Companies House today 12/06/18 confirmed that Claire Louise Sandbrook, High Court Enforcement Officer and owner of Shergroup Ltd is officially a resident in the USA, as per her completed form for Persons with Significant Control dated last year on 02/06/2017 (but filed today). 12 Jun 2018 - Change of details for Mrs Claire Louise Sandbrook as a person with significant control on 2 June 2017 - New Country /State usually resident: United States https://beta.companieshouse.gov.uk/company/04771589/filing-history Given that aside from Shergroup, Sandbrook sells her authority as an HCEO to the likes of DCBL and many other HCEO "franchises" does she really have control of the writs issued in her name? With the recent DCBL case it would appear not - DCBL Ordered to pay £20k Maybe it's finally time for a review into the HCEO system...

Hello All, I am seeking some advice regarding a timeshare we stupidly bought into whilst on holiday in California in October. On the day, we were sold this amazing package, but since returning to the UK this amazing package has fallen apart - and simply isn't what was sold to us. I wont bore you with the details of why the package is different, but the package is significantly different to what we signed up to - and simply isn't what we want and doesn't work for us. We have tried to express all of our issues to the Timeshare company, even having it escalated up to Director level, but they seem to be reluctant to admit any wrongdoing and are completely unwilling to help us out. The timeshare is a points based system with our names on a title deed in California. We have paid our first two month mortgage payments on the deed, but we are now at a point that we want to walk away. We are debating what options we have and whether there is any risk to us being UK citizens, and stopping payments to a US based Timeshare/Mortgaged Deed? The major questions we have; 1) Will defaulting on a mortgage affect our finances in the UK? 2) Could a US Debt company chase us in the UK and could they force us to pay by UK law? 2) Will defaulting on a mortgage affect our ESTA/VISA allowance to visiting the US in future? When we signed up to the Timeshare, the company ONLY took our names and addresses and one credit card from us. They did not take any passport details. If we stopped the payments being taken from the Credit Card, would this affect our credit rating in the UK? Has anyone else been in this situation or have any ideas what we can do? Many Thanks for any advice!

Hi Two years ago on our honeymoon we were coned into a time share situation with a company called United Vacation Club. We paid a deposit of approx. 3000 USD when we arrived back home tried to cancel the agreement not knowing that the cooling off period was a very short 5 days I was made redundant on my return and have asked the company to terminate the agreement. This week I have received an email saying that they are going to place the debt in the hands of a collection agency in the USA. Any advice please.

Hi all, 2004, I received a community service order for a criminal offence, at the time of issue, I had a pre booked holiday to the USA. Following my punishment, I applied and attended the US Embassy in London and was granted a 10 year visa. Last time I visited the US was 2010 when my visa was still active, I've renewed my passport since then, so, do I have to reapply for another visa? I'd like to revisit the US, however, given how strict immigration are on arrival, would I need to reapply for another visa, or would I be OK on my current one? From previous experience, it's time consuming and expensive applying for a visa to the US, if I have to go through this process again, so be it, just curious whether I have to reapply for another visa.

http://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2016/09/cost-wars-iraq-afghanistan/499007/ Sounds like the USA are handing debt to several generations in the sum of $4.8 trillion

I have a UK Amex. I have disputed charges via a lawyer on the card which I did not make and Amex credited back these charges then reversed them. The amount is substantial and over £50k I have also had foreign transaction fees added to the account I knew nothing about. They now want payment and I'm refusing to pay as I do not owe them the money. I have lived in the US with a US address on my UK Amex account for the past 6 years. So am not a resident of the U.K. As I'm at a deadlock my account is now due to default soon and I will owe them over £50k. Can Amex enforce card debts in the US if signed in the UK with a UK credit agreemnt for UK. Will they take me to court in the UK or US and what will happen next? Im not running away from the debt but want to know what will happen next or what I should do.

http://m.bbc.com/news/health-32594556

I am at my wits end! Truly I am at the stage were I can no longer sleep, am having massive panic attacks and I just want this all to go away! But I know it wont. I need help. I met and married my USA husband in 2007 ( while on vacation) and I left a huge mess behind me in the UK. Well it wasn't a mess then but it has become one over the years. It was always our intention to return and reside in the UK but 'life' got in the way here (his mother's advanced progressing cancer then me being diagnosed with cancer ) Plus my husband is quadriplegic and any return to the UK was then financially impossible as I wouldn't be able to meet the financial requirements ( due to my illness employment wise) to bring him into the UK to live. Any possible chance of returning home and sorting out my mess became a pipe-dream. Dealing with my cancer plus caring for him 24/7 just piled the sand over my head deeper. When I left the UK I had a CCJ (store-card - approx debt £1,200) that I was paying off at £5 a month - this was via direct debit from my bank. I had an authorized bank overdraft of 5k ( which was maxed out in my immediate months here - immigration fees and maintaining standing orders for services back in the UK ) I own the leasehold to a small flat in the UK, which I have tried to maintain with tenants to just basically live and cover service charges for - but that has been a disaster, non payment of rent etc. The property now stands vacant in a state of disrepair ( I am trying to get it in a fit state to sell with the help of friends back in the UK but that is difficult with no funds). I also had a student loan taken out pre-1998 ( the payments of which were deferred in the UK due to disability) I have NO idea what the situation is with the bank as I have had no contact with them since the end of 2007. The same goes for the SLC and the people I was paying my CCJ to. Any mail that they may have sent I did not receive due to my 'tenants'. I was never informed of any even when I asked. I want to sort this out but I have no idea where to start! Quite frankly I am scared to make contact because I am not in a position ( at the moment) to offer any financial recompense. I know debts just don't 'go away', I don't know what I owe ( no doubt the bank would have added on their charges etc ) I do not know if they would have closed the account after this many years or if it will still be accumulating charges. The bank card was blocked late 2007 IIRC - obviously reached my agreed authorized O/D limit. I am now totally despairing of there being any solution.. I am so exhausted worrying about this and trying to keep my head above the water here in the USA some days I really don't feel like there is any point in living. The accompanying depression and anxiety disorder don't help either. I should also state that it is impossible for us to return to the UK ( I cannot even afford the plane fare - haven't been back there since I came here) BUT should /when my cancer become terminal ( I am stage 3 at the moment) then it is my intention to go back home to be with my family. Not the best of 'homecomings' but a necessary one. I really don't want to be having to deal with all of this when that time comes - nor have them dealing with it. I have a number of questions namely would the bank still have been applying the overdraft interest rate once the limit had been reached - i.e. for the last 8 years ? Would they have handed the debt over to a DCA after all this time with no contact from me ? We live off practically nothing here and I am not able to offer any substantial payments. Should I contact the bank or the DCA they * may * have handed the account to to try and resolve this situation? I am at breaking point right now hence the reason I have reached out just hoping that someone , anyone can offer me some advice Thank you for taking the time to read this

Hi all, Been reading through all the highly useful threads but I didn't find anything that covered my specific situation and I was hoping I could get some advice. I have a UK Student loan from 2001-2005 which I've fallen behind with my repayments on. I left the UK to move to France in 2005 but I was unable to keep up with the payments, the last payment I made I believe was in 2008 or 2009. Since then I've moved to the US and if I'm honest I totally forgot about the loan. Out of the blue today I've gotten a letter to my US address from the SLC demanding that I repay the arrears on my loan in full (7,200 GBP) it's dated the 15th of March and they expect me to repay within 21 days, its also listed as a final notice. I want to do the right thing with the loan but it's tax season right now and I have barely enough money to pay my tax, let alone seven thousand pounds. The earliest I think I'd have any money would be at the end of April and it wouldn't be anywhere close to that number. I was wondering if anyone had gone through something similar and what my legal rights are at this point. I'm guessing I'll have to contact them to negotiate but would like to know what my options are before talking to the SLC. Thanks in advance, any help or advice is highly appreciated.

If a child doesnt turn up to a party sue the parents! http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2916379/Five-year-old-misses-friend-s-birthday-bash-INVOICED-15-95.html?ito=social-facebook

When are big commercial enterprises going to conduct their business in a honest manner. T Mobile stateside have been caught out. http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2676969/FTC-T-Mobile-millions-bogus-charges.html Regards,John.

Not sure if this is the right place http://www.omg-facts.com/Business/Bank-of-America-agreed-to-pay-410-millio/60958?utm_source=twitterfeed&utm_medium=twitter&utm_content=second

Hi all. I'm in a mess. I've been living in the US for almost 7 years now. Had debt in the UK when I left, young and careless. I have no plans to return to the UK as I'm a US citizen now and well settled here. I co-own a house in the UK with 3 siblings, the 4 of us own a quarter each. It's a family house we inherited and they have no interest in ever selling it. Obviously, my share is just a quarter, 25%. I have 3 separate debts, £2082, £8513 and £1182. The CCJs were entered on 14/02/14, 06/12/13 and 20/12/12 respectively. They have also applied for a charging order against the property I partially own. My questions are: Firstly, can I apply to have these CCJs set aside as I have been a permanent resident of the US for the past 7 years. I've only just become aware of these judgments after checking my credit report online. When I left the UK I did inform my financial institutions (Egg and HSBC) that I was moving to the US. Could they force the house to be sold, even though I only own a small share of the property? There is no mortgage on it. Two relatives live in the house that will not be moving for a very long time. I also believe that the two most recent CCJs must have been statute barred as at that point I'd been in the States over 6 & half years and have had no contact and made no payments since I've lived here. What is the best course of action. I've searched and searched and have not been able to find anyone in a similar situation, with a small share of an asset that has no hope of being sold anytime soon.

Hi All I am new to this website, but found some useful information and thought I would post my dilemma and hopefully get some advice. I am moving to the USA in 3 weeks time with my long term partner as his job has been relocated over there (for 3 years). I will be moving over on a visitor visa, therefore I won't be working (although I intend to look for work once I get there). My issue is this, I have debt of about £10,000 here in the UK that I have been paying off (I have never defaulted or had to freeze payments) for many years, but obviously I am about to be unemployed, with no idea when I will be working again and don't know what to do about paying my debts. Has anyone got any advice? Is it worth me simply picking up the phone and explaining my situation to my creditors? Unfortunately my partner cannot afford to pay to look after me and my debts!

Hello guys, I went on holiday to the USA recently, hiring a car from a well known international rental company in Massachusetts - although the vehicle I picked up was registered in the state of Pennsylvania. Whilst in the USA I made a left turn on an urban dual carriageway in the state of New Jersey - the weather was wet and it was night time, I approached the junction (which was lit with two overhead green lights and a green light on the right side of the road) with caution, in the appropriate lane, checked there was no oncoming traffic and made the turn. I noticed two camera flashes at the time but had no idea why or what I had done wrong. Upon my return to the UK I was sent a letter from the hire car company stating that Jersey City Municipal Court had issued an $85 fine for turning left against a red signal. I e-mailed the company (htallc.com) and asked for further information, and was sent a web link showing me turning left where there was, in the upper-left of the video, a single traffic light with a red arrow pointing to the left on the far side of the junction. As of today (months later) I have noticed that there was also an overhead light on the left hand lane which did not appear to be switched on either in my violation video or on google street view - 2643 JFK Boulevard West, heading left onto Montgomery St near St Peters University. I'm rather annoyed with this as before leaving for the USA I made an effort to read up on local driving laws and regulations and would never knowingly run a red light. If a similar junction existed in the UK I would certainly have contested the criminal charge in court on the grounds that it was not properly designed or enforceable. Furthermore, the red arrow is not included in the description of traffic signals in this particular states' Driver Manual (NJ page 186) so it hardly seems fair to require foreign drivers (allowed to drive for 1 year) to be aware of undocumented traffic signals. Legally, I was notified that all criminal fines to the court had already been paid by the hire company and that they would chase the debt as per a clause in the rental agreement. My options now appear to be to: try and contest the original fine on technical grounds, undoing the payment to the US criminal court by appealing via htallc (which I am sure would cost a fortune and involve unwanted travel abroad to a foreign court with no guarantee of success); to pay the charges and administration fees levied or to simply ignore the charges as they have become a civil rather than criminal matter and may not be enforced in the UK. I'm inclined to simply ignore the demand for payment (of just over $100) - can this debt be enforced against me in the UK, is it likely to be enforced and will non-payment affect my ability to travel to the USA or hire vehicles in the USA in the future? Bearing in mind I'm somewhat stubborn and not inclined to pay what I feel is an unjust fine, what action would you advise me to take and are there any unforeseen consequences of my current plan to simply ignore the debt?

My son carries dual US/UK citizenship however he is not allowed to enter theUS on his UK passport. My son's US passport has expired; he has spentevery summer of his life since birth in the US. He is now 10. His father &I are divorced but the custody issue was not dealt with in the divorce. In order to get my son's US passport renewed both parents have to attend theUS embassy in person with the child. I asked my son's father back in January 2013,to go with my son & I to apply for the passport, he did not & has not responded. US rules state as follows; Important Notice: the written consent from the non-applying parent that accompanies an application for a new passport must be less than 3 months old. If not available, you will be required to furnish evidence of the appearing parent's sole authority to apply for the passport in the form of one of the following: Consular Report of Birth Abroad (Form FS-240) or Certification of Birth Abroad (Form DS-1350) listing only applying parent; Child's birth certificate listing only applicant parent; Adoption decree (if applying parent is sole adopting parent); Court Order granting sole custody to the applying parent (i.e the absent parent has no access to the child. Child's travel must not be restricted by that order; Judicial declaration of incompetence of non-applying parent; or Death certificate of non-applying parent Can someone please advise me if the court can force my ex to go to theembassy with my son & I or can I can secure sole custody? My son requiresthe passport by Early July 2013. Can I make an application for a Special Issue Order to get my ex to goto the embassy? I cannot afford to engage a solicitor. I'd be gratefulfor any advice. Thanks

Hi, Many thanks in advance to anyone who can throw some light on this please. I have a house in UK which was bought before the financial meltdown. It is now in negative equity of about 40,000. I moved to USA permanently in May 2010. I do not have any other property or savings in either US or UK and my US salary is just enough to meet my expenses here. I cannot afford to pay the mortgage on my house in UK any more and I don't have the money to pay the shortfall. Right now I am considering giving the keys back to the bank and filing for bankruptcy in UK. Before taking this desperate measure, I want to know whether UK bankruptcy will affect my credit rating in US? Also, when you file for bankruptcy in UK, will they (the receiver or the court) inform my US bank or employer about the bankruptcy? I have enough trouble in my personal life as it is and I dont want this to cost my job in US. Once again, many thanks in advance.

Hi, I've recently been scammed out of £200 by a webbased company which USED to be registered in the netherlands but has since moved HQ to Atlanta, GA USA. how would I go about a small claim to get that money back from the USA? I have paperwork, emails and proof that the transaction was fraudulent, furthermore due to a flaw of their own, they advertised something at £200, but when I bought it I was told it was actually £2000 so the purchase was denied. Despite the purchase being denied, they say that refunds are not a company policy and they refer me to their T's and C's which state: 'We reserve the right to remove any balance from your account without giving a reason'. had I have seen this I wouldnt' have ever signed up in the first place. Problem is proving that this new 'term' appeared since I went AWOL on them. Furthermore, they REFUSE to give me their postal address and they said if any claims are to be made, my solicitor should contact them by, and I quote 'registering an account, and submitting a support ticket'. Any ideas? Thanks Adrian

Hi, First I must thank you all for such a wonderful repository of information. You have built an amazing community and should be very proud. The Story: I moved to the US in 2007, and left some debt behind. It was a difficult time and I was in turmoil about this debt. Then I discovered this site and learnt that there was essentially nothing they could do. I put that part of my life behind me and forgot about it. Earlier this week I received a letter from a lawyer containing a motion for an issuance of a new Capias. I had no idea what this was so called, and then went to the courthouse to obtain a copy of the file. It turns out that this lawyer had obtained a judgement by default against me in 2011. The documents had been served to an apartment i moved out of in 2007. I had no idea of the existence of this case until this week. Crazily enough, this seems to be perfectly proper service in the US. I have been living my life quite happily for the last 2 years without knowing that I had a civil arrest warrant out on me. Obviously this court has no jurisdiction over the matter and I will seek to have the default judgement vacated. I will then seek damages via the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act. I realise this forum may not be the best place for these US-centric questions. I will also pose them to your revolutionary brothers at http://www.debtorboards.com However I would appreciate any input you could give. My Questions: 1. What is the likelihood that HSBC is the actual Plaintiff? Wouldn't the debt have been sold off long ago? This lawyer is a bottom feeding sole trader ambulance chaser. I find it hard to believe he has been engaged by HSBC. 2. The complaint is for a fanciful sum in US Dollars. Is this Kosher? Can a debt in one currency be arbitrarily converted to another? Or is this a fraud designed to deceive the court? 3. In what order do I properly deal with this? Attend Capias hearing first and then file a motion to vacate? Or should I file a motion to vacate now with the same hearing date as the Capias hearing? 4. I intend to make some money from this scumbags sloppiness. Am I required to offer my full defense in the motion to vacate? Can I move to vacate solely on the grounds of not having been served, and then let him dig a deeper hole for himself in subsequent proceedings? Or does doing this mean I will have assented to the courts jurisdiction? 5. If #4 is a bad idea can I file a motion to vacate with prejudice? How likely is this to be granted? 6. What's the likelihood of a crazy American judge ignoring jurisdiction? 7. Will this judgement have been recorded on my credit reports? I have applied for my reports but the credit reporting agencies seen to not know who I am. I have never applied for credit in the US. If this judgement has been reported, is this a breach of the data protection act? 8. This debt will be statute barred in about 2 months and I'm feeling litigious. What can I do to punch HSBC in the nose? It seems to me that if HSBC is really the plaintiff then it is a UK company attempting to fraudulently use the US courts to bully and intimidate the counter-party in a UK contract. How do I monetize this naughtiness? LIBOR is still fresh on everyone's minds... I'm sure I have a million more questions but I am still working to educate myself on the intricacies of US law. Any advice you could offer would be most gratefully received!

Hi, just found the forum here - everything looks great and I felt that it would be a great place to get reliable advice, so here I am! I'm currently being threatened by US debt collectors, but I'm in the UK. i got a credit line from a US advertising company which I began using to promote my business ( as a sole trader ). Unfortunately, things didn't go too well, as their ad inventory wasn't good ( common knowledge, apparently ). they've started sending me invoices, and now I'm about 5 days late on the first payment of just over $500. The ad company has now told me that unless I confirm that I'm making the payment within the next two days, they're passing it on to their 'outside debt collection agency'. They also said that their collectors have a great track record of recovering debts, even from people outside of the US. I just felt that I was being intimidated and they refused to give me more time to pay. They then said that I would be liable for the expenses of the collection agency on top of the actual bill itself. Realistically, what can they do, seeing as I'm a British citizen and they're in the US? There was no contract, just a basic written agreement ( which they didn't keep themselves - they were supposed to extend me $5000 of ad credit, then bill me 30 days afterwards ). Advice would be greatly appreciated!

My situation is that I'm shortly leaving to go and live in the US with my fiance and as such won't have a regular income until I can find a job and she will fully support me on a day to day basis financially. I have the below levels of unsecured debt with my current income I'm struggling to make payments and am in arrears to HSBC for the credit card and have been bumping along at my overdraft limit for years. HSBC Overdraft £1,000.00 HSBC Credit card £5,538.00 Santander Overdraft £248.08 CapitalOne £1,157.32 Barclaycard £1,168.09 Before I leave I've tried to discuss with PayPlan, CCCS and HSBC themselves about my options for when I don't have income but none have been able to help me as they seem to be focused on the here and now and can't help me with the future despite me knowing the exact circumstances that will arise. Basically I'm hoping for some advice/best course of action to take. I'll be able to muster together circa £2,000 from my final months salary so could I make full and final settlement offers? Would that be feasible if I explain my situation and with that level of lump sum? Or in a few months would I be eligible to enter in to a DRO or similar? Essentially I'd just like some clarifications of what my options are for when I won't have a regular income come November. Thanks in advance.

Hello fellow people, I have a situation, I live in the USA now permanently, and don't want to keep my UK property anymore. I can't afford to keep sending money over, it's killing me. It's in negative equity, so I'm considering voluntary repossession and handing in keys. I'm sure it would damage my credit in UK but this shouldn't affect me really. Does anybody know how this would go down? Or anything I should consider or be aware of? Thanks, -givenup

Hi, I live in the UK and I'm due to receive an international wire transfer for the total amount of $223.00 which includes $25.00 to cover the cost of the wire transfer.. Is $25.00 enough ? The cost I'm owed is £125.00 and how do I pay the cost. Is it taken out automatically or do I have to intervene before the payment is complete I believe the payment will be sent tomorrow from Orange County, California from a multi billion dollar company into my Barclays account thanks

We are intending to visit New york next year for a wedding (4 days) and then on to Mexico for a holiday but my husband has a small conviction from 20yrs ago and I have a couple of speeding tickets and I have been arrested (but not charged) about 30yrs ago. Has anyone not declared minor convictions and been stopped from entering the USA? Havent got a problem paying for a visa etc just the thought of having to go all the way down to the Embassy in London thats putting us off, any suggestions

My husband has a large US medical bill, which our travel insurance has so far denied. We are complaining about this and hope that they will pay it eventually. We do not have savings to pay it. If we are not successful in getting the travel insurance to pay up, will the US hospital and surgeons be able to make us pay in some way? We are UK residents.