Yup, it was actually defaulted 22/01/2018 according to the credit report.

They are reporting it as a default every month since May 2018, nope same address, same telephone number same everything.

Hey Guys Brief summary: Finance took out in 2016 on £10,000 car - paying back £14,500 on a 'hire purchase agreement' with Marsh Finance. I have paid over 1/3rd Last payment made December 2017 Defaulted on May 2018 Since then I have had NO communication from then asking for payment or return of vehicle or any county court documents etc. The car itself I actually crashed in Feb 2018, and stupidly I didn't declare a previous speeding conviction so my insurance paid out to the third party but not to me (Yes totally my own fault I know) The car is worth about £7k at the moment (without the damage) and I can have it repaired for about £1k - the car is currently in my garage without tax or mot. I am wondering what to do next, it's very odd that they haven't contacted me about the car, I didn't even receive an annual statement from them which I thought by law they had to send? My dilemma is do I fix the car up and start using it again or shall I contact them first and let them know what's happened? (They don't know it's been involved in an accident). I have buried my head in the sand on this one purely down to financial reasons, so it's all my own doing I am not looking for any sympathy just some guidance on what to do, my financial situation has greatly improved now to the extent where I can afford to fix the car and continue the monthly payments plus chipping away at the arrears but I don't want to contact them and have them then immediately start legal action to recover car as at the moment it's almost like they've forgotten about it.

Hi Both, Thank you so much for your replies. Andy, I totally hear what you are saying and I don't profess to have any experience or education around the county courts hence why I come here so please don't let this sound like I'm questioning you at all I'm just curious to know but my uneducated concern is should it be my responsibility to even entertain what they have to say before they've even proved the debt is legit? I recall having a Lloyds account back in 2009 (ish) but I don't recall there being any monies owed on it. I'm probably being really naive here but surely before court papers are even thought out being served Mr Claimant should have his house in order it's like me filing a claim against some random picked out the yellow pages saying Joe Bloggs owes me £1500. Where is the defendant protection in all of this or do Carter just hope to win by defendants not acknowledging the claim in the set time limits? Sorry for the rant I just fail to grasp it and on the flip side this probably could be solved by me trying to speak to Lloyds etc. I just feel shouldn't the onus be on the claimant? Edit: Plus looking at this from a different but still sceptical point of view say for example I ticked yes I can participate, in turn also confirming in writing that I do indeed have enough evidence. If it then it goes through mediation and ultimately reaches the court for a hearing and I say sorry Judge I still don't have the necessary proof requested, surely the court could then just refer me to the mediation form I ticked declaring I've enough information to make a decision about the clam? Cheers

Hi All, The plot thickens I've just received an email from the courts asking me to confirm four questions to see if my case is suitable for mediation, one of the questions it asks me to say yes to is below.. I can confirm that I have enough information about the claim to allow me to enter into negotiations and that I do not require any further evidence from the other party before the appointment Through no fault of my own I cannot say yes to this and now because of that I can no longer participate in mediation putting me at a disadvantage. Is there any rules on this as surely even if Lowell or whoever produces this paperwork which I've been told exists it puts me at a disadvantage as because of their incompetence or delaying tactics I missed out on the chance of mediation. Cheers

Thank you Andy, One thing I'm not entirely sure on is if Carter does manage to get hold of the original paperwork for the account (Apparently it is not being handled by Lowell now it is handled by Fredriksons despite Lowell being named the claimant on the court papers) is there a chance they can just produce that to the court and my defense is for lack of better words nullified and they win by default or would they still have to follow the process through the track and local court hearing? Thanks for your help.

Good morning Andy, I only recently returned the DX nothing further has happened since. Many thanks

Hi All, I've had Lowell and Carter lodge a claim for £1,450 against me for an unpaid overdraft on behalf of Lloyds TSB in November. I acknowledged the claim online and later then submitted a defense to the tune of I do not recognise I owe this debt and that I am unable to defend myself unless proof of the debt is disclosed and that it is the claimants obligation to provided the defendant proof. The defense was accepted by the court and a DX was sent out to which I returned and opted yes to meditation and to allocate to my local county court. In the meantime I emailed Lowell and Carter about the fact they still have not provided any evidence that this debt even exists and that I am unwilling to enter any discussions or meditation until this is produced. A couple of days ago they e-mailed me back with this ------------------------------- Thank you for your email. We are seeking our client’s further instructions regarding your request for evidence however it is our understanding that it is the policy of the Original Creditor to provide its customers with agreements at the point of contract and statements throughout the duration of the account; consequently, you have previously been provided with validation of the debt and you are referred to your own records for the same. We trust this clarifies matters. Yours sincerely ------------------------------- This got my back up obviously as from my interpretation of this e-mail is it is up to me to seek this out myself so I e-mailed them back the below copying in the court e-mail with my claim number ------------------------------- Thank you for your response, I would like to remind you that it is not the original creditor trying to obtain a judgement against me through the small claims court. Are you telling me Is it your policy to take on instructions from your clients for commencement of legal proceedings without sight of any proof that the alleged debt is actually owed then? If I have been supplied with validation of the debt (To which I do not recall) Then I am sure that you will be able to speak to your client who sent this originally and reproduce this without a problem then proving to me and the court that this debt in fact exists as despite numerous requests I have yet to see it, and forgive me being the dubious person I am I fail to take your word for it that I have been 'provided with this before'. This is not the remit of either myself or the alleged original creditor (Lloyds) this is the responsibility of Lowell/Bryan Carter to prove beyond all doubt that this debt exists if you think I will be bullied into thinking any other way you are very mistaken. I await your response. I also trust this clarifies matters too. ------------------------------- I maybe should have been a bit more professional but they just seem to think it's okay to bully people into paying debts they potentially do not owe. Has anyone seen this before, do they have any proof on this debt? Surely they'd have this to hand if they did? Thanks!

Very good point, however the only other good alternative for me is for me to win a time order in court but as they're unwilling to reinstate the agreement surely a consent order would be the only way forward there too? Or could the court order the agreement continue, I'm thinking probably not?

Movement! They have e-mailed me back saying they would be willing to accept the £1000 and after payment would then pass me through to the legal team to setup a consent order. Should I go for this, is there a danger I could pay the £1000 and then they turn around and say well actually no we are not going to set up a consent order or can't and then continue with repossession?

Okay great plan! I rung them to offer payment but they said it's being handled by the asset management team and wouldn't take the call any further so I have responded to them on e-mail once again offering a payment right now of £1000 and a further payment of £761 on the 23rd of this month so I shall hopefully receive a response on that shortly which will all be in writing. If they refuse which I am expecting them to do and I then submit a time order do they then have to halt the repossession process on the receipt of proof or are they still within their rights to carry on? I intend on keeping the car on private property anyway so if they did reposes from their then they are doing me a favor!

I don't no, I am sure I can find them though. What's your thoughts around it?

It doesn't Would need to pay just over £1700 to be over a third, so basically they knew if they let me have the extra two weeks I'd be over a third paid.

Hi Ell-Enn, I hope you are well just a little update I received a response from them as I also e-mailed a copy of the letter to them too. Basically long story short is they are not changing their stance it's £1550 by today or they are instructing their goons to try and reposes. I've offered them the £1000 and the remainder including this months installment in a just under a couple of weeks but obviously that's not good enough - but I tried! What should my next move be should I just keep the car on private property and communicate no further until they are finally forced to lodge a court appeal or shall I tell them my intentions and make it clear I do not intend on giving up the car and will fight this at the court hearing? Cheers!

Thank you so much Ell-enn that's brilliant, I will get it sent out first thing tomorrow morning via next day special delivery so it will arrive on Sunday with signed proof. I think what I am offering is reasonable, yes I've been in financial difficulties and I'll hold my hands up not lived up to my side of the agreement in terms of repayments but I am putting my money where my mouth is by offering £1000 straight up then the remainder cleared within two and a bit weeks, if they repossess the car yes they can auction it off and they will still recoup money from it but no way will it be as quick as what I am proposing here. I really appreciate you're help. I think the best idea is send this off and rent some garage space off a friend until this is resolved as that way when their agents do call they won't be able to recover it, as I've heard they fit trackers in their cars so leaving it away from my house on public road isn't an option I don't think. Good point regarding the one third situation after paying £1000 - I would need to do the sums and really have a breakdown of what I've already paid as I reckon a lot of the repayments I've done recently is just covering their fines as they prioritise them over the repayments so I've heard from research.