Eos are part of the same group as Freemans Grattan (Otto). Is that who you ordered it with? If so, that would explain why it's been passed over so quickly. If you've paid, then you've got nothing to worry about. If I were you, I'd contact the original creditor to let them know your case has incorrectly been passed on to a DCA - they'll soon put a stop to it!

The annual credit report website accesses callcredit information. If you sign up to them you'll receive lots of marketing emails from them offering credit cards, loans etc. that are relevant to your credit rating (that's how they make their money). You can get 30 days free access to your credit report with Experian and Equifax as well (just make sure you cancel the subscription within 30 days). I've posted 2 links to their services below. Free Equifax Credit Report Experian CreditExpert The same website has some good information on credit reports, credit scores etc. If you want to learn some more: Get a Good Credit Score Improve My Credit Rating Hope this helps!

If you're unsure which credit report to get, then look at this link: http://www.thecreditagency.co.uk/Lenders_Use_Credit_Refere nce_Agency.html It shows a table which details the credit reference agencies (CRA's) that credit card companies, banks, lenders etc. are using..... best to pick the CRA's where your credit data has been filed...... or, if you're applying for credit, then get a credit report from the CRA('s) where the lender gets their data from. Also, Rather than paying the £2, you could get your Experian & Equifax credit reports for free. You simply need to register for their credit monitoring service (£60 for Experian Credit Expert or £69.99 for Equifax Credit Watch Gold), and then cancel the service within 30 days (it won't cost you a penny then). Both services are available here: Free Credit Report Online Reference Agency: The Credit Agency UK I know that for the Equifax service they simply verify your card for payment at the point of ordering and wouldn't charge it till the 30 days is up (if you haven't cancelled by then)..... it means you'd get the added benefit of their credit monitoring for a period then + of course your credit report is available online (Statutory credit reports can often take weeks to come through). I know the Checkmyfile report seems good, but it doesn't seem to have full information from Experian included....... not entirely sure what's missing (it says only public credit report data is provided).... Maybe some checkmyfile users could shed some light on this for us? Also, it's not in 3 seperately identifiable reports (Experian, Equifax, Callcredit) it's all in their own format. I guess it all depends on what it is you're looking for from a credit report really as to whether or not that's the best option over the seperate Experian, Equifax & Callcredit ones?

This link gives a list of which lenders use which credit reference agency: The Credit Agency UK: Credit Reference, Free Credit Report, Online Credit Check, Company Credit Rating, Credit Score Unfortunately I can't see Welcome in the list.... might be of benefit to some others on here though in case they're in the same boat with other companies.

If you're unsure which credit report to get, then look at this link: http://www.thecreditagency.co.uk/Lenders_Use_Credit_Reference_Agency.html It shows a table which details the credit reference agencies (CRA's) that credit card companies, banks, lenders etc. are using..... best to pick the CRA's where your credit data has been filed...... or, if you're applying for credit, then get a credit report from the CRA('s) where the lender gets their data from. Also, Rather than paying the £2, you could get your Experian & Equifax credit reports for free. You simply need to register for their credit monitoring service (£60 for Experian Credit Expert or £69.99 for Equifax Credit Watch Gold), and then cancel the service within 30 days (it won't cost you a penny then). Both services are available here: Free Credit Report Online Reference Agency: The Credit Agency UK I know that for the Equifax service they simply verify your card for payment at the point of ordering and wouldn't charge it till the 30 days is up (if you haven't cancelled by then)..... it means you'd get the added benefit of their credit monitoring for a period then + of course your credit report is available online (Statutory credit reports can often take weeks to come through). There's also an article on the same site for improving your credit report: UK Credit Reference Agency, Credit Management, Debt Collection: The Credit Agency I'm afraid that this is often a long haul effor to get a better credit score - paying debts off etc. (unless you've been a victim of ID fraud or something). Hope this helps!

Hi There, Sorry to hear of your predicament. I think that the best thing for you to do would be to take the buyer to court yourself to get the matter dealt with. By informing the debt collection agency that the debt is in dispute, they should hold off debt recovery action until the dispute is resolved. (Copying the DCA in on the court paperwork will satisfy this requirement). PayPal don't submit data to the credit reference agencies, so te only time that this would effect your credit rating would be if you were taken to court and had a CCJ applied against you - I can't see this happening in this instance as the buyer hasn't got any right to claim against you. Under contract law, their must be "offer and acceptance" in order for a contract to be binding. i.e. You must give something (e.g. product or service) and receive something (e.g. money) for the contract to be binding. In this instance you've handed over the business, but have received nothing, therefore there is no binding contract & the buyer has no right to the business you were selling. I really would ramp up your action to recover the outstanding monies. If your solicitor isn't doing the job well enough, get another one! Would you be able to help me out at all??? I'm trying to get hold of a contact email address or phone number for the people in the debt recovery area at PayPal? As I've not got a contact name for any individual I'm unable to get through to anyone at the moment. Any assistance would be greatly appreciated!

You need to check the documentation completed at the time the vehicle was handed back. The reason being this: If you VT'd (Voluntary Terminated) the agreement, the liability is limited to 50% (a half) of the total contractual amount. However, you may have actually VS'd (Voluntary Surrendered). The vehicle. (This is the option that most finance companies will look to get you to do). In this case, the liability is 100% of the total contractual amount. Both are very similar terms, and both relate to handing the vehicle back, but as you can see, the outcomes are very different..... definitely worth checking which you actually did.

Hi All, Yes, I had left for the day. However, I do have a personal interest in this as well, so am back on here this evening to refer back to a few points made so far. (I only work Monday - Friday, although the collections department does do Saturdays) ScarletPimpernel: With regards to the recording of calls, and making them available for consumers / debtors. What I should have said is that I'd like to see the recordings of calls made more readily available to those parties involved. Some sort of secure login where people could access the calls they'd been on (and to allow them to take copies). I believe that call recording should also be made compulsory in the debt collection industry. With these 2 aspects combined, it would stop those unscrupulous DCA's operating the way they do (or at all). I agree also, that those DCA's who break the rules should be put out of business! Ethical debt collection does also cost more. It's something that the DCA I work for is really putting a lot of work into - not just working with debt counsellors and the likes, ensuring that our letters are clear and do not misrepresent anything, working within (and above industry guidelines), and introducing whatever we can to make us as a company more ethical - this includes introducing 'TCF' (Treating Customers Fairly), which was set out by the FSA (a body that we are not even governed by). I appreciate that some people are going to want to give me some stick on here becuse of the industry that I work in - Fair enough. I can understand why some of you would feel that way. However, from the looks of the posts so far we're getting some good suggestions here. You can all see that the industry still needs to improve itself so that all of us in debt get treated better (yes, I have debts too). The thing is, that unless people on my side of the fence (the DCA's) get involved in making these changes, then things will never move forward. (Do you think I want to work in an industry with a bad reputation..... I don't) ODC - was just reading a few of your posts on other threads actually. In particular the HFO Services / First Direct Logistics one. I can't believe that DCA's are trying stuff like that - that's exactly the sort of thing that I want to see out of the industry, which gives the rest of us a bad name.... anyway, I'm kind of breaking my initial rule on this and commenting on individual cases. Please, Please, Please report things like this to the CSA (Credit Services Association) CSA Website. The CSA does have some muscle it can flex over DCA's. If DCA's break rules, then the CSA strikes them off their members list (they're also going to name and shame struck off members in future). If a DCA is struck off as a member of the CSA, then no self respecting creditor will use that DCA in future! Keep your thoughts coming forward on how to improve the industry - some great thoughts so far!

Keep you thoughts coming all!

MrMarmite, I can understand your scepticsm here - I'd probably think the same as you. Let's think about it though, I didn't have to declare that I worked for a DCA, I just did that to be open and honest. My thoughts are similar to those of sosumi - if people are treated with respect, as customers, and trust is built up, then everyone will be happy. Think about it this way. If you could trust DCA's, those in debt would be more willing to speak to them & more people would at least pay what they could afford (without worry). Those that really can't pay would also have the burden lifted from their shoulders. DCA's wouldn't lose out, and consumers would benefit.... That's my opinion anyway.

I totally agree with you here. I think the likes of payplan and CCCS have a big role to play in the indsutry. This is something that I think all of us in the industry need to get hotter on - separating the can't pays (financial hardships) from the won't pays.

Ok, that's difficult to define, but we have significant investement into processes, training, systems and the likes so we can ensure debtors are treated with respect, understanding and fairness. The fact I'm on this forum trying to get peoples thoughts on how things can be improved from your perspectives should speak for something. I'll happily talk on this subject, but I want to keep this thread focussed on the industry as a whole, rather than digressing.

If a DCA was only allowed to claim the price they paid for a debt, they'd make a loss every time. We have to consider the man hours, trace costs, systems etc. put into chasing a debt. If that was the case, then no-one would ever buy a debt.

Good idea on the call recording. As all reputable DCA's record all calls anyway, I'd like to see some way of providing access of recordings to the customer / debtor. Of course, this would need to be controlled access (DPA and the likes), and need some real thought as to how this should work. Keep the ideas coming guys!

Some good thoughts. I totally agree with the legal issues. In fact, the DCA I work for wouldn't even look at working with a client if a debt couldn't legally be enforced. I personally think that it's a disgrace that companies start the legal process when debts can't be enforced, as this creates added & unfair pressure on those in debt to pay.