Thank you so much that's really useful ! I can feel a sense of relief now...

Thanks you guys. Well you're absolutely right. I rang National Debtline last night and they told me that these people cannot demand money if neither me nor them had made in contact in 6 years (it's actually 12 when I worked it out!!). So they said I can either a: continue paying them thru Payplan as per my current arrangement of b: write a letter to them explaining that is statute barred and unless they can prove otherwise, the debt will no longer be paid. I also need to tell Payplan the situation and get them to cancel the payment to them. Needless to say I WILL be taking the latter of these two options !! The guy at National Debtline really put my mind at rest and said it was run of the mill for them to send threatening letters. He also said that if they keep calling me at work that is harrassment, and he's sending me a leaflet on how to deal with that ! Cheers! I'll keep you posted of anymore correspondence from them.

Thank you for that gerrarddobbin ! I have just checked the National Debtline website and this is what they quote. Looks like I'm screwed then.... What to do if a creditor contacts you after six years Don't admit to owing the money Once you agree to owing the outstanding amount then you are required to pay the debt back. If a payment is made, even after a 6-year gap, the Limitations Act 1980 won't be enforceable and the debt will have to be paid back. If a creditor, who you haven't had any communication with for 6 years contacts you about the debt you should write to them quoting the Limitations Act 1980. For more information and advice contact Payplan. Unsecured debt You may have assumed that your creditor has "written-off" a debt if you have not heard from them for a long period. In many cases, it could be down to your failure to inform them of a change of address, but the debt will still exist and creditors are entitled to chase the debt indefinitely (even after the debt has become Statute Barred), however they can only use the legal system to recover the monies for up to 6 years after the last payment was made to the account. Remember, creditors are still able to pursue an unsecured debt if: They have previously obtained a judgement against you (a CCJ); You have made a payment to the account within the last 6 years (this includes anyone else named on the credit agreement) You have established any contact with the creditor (this can be a phone call or letter to request a balance or change your details), except to deny that the debt exists. If a creditor continues to contact you after accepting that a debt is Statute Barred and you have stated that you no longer intend to pay the debt, you may be able to claim harassment contrary to section 40 (1) of the Administration of Justice Act 1970.

Can you believe it - they've actually just rang me again - at work ! I have ignored it. Thank goodness for caller I.D..

oh dear. Well it's just the last few months I've been paying them/writing to them etc. My debts currently total £7000 with several firms, and they receive £12 per month from me and have done for about a year now. I guess there's no comeback on my part then? Although I could still ask for the original credit agreement. If they cannot produce a copy of that, is there still anything I can do? Barclaycard have never made contact with me, and apparently the Creditor name is Cabot Financial Europe - I'd never heard of them !

Thanks for that. But I did already write to them and politely asked them to stop calling me at work, yet they have rung me again today. I also said in the letter "as you know, my debts are paid directly from Payplan so you have no reason to keep calling/writing to me". Obviously this has fallen on deaf ears! Ironically though, they have a "complaints" email address on their letterhead ! In fact, their letter was headed "BROKEN ARRANGEMENT" in Red letters - talk about wanting to frighten you ! I owed Barclaycard originally £500 but as they didn't contact me for nearly 10 years I figured it had been wrote off. So for the last few months I've been paying this MHall via Payplan ( who didn't advise me otherwise, to be honest). So am I legally supposed to pay them now? I wish I had seen this website sooner ! I also read on here that I can ask to see my original credit agreement, and if they are unable to supply me with it I am not entitled to pay. Is that correct?

Hi, well I am glad I looked on here. I first heard of them cos they sent me one of those "this is not junk mail" thing thru the door that someone else mentioned, and it was regarding a Barclaycard account that I ran up TEN years ago !! Despite not hearing anything from Barclaycard direct for years, I decided they must have written the debt off (as happened to my friend). Anyway I now pay my debts through National Debtline, and pay 1 set monthly standing order, however MH STILL keep calling me at work (how did they get my number? I certainly didn't give it to them!), and posting me letters. I am going to contact National Debtline again to see if they can somehow do something.