Many thanks everyone and will keep you informed with further developments once i've sent the letter Saintly 1 has told me to send them.

Well according to the person i spoke with, they've been trying to find me since 1997 but have been unable to locate me - this is due to me living all over the country, working, studying, etc and it's only since this year at my current address that i've been "found" due to the electrol register.

But how do i know if the debt is Statute Barred? Plus, what if there was a CCJ issued say 5 years ago that i'm not aware of?

My problems with Council Tax are sorted now, but as i stated, i believed the call to be connected with Council Tax, that's all. What happens if they send baliffs around to my house, or worse, where i work?

Hi Thanks for the replies everyone as it lifts some of the pressure, i can tell you. They didn't trick me really in anyway - as i stated, i've applied for a couple of jobs and also got a few things going on regarding my council tax recently, so i thought for the first 30 seconds i was dealing with someone to do with one of those issues. When i finally clicked on, i realised i'd confirmed my name, my address, my telephone number, etc. Then, once i asked them what they were calling for, they told me i owed £583 from an address i haven't lived at since 1996: again, i then made the mistake of talking to the person on the other end of the 'phone as i tried to work out what was going on in regards to this debt. As i've stated, i hadn't lived at the address for 12 years so i wasted time trying to jog my memory. Then, after accepting the debt verbally - yes, i'm a clown i know - they asked me for an weekly outgoings over the 'phone to decide on the £5 a week repayment scheme. As stated, i'm supposed to 'phone them on Friday and pay £5 via my Debit card, which i really don;t want to do as then they'll have my card on record.

Hi I answered my 'phone yesterday and basically got caught out regarding a debt i didn't even know existed from 12 years ago. The caller was from Debt Managers Ltd - i've never heard of them - and after a long-winded conversation in which i gave loads of information due to the fact i thought it was a company i'd applied for a job to calling, i was told i owed £583 from 1996 and i have to pay it or the baliffs are being sent around! I've dropped myself in it really as it threw me and i've agreed to pay £5 a week starting Friday, even though in hindsight i'm pretty sure a 12 year old debt can't be claimed, can it? It was from when i was a student banking with Barclays Bank and i've never heard anything except when a letter arrived last week stating i owed £583 but it didn't tell me from when or to whom. Any advice would be great as i'm pretty well screwed agreeing to this as i work part-time and only draw £80 a week.

Thanks for advice and we'll see when the next letter arrives on my door mat - probably tomorrow!

Well, here's a surprise! The first letter i received was dated 11th Nov and that's why i started this post and i've just got my mail and there's another letter from Telogram dated 13th, which is identical in content as the original. Except, they have moved the date i must contact them by forward by another 4 days - the 1st letter states i must contact them by 22st November and the 2nd letter wants me to contact them by 26th November.

Well, thanks for the advice everyone and i'll be back when i have more stuff to share. Cheers

But if i admit the debt is mine, then surely i'm going to be chased for the money for the foreseeable future, aren't i? It's going on 5/ 6 years since the loan and i've had massive problems with even getting a bank account during this time - how long is it until the debt cannot be pursued, 6 years?

Thanks So, if i want to report them for the " phone neighbours" business, who would i approach?

Many thanks for the replies I'll just wait and see if the heavies turn-up at my door then - should be funny though and i don't want to appear nonplused or arrogant - but they'll never get a penny from me as i don't have any money to give them. I work part-time and earn just £7000 a year, so i'll look forward to going to court regarding this as the payment they receive back would mean it'd take a lifetime for the debt to be recovered. Can anyone tell me what to expect if i don't respond to the letter? Cheers

Hi This is my first post and hope you'll go easy on me as a newbie. I had a bank loan from RBS back in 2002 for £1500 - when i had a credit history that is! - and as i had a job at the time which paid well, i didn't foresee any difficulty in paying it off... until i was laid off only 3 weeks later. Now, being a foolish young man, i decided to extend the loan a couple of times and i think it came in at about £2800 in total by early 2003, but then things went from bad to worse with a couple of bereavements, moving 100's of miles to resettle and long periods on the dole which just meant i was existing in survival mode for many years. Now, i have managed to get myself on my feet to a degree in the last 18 months or so - i have a job, am off all benefits and have just enough money at the end of the week to feed myself, so things are okay. However, this morning i have a letter arrive which is from a company named Telogram asking for confirmation that Mr. +++++++ lives at my address and giving my previous address as the last known residence. Also, at the bottom of the page it states that if no answer is forthcoming " This unit will also be undertaking outbound phone calls to various sources including neighbours to verify that the information supplied is correct"! Let's clear-up one thing: I owe the money. I admit this, but there is no way i'll be paying it back or offering any due to the following information i found out. My employment has suffered due to the blacklist RBS put on me years ago as i couldn't open a bank account for 3 years to get my wages paid in. This i found out due to a bank employee back in 2004 who explained after refusing me an account that i had a credit blacklist against my name so secure that even if i walked in that afternoon and paid it off in full, it'd still run until i was 40 years old - and that's still 3 years off! So, my question is this - what kind of things can i expect from this Telogram and is there any options available to me to avoid having to pay any money? As stated, i understand i'll get a CCJ, but i'm blacklisted for years yet anyway. Thanks