Hi again

Sorry to be a pain but I really could do with some advice. My husband is fairly sure the correspondence relates to a bank account and as such this would not be covered by a CCA agreement would it?

He is also reasonably sure that he has not communicated with Lloyds or anyone else regarding this account for over 6 years

Will a statute barred letter also serve to say prove it or go away?

If he writes this letter does it formally place the account in dispute and should all further DCA activity cease unless they can prove it is NOT statute barred?

What effect if any might this have on his credit rating? When he last checked his report there is absolutely nothing on there relating to him and any problem with a Lloyds bank account

Should he contact Lloyds and ask why they have never made any attempt to discuss this with him when they have been fully aware of his address?

All contributions will be greatly appreciated

Sorry to seem thick but I want to know what our position is here. The letter my husband received from Lowells indicates that they bought his alleged debt in February this year from Lloyds.

As i have already said, Lloyds have been in correspondence with my husband at our current address for the past 4 years. Am I right in thinking that they should have informed him if they intended to pass this account on to a third party? They most certainly have not done this and if this is against established codes and procedures then I am thinking a letter to Lloyds taking them to task over this might be in order.

I would like to be able to quote any relevant legislation in any letter to both these companies but dont really know where to start other than the statue barred letter to Lowells

Absolutely not. And given that Lloyds have been in communication with my husband for the past 4 years or more it's not like they haven't had the opportunity.

Think we are going to send the statute barred letter. If by some miracle they can produce something that shows he has acknowledged their claim within the last 6 years then fine but he is fairly confident they can't.

It's not the money that's the issue it's the principle.

I also want to add something that makes it clear that I am aware of their tactics of passing disputed accounts on to their other companies such as Red Debt and Hamilton Legal as my guess is that this is what they will do if they cannot prove it is not statute barred. Any suggestions how I might go about this?

Thanks babybear

Can Lloyds pass his details on to a totally uninvolved party though when they are well aware of where he lives and has done for 5 years?

If not then they are going to get a letter too!

Thanks thread started in right place!

Did I mention I am blonde:wink:

Hi there

Have previously used these forums to gain advice regarding what is likely to be a statute barred situation with Westcot Credit Services, who claim they bought a debt from Littlewoods catalogue. Letters have been written and sent to them and as yet no reply (it will be 14 days on 10th April).

While reading through some of your helpful suggestions, someone advised having a look at credit reports. The alleged debt is my husband's so he got a copy of his credit report from Experian. There was no mention of him defaulting against Littlewoods so we are assuming Westcott are trying to collect on something that is most definitely over 6 years.

While looking at is credit report he noticed that Lowell had searched his file on 18th March. Low and behold he has just received a letter from Lowell claiming they have bought a debt from Lloyds to the sum of £xx.xx and that he must contact them to arrange payment.

My husband did have a LLoyds account several years ago but it was one they insisted he had as he had a mortgage with them, in order to make his mortgage payments. It is definitely more than 6 years since there was any action on this account. Also, Lloyds are well aware of his current address and have been for the past 4 years. He is currently making payments to them over the repossession of his home which he is happy to do. Seems to me they are trying to get him to pay twice for much the same thing!

My questions are:

1) Have Lloyds committed any offence in passing his details on to another party without his permission when they were well aware of his current address and have made no attempt to approach him for the money that Lowells claim he owes?

2) What is the best course of action for us to take in respect of this letter he has recieved?

All help will be greatly appreciated

Hi there

Have previously used these forums to gain advice regarding what is likely to be a statute barred situation with Westcot Credit Services, who claim they bought a debt from Littlewoods catalogue. Letters have been written and sent to them and as yet no reply (it will be 14 days on 10th April).

While reading through some of your helpful suggestions, someone advised having a look at credit reports. The alleged debt is my husband's so he got a copy of his credit report from Experian. There was no mention of him defaulting against Littlewoods so we are assuming Westcott are trying to collect on something that is most definitely over 6 years.

While looking at is credit report he noticed that Lowell had searched his file on 18th March. Low and behold he has just received a letter from Lowell claiming they have bought a debt from Lloyds to the sum of £66.67 and that he must contact them to arrange payment.

My husband did have a LLoyds account several years ago but he believes it was more than 6 years. Also, Lloyds are well aware of his current address and have been for the past 4 years as he is currently making payments to them over another matter which he is happy to do.

My questions are:

1) Have Lloyds committed any offence in passing his details on to another party without his permission when they were well aware of his current address and have made no attempt to approach him for the money that Lowells claim he owes?

2) What is the best course of action for us to take in respect of this letter he has recieved?

All help will be greatly appreciated

I was wondering if anyone has any advice on a matter that my husband is finding difficult to understand.

He accessed his credit report yesterday to check details regarding another matter that he is dealing with.

On the report it stated that he was in default to the sum of £10 to British Gas at his previous address. He moved from that address in May 2003 after living there since 2001.

The default is registered 27.8.2004!

What he cant understand is that he did not pay his gas bills by direct debit or anything. He had a card that he had to top up and slot into the meter. He paid as he went along so to speak.

What action if any can he take on this matter?

I can assure you he won't do it again!

More than his life is worth

Thank you.

By the way Scarlet Pimpernel I just read your post about responding to DCA phone calls and have to say it is ingenious. Both myself and my husband have read it and will be making full use of your suggestions should the need arise

You are a star.

When sending the statute barred letter would you add/point out that they sent their letter to an address he hadnt lived at for over 7 years and that he only received third hand when the current occupier of the property posted it through a neighbours door?

They obviously thought he still lived there or wouldnt have sent it and my husband has never recieved any other mail from his old address on this matter

Many thanks for your prompt reply.

He is about to do as you suggest so will keep you posted as to any further events/developments.

Hi there

Just need a quick bit of advice

My husband received correspondance from a DCA regarding an account that we believe is statue barred. We propose to go down that route initially. However, he recieved the letter before he had any idea about statue barred debts and so did as they asked and rang them.

The DCA informed him that the account referred to a catalogue he held at a previous address (one he has not lived at for at least 7 years). My husband told her he was not aware that there was anything outstanding on the account in question.

The lady he spoke to pressed him for payment of the full amount. He said he couldn't pay it (he is on long term incapacity). He told her he had not loved at the address to which the letter was sent for 7 years and she admitted the account stopped being paid round about then.

My husband was then pressed to pay it off in £100 a month installments which again he said he could not do. Then he was told £20 a month which is still beyond his means.

He was told he had to send them evidence of his income/expenditure and the lady he spoke to said to include mine! He told her that WAS not going to happen. I was not present when he spoke to them but he says he did not actually offer them any money but said the most he could manage in his circumstances would be £10 at which point he was told he had to provide evidence of I and E

The DCA in question are now probably waiting for him to send I and E evidence but now he knows that the account is likely statute barred.

Does anyone know if he has predjudiced himself by contacting them? As I say at the time he was unaware of his rights. I think that phone calls do not count

Thanks for that sillygirl.

Having pressed his nibs further on what he said during his conversation with Westcot, he tells me he did tell them that the most he could pay would be £10 when they demanded the full amount and then £100 a month.

Does this predjudice him in anyway seeing as it's definately more than 6 years since he heard anything at all related to this supposed debt?

Hi there

i am new to this forum but have found both this thread and the others I have viewed to be very informative.

I need some advice relating to how to handle a situation with Westcot. It's not for my benefit but for my husband who has just received a letter from them.

It was addressed to him at an address he has not lived at for more than 7 years. The only reason he actually got the letter was that the person now living at that address posted it through our letter box 3 days ago (20th March). This would suggest that there have been no previous letters or I would assume those would also have been posted through our door. The letter was dated 14th March and gave my husband until 28th March to respond threatening court action if he did not do so.

In the letter Westcot state they are acting on behalf of another debt collection agency called Phoenix Recoveries UK LTD. My husband has never heard of them and has certainly never had any form of communication with them.

Having received the letter, he contacted them and was immediately asked to pay the total amount owed (Some £400). When pressed the lady on the phone stated the debt was in relation to an unpaid catalogue debt with Littlewoods. My husband stated that he was not aware that he owed any money on a catalogue from Littlewoods and had certainly not received any communication to that effect since moving from his original address.

He told the operator that he could not pay £400 as he is unable to work. She then told him he had to pay £100 a month which again he is unable to do. She then told him he would have to fill in an income/expenditure form and had the cheek to tell him that he must include my details too.

I did not even know my husband when he lived at his original address and my husband told them he was no way going to do this as legally I cannot be held in anyway responsible for debt that they claim he incurred before I even knew him. She did not like being told this and said ok fine then if that's hat you are doing you can only claim your portion of the bills when you work out income/expenditure.

I was not present when my husband spoke to them and don't know for sure but he says he did not agree to pay them anything on the phone and did say he was not aware of owing anything to Littlewoods. He tells me he did have an account with them but always paid it and when he said this to the lady on the phone she did say that the account stopped being paid when he moved, making this at least 7 years ago. During this time he has received no communication on this matter till the other day.

My question is, is this debt statue barred as it is definately more than 6 years since he heard anything from anyone relating to this so called debt?

What do you very knowledgeable people think he should do?