Hi all, I have recently been contacted by a debt collection agency on behalf of a well known bank, in relation to our mortgage. We have a court order made in 2011 in which the judge suggested that we pay a certain amount towards the arrears. This arrangement has been adhered to up till today. My question is do the well known bank have the right to start harassing us about payment - probably trying to force us to pay more? What are our rights in such a situation?. I was of the opinion that when a court order is made and it is adhered to, no further action could/should be taken. Any advice you could offer would be appreciated. Thanks. Rainstorm

Hallo need some advice, In April 2012 I signed a 12 month gym contract with Fit for Free; Off-Peak fitness, @ £9.95 per month. On the 16th July 2012, I upgraded from Off-Peak fitness to Unlimited fitness, @£15.95 per month, following the completion of an upgrade request form at the reception. I was not given a copy of this form. After 10 months I stopped going too the gym and after 11 months I cancelled the standing order. My reason for cancelling was that some of the equipment had not been maintained, and after reporting it the several times to the staff, nothing was done about it. Addionally I clearly ticked the box I do not wish to be contacted by Fit For Free for special offers and marketing purposes. Yet I have, by email and text messaging, been contacted. On the 24th April 2013 I recieved a letter from Fit for Free asking that I pay £33.90. I replied saying that I was willing to pay £9.95 the amount on the contract that I had signed. Nowhere on the contract does it say that if I upgrade my membership that I will be held liable for the increased amount. I asked Fit for Free to show me a contract that I had signed, which said I had to pay the increased amount. They didn't show me a contract of course, because there is no contract. On the 29th May I was contacted by CCI Legal, saying that I had an account with them and that I now owed £100.85. On 1st June I emailed CCI, telling them that I was in dispute with Fit for Free and in no way was I admitting that I had a debt. They ignored this letter and have phoned me every working day at the same time, using an automated voice robot. They have also sent me letters. In the letters they threaten to use one of 8 methods to get money and they urge me to call a premium rate phone number to workout a payment plan. What to do now, how can I get these bullying lawyers to stop harressing me? Is legal action an option? Thanks for any advice. Kaly

I have had a dispute with a utility company over a small charge. We disagreed and things got heated. I asked them verbally and in writing, many time, to take the matter to court. But they said that they do not go to court but will pass it on to a debt collection agency and credit reference agencies. They have refused to take the issue to a court and now they have added more charges and have passed it onto a debt collection agency. Obviously I cannot take them to court but will face bullying and intimidation from debt collection agency. What are my options? Why are they refusing to go to court if they are so confident of the charges?