Thanks for the reply Andy, here are the relevant details... Name of the Claimant - LOWELL PORTFOLIO 1 LTD Date of issue – 29 June 2015 What is the claim for – The Claimant's Claim is for the sum of 1,970 being monies due from the Defendant to the Claimant under a Credit Cards agreement regulated by the Consumer Credit Act 1974 between the defendant and Vanquis Bank Plc under account reference xxxxxxxxxxxxxx and assigned to the Claimant on 02/09/2011 notice of which has been given to the Defendant. The Defendant failed to maintain the contractual payment under the terms of the agreement and a default notice has been served and not complied with. The Claim also includes statutory interest pursuant to section 69 of the County Courts Act 1984 at a rate of 8.00% per annum (a daily rate of 0.36 from the date of assignment of the agreement to 01/09/2012 being an amount of 131.67 What is the value of the claim - £1,785 + court costs £105 + solicitors costs £80 = £1970 Is the claim for a current account (Overdraft) or credit/loan account or mobile phone account - Credit card When did you enter into the original agreement before or after 2007 - No Has the claim been issued by the original creditor or was the account assigned and it is the Debt purchaser who has issued the claim. - Assigned to Lowell, can't remember when. Were you aware the account had been assigned – did you receive a Notice of Assignment - Don't remember, probably. Did you receive a Default Notice from the original creditor - Probably, can't remember when. Have you been receiving statutory notices headed “Notice of Default sums” – at least once a year - Can't remember, but probably yes. Why did you cease payments - Couldn't afford to pay, I was off work due to illness. What was the date of your last payment - Around August or September 2010 Was there a dispute with the original creditor that remains unresolved - No, but I think there may be some unfair charges tacked on, I didn't contact them about it. Did you communicate any financial problems to the original creditor and make any attempt to enter into a debt management plan? No.

Hi guys, I've been trying to read and learn as much as I can from this site, but there's a lot to learn! I used to have a Vanquis credit card, unfortunately I couldn't afford payments because I was off work for a few years due to illness. Apparently I defaulted in November 2010 (according to my Noddle credit report), I've been receiving letters from Lowell but I've been throwing them away, hoping that the debt will become statute barred and forgotten about. The other day I got a claim form from Northampton County Court (I've attached the form), they are claiming a total of £1,970 even though my Noddle report says the debt is £1,653. I don't know how to proceed, and I can't afford any legal advice. Since being too ill to work for several years I have recently set up my own business that I'm trying to get off the ground, but I'm not making any money from it yet. I only get Housing Benefits and Working tax credit, and I have to pay for my business costs as well as my personal costs, so my outgoings are far more than the small amount of money I've got coming in. This is all made more difficult by the fact I suffer from ADHD and an anxiety disorder. Anyway, can anyone suggest how I should deal with this? Should I fill in the court forms saying I admit the claim, or part of the claim, or dispute it? I expect some of this amount includes 'unfair' charges, is there anything I can do about that? I can maybe borrow £200-400 from my parents to offer them a full and final settlement, is this a good idea? Do you think they'd accept this? I just want the problem to go away without damaging my credit record any more than necessary.

Hi all, I'm currently unemployed, and unable to work due to illness. I'm getting Income Support (about £58 a week). A few months ago, I reclaimed a £38 charge for a bounced Direct Debit, and NatWest refunded me as a 'goodwill gesture'. The only DD that comes out of my account is my car insurance. At the beginning of August I didn't have enough money to cover the DD, or pay rent, so my mother lent me £350, sent from her Natwest account by phone banking. The money arrived in my account the same day the DD was due to go out, but rather than paying it, Natwest bounced it and charged me £38. The same thing just happened at the beginning of September, my mother lent me £100 from her Natwest account the day before the DD came out, but Natwest chose not to pay the DD, and charged me another £38. Now, I believe it's illegal for them to take out charges from benefits, but the fact I'd borrowed money from my mother seems to complicate things. I asked at my branch that the charges be refunded, but they phoned back today saying that their regional office had refused, and I could appeal to their national customer services place. I'm desperately in need of this money. Does anyone have any ideas on how I can word a letter of complaint to them? Thanks, Mike.