Debt

[Nottsdave]

Hi,

New to this so pls bear with me,

 

About 5 years ago I got into big trouble with credit cards etc totalling about 50k, I have sinced moved around and I guess you could say I burried my head in the sand and tried to forget it all.

About 3 months ago I got a letter from Capquest saying all the usual stuff and that I should pay off my debt which I have agreed to do I now pay £100 per month. I have had letters now from Moorcroft Lowells and DLC /Hilllesden chasing me, I have not yet responded to either of these outfits and I dont know what to do, should I respond or just continue to ingnore them ? The latest from DLC says that they will pay 30% if I agree to start paying them .

 

Any advice would be great.

 

Nottsdave.

[lemma1968]

You need to be sure that these DCA's actually have the right to collect. Read some other posts and you will see that the first step is to ask them for a copy of the agreement. Without it they cannot enforce any debt.

 

You will find it in Letters and Templates - letter N. Send it with a £1 P.O to each DCA.

 

They have strict timelimits to comply with this. If they can't then they can't enforce the agreement.

 

Can you clarify what each of the debts are so that we can ensure that you are given the best advice? i.e. credit card, loan etc with whom and when taken out? When was the last payment made on each and have you spoken to the DCA's or written to them recently?

 

NEVER EVER SPEAK TO THEM!

 

There are some great people on CAG - I have had tons of help from these fabulous people.

[mrmarmite]

agree with lemma here, CCA the lot of then, send CCA letter + £1 postal order by either recorded or special delivery,

the time scale is as followes:

when CCA is received by DCA (check on royal mail website) the clock start ticking,

they have 12 WORKING days (mon to fri) to comply, if they fail to comply within 12 WORKING days they have no legal right to ask/demand money from you

the clock resets and starts ticking again, this time you count 30 CALENDAR days, so you now on 2(delivery time) + 12 (WORKING days) + 30 (CALENDAR days) 2+12+30 in essence if after this time you still dont get the CCA request you through book at them and complain to authorities as commited a summay offence.

capquest ignore but get message in the end

moorcroft, bunch of dumb idiots that just won't go away

don't know about lowells as had no dealings with them,

 

as lemma says DON'T speak to them on telephone, plz just shout if they keep ringing you as that little matter can be sorted out very easily.

 

PLEASE MAKE SURE when you send the CCA off to this lot make sure on top of letter in bold put

 

"I DO NOT ACKNOLEDGE THIS DEBT" but speel it right lol

 

we are all here to help pass on our knoledge and experience so plz if not sure on anything just SHOUT ! ! ! !

[shane5408]

Just to add the great advice you've received don't sign the cca request letter, just print your name will suffice, some companies, particularly DCA's have been suspected of scanning signatures on agreements!

 

Do you think you have any penalty charges on the accounts? If so you may want to send a SAR to ascertain the full extent and begin claiming them back. If you want to send a SAR you need to send it to the orignal creditor, not the DCA who are simply collecting on their behalf.

 

kind regards,

shane

[Seahorse]

At the very least, you will know exactly how much is owed, and how much of it is not made up of unlawful penalties etc. You'll be in a much stronger negotiating position.

 

Just in case you feel guilty about offering a reduced amount at all, keep remembering one thing... debt buyers will have paid a pittance for the debt. So when they start slapping interest on a total of £50K that they MIGHT have paid as much as £5K for (but probably even less), you'll have a better idea of why you are telling them to stop being silly.

[Nottsdave]

hi,

 

In answer to your question Lemma the debts are with credit card companies. I have not responded to any of the DCAs other than capquest whom I am now paying.

The others just keep sending letters threatening all sorts of stuff, should I just ignore theses or contact them ?

All the debts are at least nearly 5 years old and I have not spoken or had any dealings with them since then.

 

D

[shane5408]

hi,

 

In answer to your question Lemma the debts are with credit card companies. I have not responded to any of the DCAs other than capquest whom I am now paying.

The others just keep sending letters threatening all sorts of stuff, should I just ignore theses or contact them ?

All the debts are at least nearly 5 years old and I have not spoken or had any dealings with them since then.

 

D

 

Hi DAve,

 

First thing you need to do is establish whether they have a legal right to enforce the debt, we do that by sending CCA requests to ascertain whether they hold a credit agreement. No agreement = no enforcable debt, similarly if the agreement is missing certain prescribed terms or contranvenes the Act & Regulations it may also be unenforcable, only way to find out is to request it, if they provide anything (and it's a big if) it would be useful if you could post it up here blotting out any personal details so we can advise further

 

send the request via recorded delivery so you have proof of when it is received, they have 12 working days (allow 2 days for postage) to respond if they do not in this timeframe you are within your legal right to withold payments, after a further 30 days passs they commit a summary criminal offence and you should contact your local trading standards.

 

You can find the CCA template letter here http://www.consumeractiongroup.co.uk/forum/general-debt/20758-creditors-dcas-letter-templates.html you need letter N

Also put at the top of the letter

I acknowledge no debt to you or any company you purport to represent

 

Lastly, I wouldn't sign the letter just print ur name as some DCA'a have been suspected of scanning signatures, also enclose the £1 fee as a postal order if possible and keep the receipt so you can tell when it has been cashed.

 

kind regards,

shane