Hi all, So yesterday I opened a rather well padded envelope from someone in Cardiff. Yep, you guessed it - GoDebt. Inside was a claim for £1,200 more than the original defaulted balance - which goes stature barred very, very shortly. I have already disputed the 'penalties' in my original conversation with them nearly two years ago. Also inside were three sheets of paper. One was a leaflet on how they could help me come to some arrangement if only I would call them - they would be sympathetic to my circumstances. One was a incomings/outgoings form and the last was a sheet asking for my preferred method of contact. Is this GD just looking to be seen to be doing the right thing now but still demanding 'penalties' for default over 5 years ago?

A year on and nothing changes I think. I just received a letter from GoDebt informing me I am registered on the electoral register and I should contact them right away. Didn't say what about though, but it was in my best interests.

Hi, I was reading back through and noticed in a previous post you mentioned that even though a debt is statute barred, it is still collectable by any means short of a court order? Does this open up another can of worms i.e. their methods become a little more unsavoury knowing that a court would not be interfering in recovering an unenforceable, but still collectable debt?

So I want my Equifax credit report because according to checkmyfile.com, it is still displaying an account that should have stopped reporting in October 2012. Online I complete the application form and at the end I do not get my CR but instead, please call this number (0844...) to complete your order. I call it in all innocence and am connected to a Rep who wants to 'check' all my details including asking for the answer to my "secret question". So I decide to ask where the Rep is based and she says somewhere in Asia (I get this after several attempts). I cancelled the order. Firstly - I did not have this hassle registering with Experian. Second, I will not give out that information to someone based outside the UK. Sort yourselves out.

Shredder it is then! Brigadier, you are a complete star. Mind rested - waiting game ensues.

I'm guessing then would these be pre-letter searches to try and match a name to an outstanding debt?

OK, I can live with that - gives me a chance to save up for my 40% deposit On CRA files, I am assuming then that the CRA state they will retain records for 6 years after the default date but Statute Barred is counted from the first outstanding payment provided no further payment is made? Making them different scenarios. This gets more headache inducing.

Ah, the date of the last payment or the date of the default registration? Basically - I got in a mess when there was a loss in the family and shortly after a messy break-up so paying bills was the last thing I was thinking about. I am all straightened out now but when I was digging into sorting all of this out about 18 months ago - the benefit of paying up was another six years on my CRA file AFTER the final settlement date (I worked out it would take me three years to clear them all) so I chose to ride it out. Foolishly I have never done a 'prove it' or SAR letter to anyone thinking it would open a can of whoopass I could do without. The default registration dates are (according to checkmyfile and Experian) Feb 2007, April 2007 and May 2007. All reported until the same time 2013. I have had no contact with any of the OCs and made no payments to any since at least two months before the defaults (hence the defaults). Out of interest - there is another one due to fall off in Sept 2013 (but Talk Talk can go whistle for that one - there is another thread with a similar story to mine about phantom charges). What happens to my credit profile after that? Then there will just be a bank account, will I still find it impossible to get a mortgage? Thanks.

Hi, Sorry but I am trawling the Ruthbridge posts as yesterday I got a letter of transfer from them and in the same envelope was a letter from Cabot. Now Cabot claim to have three accounts (three if you look at CallCredit and Equifax but only two if you look at Experian) according to my CRA reports all of which go SB between Feb and Jul 2013. So from what I have read, it looks like I am going to get a bumpy ride from these guys in the very near future. The best thing is, there have been several searches by "Organisations: Not Recorded" in the last few months and I was wondering if the two are connected? My biggest concern was the resetting of the 6 years which is why I decided to ride out the last year or so (that and the very s*** way I was dealt with by one DCA who called my mother and threatened to take her car away and then come and sort me out for messing him around). Have I got a sound plan or am I doomed?

Hi, Maybe I am the only one experiencing this but I looked over my credit files after getting an obligatory Ruthbridge/Cabot threat yesterday to discover searches made by organisations who have not left their name. So on my record they show up as "Organisation: Not Reported" I checked this on checkmyfile and also with Experian. I thought companies had to tell the CRA why they were conducting a search and if that is the case, why is the CRA not reporting the name of the organisation making the search? Getting annoying now. Any help appreciated.

Wow, I was considering using these guys (Close) to finance a car purchase but am thinking now, it's probably not a good idea! Cheers CAG.

This will make you laugh. Last week I got a DCA letter demanding £279 for eBay fees unpaid from an eBay 'acknowledged' fraudulent attempt to buy my mobile phone for £10,000! I have no intention of paying this 'fee' because - get this - eBay emailed me to say they had spotted a fraudulent attempt to buy my mobile phone. Incredible! And all this was in 2005! After many attempts (back then) to ask eBay to stop proceedings, unlock my account and allow me sell again - I ended having to create a completely new account. Don't get me started on my Paypal account! Utterly crap. I appreciate they have limited people and rely almost entirely on automated systems, but even by most dot.com standards their customer service is worst than appalling!

Thanks everyone, So knowing that I can leave these behind me...something I was asked by my partner which I had never thought about, how can a DCA put a default on an account if they are not the Original Creditor? I thought only the OC could put a default onto a credit history. I never asked for a CCA as I have a tendency to bury my head and stick my fingers in my ears.

OK, so after 6 years those on my credit file will drop off and I should then be able to look at getting a mortgage within another a year with my girlfriend which is what she has always wanted. Will any unpaid defaults affect this plan (even though I know all the gumf tells me it shouldn't, I do not really trust anything to do with the finance industry) AND My plan is to offer to settle the accounts outside the six year statute so they will affect my credit reference - am I off my head for thinking this is a good idea?

Thanks, I am not a bad person but I have dealt with DCAs and found them to be a rather disagreeable bunch. I have a few anecdotes about phone calls and threats but a visit to my local CAB and more importantly to this site gave me the confidence to read up and get myself educated. Great site, a Godsend for people like myself who want to get rid of debt.

Hi Nope I have a settled account with a communication supplier that was settled in Jan 2007 and is not due to fall off until Jan 2013. Interestingly there is no default date, yet it shows as a default on my record. Very confusing. Credit Reference Agencies are the new method for controlling the masses. Credit to those who toe the line, refusals to those who can't/don't

Hi, Yes it's Cabot again! I was looking through my credit report on Experian to see an account that was registered to Cabot. Default date circa 06/2007 with some regular updates...so far so good. Then I thought to look up under Check My File to see three Cabot accounts, all open (not sure exactly what that means) under Equifax but no mention Experian anywhere. Two of these accounts were also shown under Call Credit but as closed. What the three open Cabot accounts displayed in the credit history however was different from any others. As an example, there was an old 'Communications Supplier' account shown as closed with a £0 balance. This same account is in my Experian report as settled - and in all displays in the credit history there is a single black D box in the month indicated as the default month. In the Cabot account credit histories, there is a black D box in every month for the last two years! Does this mean they are registering a default on those accounts every single month, effectively making it impossible for them to go statue barred. Also, my thinking is this - once they go statute barred, will I get hassled from lots of other low life DCAs who seem to buy these up at 10p for the £1?

Cool, thanks.

Yep, I just got my first letter from FIRE who have acquired a debt from Cabot who I thought had given up the ghost UNTIL - I looked into their addresses and put 3+2 together! Cheeky. The letter explained I may experience difficulty gaining credit if I don't pay but if I do within 14 days they will reduce my debt by 25%. In my view this is nothing more than just a sham. If it was real, I would be in court by now and as I already experience difficulty getting credit (impossible actually). Everyday life gets better. And thanks Brig for the advice on my other thread. Cheers.

Coolio, Because it was my intention to pay these off at the beginning of the year so I could help my partner get a mortgage but when I spoke with my Uncle who used to work in the mortgage advice centre for Halifax RBS he told me defaults, settled or not mark you down so I won't be offered a mortgage - just a polite no. And that was got me thinking, where is my incentive to settle? As responding to a letter to acknowledge a debt in order to ask the question "If I pay this, will you remove my record completely?" would reset the SB clock, what would be the point. I dare say I am not the first to think like this, though I don't feel good about it. My partner has finally got me onto an even keel and I want to make the best of life. I am regretful of my previous irresponsibility but back then I had a very carefree life. Also, has anyone got any bad experiences about CallCredit, I have my Experian credit scores and records, every now and again I will snatch a look at my Equifax record which seems to have the same but I have heard some bad things about CallCredit...and is it true that the credit agencies 'sell' updated data to DCAs?

Hi, Back again...no mortgage for me and my good lady, she has decided to get one with her sister - something about not being able to trust men..! Understandable really. I can confirm that 6 years on, 2 of my accounts have 'disappeared' which leaves me with 3 outstanding. Everyone now and again I will get the odd random letter from a different company and I do feel a little guilty and my heart twangs with sadness. My question is...do these letters impact on the 6 years statute bar? I hope not, but if they do...I am screwed. Hopefully I can make it to 2013 but I have a sense of forboding that in the last 12 months to come, things are going to change.

If the legal limit is 6 years, then to hold data for longer breaks the Data Protection Act i.e. the CR agencies would have to declare they retained that data on your file. I can ask them to remove the data if they are not legally obliged to keep it - which I would assume they are not. The only incentive for me to clear these debts is so I can get credit at reasonable rates BUT...if the records remain as defaults - I still won't be able to get any credit so here's the catch: Don't pay - can't get credit until they fall off in 2013 Pay - can't get credit because they still register as a default until they fall in 2013 I ask you...what to do in this rather strange predicament?

Thanks, Craigers - and yes write to your MP - give him something to chase around for.

Thanks Craigers - that true then...to be honest this is the only reason I didn't want to settle them. But like I have seen from others posts even when defaults are shown settled, they are still defaults when you go for other credit. So if I contact the guys about the defaults they will let me pay the balances and clear the accounts? Given the one is Cabot and one is Roxburg - I am thinking the minute I say I want to clear the balance, they will shove **** loads of interest? Any takers on a fiver that's what they do?

Starting to agree with that. My crf is buggered because of three defaults, the last of which clears in 2013 - or I do settle them and suffer until 2017 (as Jan 2011 is the earliest I can pay them back). What to do? I am in a stable relationship with my partner who wants to buy a house but even if I settle these accounts I will be blighted for 6 years...so it's darling let's wait until 2013 or 2016.