Hi b-o-2, Brilliant. I have just sent Dom an e-mail. Thank you so much for the link..... I really like the guy and let's hope that he looks into this. I warned him that he and/or his researchers have over 400 pages to read going back to 2007 !!! Nitey nite Voda

Hi everyone, I have contacted Watchdog so let's see what happens now. Voda

Hi again, Just spoken to a lovely bloke at Experian ..... He said that this happens a lot with Welcome .... Anyway he will amend my record and advise Welcome that this has been done. He also said that whenever they advise a company that a record has been changed, they also advise the company concerned to amend their monthly tape records to prevent the record going back to it's pre-amended state. He said that this happens a lot with Welcome's clients reports.... Another case of this muppet company's gross inefficiency. I will get a letter from Experian telling me that my report has been amended in due course. Let's see if Welcome heed their instructions. Somehow I doubt it and this is why our records after amendment, go back to as they were before. Voda

Hi Traz39, I received my Credit Report from Experian the other day too. I have just checked it out and it says this: 1) Welcome Financial Services Ltd - Loan ( for my car) Monthly payment £xxx over 37 months. Settled This is why they called me after the loan was paid for and said that I was 1 payment short. They checked and apologised after I got angry and said that I had paid all 36 payments !!!! G ' rrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr 2) Welcome Financial Services Ltd - Loan Monthly payment £xxx over 49 months - Settled 3) Welcome Financial Services Ltd - Loan Monthly payment £xxx over 73 months - Ongoing So they have done this to me as well. I am going to call Experian right away. Voda

Hi again everyone, Over the weekend, I am going to contact Watchdog and a thread that is over 400 pages long should be of great interest to them. If any ex-Welcome employees would like to PM me, then I await your message with great interest. I would be happy to meet up with anyone from here and go to see their research team in person and/or meet somewhere in private as you don't know me and I can then prove that I am a Welcome customer and totally genuine. Bye for now Voda PS. I would love to see this shower on the box.

Very interesting read, the writing has to be on the wall. Going back to when I went over to their Feltham Branch earlier, I was disappointed that nobody answered the entryphone bell as the little devil inside me told me to say " Hi, I need an unsecured loan today and I am desperate. Can you help me please ". I wonder what their reply would have been. Any guesses guys? Voda

Oh yes I am going to send details of this thread to the nice chap I saw today. Somehow, I think that he is going to be in for a shock at WF's problems and naughty activities. Oh yes I told him prepared for a long read as WF's thread is over 400 pages long..... Voda

Hi Guys, I had an interesting morning. I needed to go to Sunbury and afterwards I thought let's go and see if Feltham, Middlesex branch is still there. When I arrived, I rang the doorbell many times and nobody answered.... Also all the lights were out. So I popped into one of the firms in the same building and asked me if the branch had closed down. The chap there said that they were there the other day. I told him that I was a customer of their's and all about the troubles that Welscum had. Frankly he was shocked at the amount of debt that Welcome had. I told him that I had bought my car thru them ( albeit via a proper main dealer ) and before I told him that it was all paid for, he said that I had better watch out.... He said that he had heard bad rumours about WF.... Anyway we both thought of trying the bell again and this bloke comes out and I asked him if he worked for WF. He said yes to me and asked if I was the person ringing furiously just before. I said to him that it was me and he asked if I wanted to go up. I, of course, said no thank you as I did not wish to enter the lion's den in case I was never allowed out..... This WF employee also said that I had caught them at a bad moment when I rang the bell as all of us were on the phone. Yeah right !!! Somehow I did not believe him as I reckon that there are very few staff in the building working and under the law, lights must be on in a working environment. Not that Welscum could care a damn about their staff's welfare. Anyway the first chap said thank you for telling all about WF as we are on the lookout to expand our business in this building. I said that you will probably not have to wait very long. Incidentally, the lights in WF's offices were still out. Either saving electric or have no money to feed the meter. So I might have done some company a favour today.....

Hi Andie 303 & Postggj, Some time back, I mentioned about approaching BBC 1's " Watchdog " about Welscum. http://www.bbc.co.uk/watchdog/gotastory/ Have you had any more thoughts on the matter? Anne Robinson is returning to the programme and she is formidable. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anne_Robinson I used to know Roger Cook of " The Cook Report " back in the 70's and they are of the same ilk. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roger_Cook_(journalist) Also I see that some ex-employees of Welscum are coming on here so apart from our side of things, they could be very useful to support us with a lot of inside information. I am very keen to approach the Beeb now. Please let me know a.s.a.p. Take care Voda

Remember Guys, We are dealing with LOAN SHARKS to all intents and purposes, so expect LOAN SHARK TREATMENT from WELSCUM. Can't wait to see all the lousy staff on the dole. Tee Hee Voda

The more that time goes on, I am wondering what next are we going to hear about this shower. I would not believe it if it were not true. Incredible. Postie when this has all finished, you should write a book with all the information that you have on WF. Nite Voda

This is getting better and better guys. Seeing Welcome Finance making all these fundamental errors simply amazes me. But because the needy consumer is only too happy to receive a loan from these people, it nevers occurs to them to look any further to see that they are being ripped off big time. Recessions do have their uses, for sure. And thank Gawd for forums such as this and Consumer Advice champions like Postie Nite Voda

My pleasure hun xx

Only 1 guest now. Bye Mr P or is it you still ...

Hiya, A Sticky is a post that always remains at the top/beginning of the thread so it's dead easy to find. A getting excited now Voda

Hi everyone, I had a shock this morning when I opened my post..... I had a letter from the DCU branch in Sutton, Surrey. Some of you might remember but I have been asking WF for many months to let me have in writing that they would freeze all interest and other charges now that I am on a reduced monthly amount. I sent them a CCCS income and expenditure statement at that time. Their letter was headed WITHOUT PREJUDICE and said as follows: Dear Voda, Re: Account: xxxxxxx We are pleased to confirm acceptance of the following arrangement: Amount Payable Monthly : £xx.xx Payments Due : 15th, commencing August 2009 Payment Method : Cheque This arrangement will be reviewed quarterly and is subject to an up to date income and expenditure statement, as discussed during our telephone conversation on July xxth. We can confirm that interest and charges are now frozen on the above numbered account, subject to quarterly review and receipt of your income and expenditure statement. Yours sincerely, LCU Branch Manager I see that they headed the letter Without Prejudice in case this ever went to court. H 'mmmmmmmmmmm Finally the letter was dated the 3rd of August and I only received it this morning, the 17th !!! A payment was due two day's ago..... I will call them and ask if they need any stamps .... Have a nice day .... Voda

Tra la la ...... Slim Voda sings .....;-):grin:

I told my best USA friend by e-mail earlier and she said. Well, it is nice to have the USA loved for any reason! Do you know yet how this will affect your loan?

" God Bless the USA " I am sooooooooooooooo happy now ..... Voda

Oh Gee, Another sad story about Welscum !! Hope you get it sorted out. Voda

Hiya, Might be worth sending a CCA request letter if only to cause them more worry. If they can't find the original copy of the agreement, what happens then? Nite Voda

Hi sillygirl1, That's interesting. The office, I was told this week is on the second floor of Centre Link House at 307 High Street, Sutton, Surrey. I sent it by Recorded Delivery so I hope there is someone instructed in the building to collect their mail or maybe it's redirected to Pentonville Jail ..... Nite Voda

Hiya T2upNorth, The letter has already gone, of course, but I will compose another one for the Compliance Department along the same lines and enclose with it a copy of the letter to Sutton. What's the point in sending a CCA request? I have no dispute with my agreement which has been checked to be perfectly legal and I am paying a much reduced interest rate due to my financial position and the rate of interest is fair. It's not a secured loan and there is no PPI. All I want is the written confirmation about the freezing of the interest and other charges. But as you all say, in the next few weeks, I might be dealing with some other part of Cattles or another company altogether. Cheers Voda

Hi everyone, Many thanks for your comments and advice .... This is my letter to Welcome Finance. I cannot do much more than this at the end of the day, I feel. Sadly I am not in a financial position to make full repayments now ( like many other people ). I have been a good customer of their's in the past but my financial circumstances changed. Voda xxxx xxxxxxxx Welcome Finance Collections Unit 2nd Floor Centre Link House 307 High Street Sutton Surrey SM1 1LL July 29th 2009 Ref: Account Number: xxxxxxxxx Dear Mr xxxxxxx, Further to our telephone conversation yesterday afternoon, please find enclosed my cheque for £xxxx being the reduced payment for the month of July 2009. During our conversation, you told me that you have personally arranged that “all interest and other charges are now frozen on my account”, with effect from this month and this will show on all my future Personal Loan Statements from your company. Will you please speak to your Branch Manager and ask him to confirm this to me in writing, otherwise I will have no alternative but to contact the Welcome Finance CRC Complaints Department and see if they are willing to do this. I was advised by CCCS ( Consumer Credit Counselling Service ) to request a letter from Welcome Finance stating that it will freeze all interest and other charges. All my other creditors have done so in writing, so why is Welcome Finance so special? I am also very concerned that you have no record of my letters which I have sent by Recorded Delivery to various people within your organisation, other than the letter sent by me to the xxxxxx Branch on June 3rd 2009. Yours faithfully BY RECORDED DELIVERY

Hi everyone, Received a phone message today from 0208 643 6480 and I rang back. They answered as LCU which is Welcome Finance's Collection Department in Sutton, Surrey. Anyway I have been paying a nominal amount to Welcome since February 2009 as advised to pay by CCCS ( Credit Consumer Counselling Service ). WF asked me to deal through them and I also sent WF a CCCS Budget Sheet and a list of other Creditors. I was also told over the phone at the time, as we all know WF NEVER put anything in writing, that all interest & other charges would be frozen if I went on a Debt Management Plan with CCCS. On numerous occasions since, I have written many letters to WF asking them to confirm in writing that if I go on a DMP then they would freeze all interest and other charges. Guess what, I have never had an answer in writing. So when I spoke to this guy today, I told him all about the history ( as above ) and the only letter that he had on file, was one dated by me in early June. Pathetic !!! I told him that I have sent all letters by Recorded Delivery so they must have received them. He asked me if my finanacial position had changed and I said " No " and the amount that I was paying was all that I could afford at present. I asked him about the " Freezing of all interest & other charges " and he said that w.e.f mid July this year, he would freeze them. I said " Could I have that in writing please " and he said that it was not company policy to do so. I said all my creditors have written to me and what makes WF so special. He had no answer to that naturally. He then said that my next 6 monthly account statement will show that these charges have been frozen and I said that is not good enough. He said that it would cost me £10 for a letter from him saying that WF had frozen these charges but he would have to ask his superiors if he could do that. He then said if you can afford to pay £10 for a letter then why can't you pay more than the agreed monthly amount. So there is no point really talking to these programmed clowns. He also said, could he have an up to date Financial Statement from me and I said " Sure but nothing has changed ". He also wants a six monthly personal budget from me in the future. I will send them my usual monthly cheque tomorrow but have any of you any suggestions what I should do regarding this letter regarding freezing all the charges, that I want from them? I have written down the time that we spoke but he never said that our conversation was being recorded. But I don't think that they have to, as it's in their small print. This company is so amateurish and pathetic. I have no trust in them whatsoever and that is why I have insisted that they write to me. Looking forward to someone'e reply. A frustrated Voda.