Daughters partner getting threatened over phone by alleged debt recovery company

[scotsguy69]

This is my 1st post on these forums but hopefully someone can help.

 

My daughters partner got a threatening phone call from someone tonight who withheld their number saying their from a company called Houston Debt Recovery or something like that (i've tried checking on Yell.com) and can't find anything.

 

The strange thing is that they said they would come and put in all his windows but when he got cheeky with them the person on the phone said something about coming round witha shotgun.

 

We're very worried but don't want to get involved other than to make sure our daughter and grandaughters are ok but i'm thinking theres more to this than what we're being told so I was wondering if anyone can offer advice.

 

Thanks

[Curlyben]

They WILL not be sending someone round.

These are complete fabrications meant to intimidate and scare, by the sounds of it it's worked.

If, in the highly unlikely event they do arrive, you simply ask them to leave.

If they don't call the police.

 

Now until they write ignore their calls.

If they are answered refuse to answer their "security" questions and demand everything in writing.

[scotsguy69]

Thanks Ben

 

As I said I think theirs more to it as I don't think any debt recovery company worth their salt would contact you in this manner with threats of smashing in your windows or mentioning a shotgun.

 

But what I do think is he (My daughters partner) isn't telling the complete story i've told her if anything does happen to call the police straight away.

[Curlyben]

Try and get the whole story as this is a DCA, they are in serious trouble.

Admittedly if this is a loan shark operation then this changes things considerably.

[scotsguy69]

Hi Ben,

 

I agree if it is a loan shark it's completely different.

 

Can you tell me if Houston Debt Recovery is a real company and also is there any website where I can find out where their based.

 

I don't think he's ever had any written correspondance from them but I did find out he's had a few phone calls like this in the past couple of months.

[gizmo111]

Have you asked him who he owes money to?

It doesn't sound like a normal DCA call to me?

[Goldlady]

If you Google them it only brings up US agencies - as you would expect. I am trying to think of other names that might sound like Houston but so far brain has not come up with one. Unless he has been to the States of course?

[scotsguy69]

Hello Goldlady

 

He's never been in the USA i've tried Yell.com but don't get anything there.

[gizmo111]

I wouldn't even bother looking for them - any normal DCA would not be making that kind of threat - they threaten loads of stuff but not that type of thing. you need to find out what the debt is and what your daughters partner has to say about it.

 

If it was a call from the US then the number would surely show as international not witheld?

[Goldlady]

There's one called Wollastons (solicitors) who are based in Essex but that is the closest I can get on 14 pages of Google

[postggj]

Can U Help Done A Subject Access Request For Car Loan Welcome Finance. Agreement Not My Signature No Witness Signature Or Date

[Shanks]

postggj, you need to start a new thread of your own. Starting a new topic in the middle of someone else post will mean yours does not not get the attention you might need. A mod may see this and move it but best just start a new one hth

 

scotsguy69, one of the problems with DCA's, if this is one, is that they use so many subsiduary names and aliases it becomes difficult to keep a track on all the names used. Quite often in reality it is just the clerk sat at the other side of the same room. But another company's name and headed paper means they can up the anti and claim to have passed the debt on etc etc.

 

I would agree with the comments so far that this is very unusual for a licenced DCA to use this level of threatening language, if proved to be one you can be assured the folks on this forum will certainly help to put an end to it. Is there a way to record any calls being made to your daughters number. It may help with identifying the company involved and would provide evidence of their intimidating actions. The advise to not talk to them on the phone still applies, but if they launch into some threatening tirade at least there will be a record of it before you hang up.

 

Cheers

[gizmo111]

And also I don't know of any DCA that works on a sunday night.

[postggj]

Sorry To Hijack Thread

New To This

How Do I Start New Thread

Laymens Terms Please

[Shanks]

postggj, you already have a post running http://www.consumeractiongroup.co.uk/forum/general-debt/114371-welcome-finance.html if you need another one then just start it the same way you did that one.

Cheers

[make them aktiv runners]

postggj seems to have a tendency to interupt threads with his/her own unique style and off subject - see similiar style posts by Illuminati & MBMB11 to name but 2.

Some have commented about being phoned on a Sunday before. It may not be an actual DCA who is phoning but one of their tracing agents (I know for a fact they do work Sundays, bless do I wind them up).

To OP you really need to speak to potential son-in-law to see who this may be. Let him join this site to give more detail as it would help with advice.

[sillygirl1]

You could ask the phone service to put a trace on the calls, I did that with one DCA who kept calling on a Sunday afternoon, were very threatening. I had calls on 'intercept' which meant somebody else answered the calls and passed them to me when I say 'okay'. The threats soon stopped. I think the service cost me £15 a month....

[ODC]

Could this be HILLESDEN

[patrickq1]

it does sound like loan sharks shotguns who do they think they are besides being a criminal act that needs reporting to the police they can then monitor your calls as this happened to my nephew and the police sat theire for a week but they got the people in the end

[merlyn2003]

A witheld number is only witheld from the receiver & not the Network. Landline or Mobile

As required ALL CALLS & TXT messages are recorded & held for 3 years from the date sent within, to & from the EU! Contact the police and inform them of the threat and they can pull the recording and its source! The people that made the threat about a firearm will be awoken in the early hours of one morning by some nice men all dressed in black toting fully automatic assault rifles (police issue). Might put them off doing it again!

You can report it to the police by going to The UK Police Service or to MI5 by going to Website of the UK government : Directgov