NO DCA has ANY legal powers whatsoever on ANY debt no matter what it's Type

and they

are NOT and can NEVER  be BAILIFFS. even if a debt has been to court..

If everyone stopped blindly paying DCA's Tomorrow, their industry would collapse overnight... 

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HI,

 

I've downloaded it from noddle and printed it out.

 

There are a couple of 'gone-away's' there, but there's no mention of Moorcroft or Capquest, just Arrow Global.

 

Wat exactly do you need to know?

 

Yes, the original creditors

There is a tide in the affairs of men, which, taken at the flood, leads on to fortune;

Omitted, all the voyage of their life is bound in shallows and in miseries.

On such a full sea are we now afloat, and we must take the current when it serves,

Or lose our ventures.

 

:tea::tea:One the other hand......Sod this, I'm off!:tea::tea:

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ok so are you paying anyone

if not I'd pers not reply or respond to any of them.

 

you should have a defaulted date in the summary of each debt?

 

that will give you an 'idea' of when the debts will probably be approaching or are near to the statute barred limit

which means you'll probably get a bit of piece and quiet.

 

dx

please don't hit Quote...just type we know what we said earlier..

DCA's view debtors as suckers, marks and mugs

NO DCA has ANY legal powers whatsoever on ANY debt no matter what it's Type

and they

are NOT and can NEVER  be BAILIFFS. even if a debt has been to court..

If everyone stopped blindly paying DCA's Tomorrow, their industry would collapse overnight... 

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Hi,

 

I am paying them, both directly and through Capquest, Arrow and Moorcroft who I was paying the agreed amount,

but lost my job and dropped it to £5 each for all of them.

 

I wrote to each of them explaining my circumstances and, albeit reluctantly, they accepted that with no job and being 59 at the time, £5 was all I could afford.

 

I set up the standing orders and 'went to ground' via a relationship, which ultimately went sour.

 

I then ended up looking after my grandchildren and while there I discovered my Mum's Alzheimer's had progressed to the stage

where she needed my support to maintain her independence and I've been there since Oct 2012, as her sole live-in carer.

I still maintain the £5/month, but I have not informed my creditors of my new address.

 

My new address is on my credit file, but would need active research to find it.

That's why I think Capquest got lucky via the Electoral Role or were told, in order to find my Mum's number and hence contact me.

 

I do have some questions that I need answers to, vis:

 

Do you think I should tell them officially of my new address, or leave things as they are?

(I denied I was there to Capquest when they called).

 

In just over 3 years I will be 65 and liable to reduce the payments to £1/month.

 

Do you think they will write off the debts at that point?

If at some point in the future I achieve a position where I could put the payments up should I, knowing my rapidly approaching retirement?

 

If I do come into a little money, even if it's only 10% of the debts,

 

do you think they will accept this as full and final, in light of my age and the prospect of a reduction to £1?

 

Would it be worth contacting the owners of the debts indicated on my credit file to establish exactly who owns the debts and exactly how much is outstanding?

 

Thank you

 

Hi again, Are you ex forces?

 

 

Pay Corps perhaps?

 

 

It's just your avatar gives that impression.

 

 

I'm ex REME

There is a tide in the affairs of men, which, taken at the flood, leads on to fortune;

Omitted, all the voyage of their life is bound in shallows and in miseries.

On such a full sea are we now afloat, and we must take the current when it serves,

Or lose our ventures.

 

:tea::tea:One the other hand......Sod this, I'm off!:tea::tea:

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you need to list your debts please

what type is the debt

who was the original creditor

when you took the debt out

who you pay now

is the debt on your credit

the defaulted date of the debt.

 

 

I am beginning to question you wisdom of paying them anything at all.

please don't hit Quote...just type we know what we said earlier..

DCA's view debtors as suckers, marks and mugs

NO DCA has ANY legal powers whatsoever on ANY debt no matter what it's Type

and they

are NOT and can NEVER  be BAILIFFS. even if a debt has been to court..

If everyone stopped blindly paying DCA's Tomorrow, their industry would collapse overnight... 

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Hi again,

 

 

I don't have the details to hand where I am at the moment,

but as soon as I can I'll list the full details for you.

 

 

I can say at the outset, none of the debts are secured.

 

 

There is an Abbey bank account,

an Abbey credit card,

an MBNA credit card and

a Halifax credit card.

 

 

There is also a Sainsburys Bank loan which I took out in order to give my then wife a fantastic time at what was supposed to have been the end of her life.

 

 

She had been diagnosed with an aggressive brain tumour, the long term prognosis for which was 3 years!

She survived, divorced me and I have been left with the financial penalty!

 

 

Details to follow.

Thanks again.

There is a tide in the affairs of men, which, taken at the flood, leads on to fortune;

Omitted, all the voyage of their life is bound in shallows and in miseries.

On such a full sea are we now afloat, and we must take the current when it serves,

Or lose our ventures.

 

:tea::tea:One the other hand......Sod this, I'm off!:tea::tea:

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Hi again,

 

Back home now, so here are the details:

 

Arrow Global: I believe this to be a virgin credit card.

Balance: £9901

Dafault balance: £10904

Status: default

Account start date: 26/11/2008

Date of default: 30/10/2010

 

Capital One

Balance: £4371

Default balance: £5039

Account start date: 23/08/2007

Date of default: 11/06/2010

Account holder status: Gone away

 

Halifax credit card

Balance: £3281

Default balance: £3724

Account start date: 22/06/2005

Date of default: 25/10/2010

 

Abbey credit card

Balance: £3820

Default balance: £4211

Account holder status: Gone away

Account start date: 07/11/2007

Default date: 08/07/2010

 

Arrow Global. I think this is a Sainsburys Bank loan

Balance: £5758

Default balance: £6564

Start dare: 15/05/2006

Default date: 07/09/2010

 

Hope this helps.

 

Thank you, in advance.

There is a tide in the affairs of men, which, taken at the flood, leads on to fortune;

Omitted, all the voyage of their life is bound in shallows and in miseries.

On such a full sea are we now afloat, and we must take the current when it serves,

Or lose our ventures.

 

:tea::tea:One the other hand......Sod this, I'm off!:tea::tea:

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hey thats great

what are you paying each one?

please don't hit Quote...just type we know what we said earlier..

DCA's view debtors as suckers, marks and mugs

NO DCA has ANY legal powers whatsoever on ANY debt no matter what it's Type

and they

are NOT and can NEVER  be BAILIFFS. even if a debt has been to court..

If everyone stopped blindly paying DCA's Tomorrow, their industry would collapse overnight... 

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Share on other sites

Credit was easily available when I took out the agreements, all would be well now if cancer hadn't intervened.

 

I am paying £5 per month to each since I lost my job in 2012 and before coming to look after my Mum.

 

I think I need to make sure that I'm only paying the ones I need to though.

 

There have been so many letters and shifts of who I'm supposed to be paying that I've kinda lost track.

 

There are standing orders for £5 in favour of Capquest, MDRL, Sainsburys, Halifax, MBNA & Capital One

and yet the noddle file doesn't stipulate either Capquest or MDRL.

 

It's probably the same things, but I'd like to be sure!

 

On the advice of the CAB I opened and bank account somewhere else,

and I've been studious in making sure that account is in good order.

 

Your advice re next step would be appreciated.

There is a tide in the affairs of men, which, taken at the flood, leads on to fortune;

Omitted, all the voyage of their life is bound in shallows and in miseries.

On such a full sea are we now afloat, and we must take the current when it serves,

Or lose our ventures.

 

:tea::tea:One the other hand......Sod this, I'm off!:tea::tea:

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you know what I'd do

stop paying all of them.

 

then deal with each one as the forest comes through your door.

 

it cant hurt you the debts are already all defaulted.

 

dx

please don't hit Quote...just type we know what we said earlier..

DCA's view debtors as suckers, marks and mugs

NO DCA has ANY legal powers whatsoever on ANY debt no matter what it's Type

and they

are NOT and can NEVER  be BAILIFFS. even if a debt has been to court..

If everyone stopped blindly paying DCA's Tomorrow, their industry would collapse overnight... 

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TBH I've often thought of that, but they would just:

 

A. start the forest as you say, then

B. Wider and deeper scrutiny, (I have a v small pension), which may in turn lead to

C. Contact with an employer if I got a job, (and I'm looking)

D. Pursue me through the courts, leading to a CCJ, which would create

E. Issues with the wider family, (and my presence here is the subject of expressed guilt), and

F. Mean that I would be going back on my word since I told them I'd put the payments back up to a higher figure if I got a job again.

 

I do not want to create problems where there is relative quite so far.

 

What I want to achieve is to prevent them calling the house & causing distress and upset to Mum, and to leave me alone until I can get sorted out.

 

Do you think I should tell them where I am?

There is a tide in the affairs of men, which, taken at the flood, leads on to fortune;

Omitted, all the voyage of their life is bound in shallows and in miseries.

On such a full sea are we now afloat, and we must take the current when it serves,

Or lose our ventures.

 

:tea::tea:One the other hand......Sod this, I'm off!:tea::tea:

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TBH I've often thought of that, but they would just:

 

A. start the forest as you say, then

B. Wider and deeper scrutiny, (I have a v small pension), which may in turn lead to [they cant touch your pension]

C. Contact with an employer if I got a job, (and I'm looking)- not allowed too

D. Pursue me through the courts, leading to a CCJ, which would create [if they hold the correct paperwork and if they are brave enough]

E. Issues with the wider family, (and my presence here is the subject of expressed guilt), and [cant effect your family]

F. Mean that I would be going back on my word since I told them I'd put the payments back up to a higher figure if I got a job again.[tough on them don't get fleeced!]

I do not want to create problems where there is relative quite so far.

 

What I want to achieve is to prevent them calling the house & causing distress and upset to Mum, and to leave me alone until I can get sorted out.

 

Do you think I should tell them where I am?

 

they already know

 

you cant run forever and you cant guarantee they wont find you or annoy your mother WHATEVER YOU DO

 

best method is hit them head on

stop payments

 

my gut reaction here is you have been cash cowed on many debts for ages

 

 

as each deforestation starts to appear then we'll know for sure who has the debt and what weapons

they hold

 

 

a CCA request will be the first thing to send them.

 

 

it wont hurt you, even if they do latterly show they hold the correct paperwork

to stop payments for a few months.

please don't hit Quote...just type we know what we said earlier..

DCA's view debtors as suckers, marks and mugs

NO DCA has ANY legal powers whatsoever on ANY debt no matter what it's Type

and they

are NOT and can NEVER  be BAILIFFS. even if a debt has been to court..

If everyone stopped blindly paying DCA's Tomorrow, their industry would collapse overnight... 

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