wescot chasing studio card debt

[maggie]

received this letter this morning from wescot credit services.

letter was dated 26/06/2006

 

final notice

despite previous correspondence a balance still remains outstanding on the above debt.

 

unless you make payment of 698.52 within the next 7 days a claim form/summons may be lodged with hull county court or the local sheriff court for residents in scotland and subsequently issued to you for payment of the outstanding balance plus all statutory legal expenses as follows

 

amount claimed £698.52

legal expenses £150.00

total amount £848.52

and in big black letters is written payment due before the 3rd of july 2006

 

this debt is from an account i had with studio cards.

 

i have spoken to wescot over the telephone a few weeks ago,

and sent them a complete breakdown of my income and expenditures,

and offered to pay them £10.00 per week.

 

unfortunately

,i had to see the heart specialist a couple of weeks ago,

and they kept me in for tests,

and i am about 4 or 5 weeks behind with my payments

 

.some of this debt is made up of charges from studio cards

 

.there is no way i can repay this amount in full by the 3rd july.

 

please help as i am really concerned and terrified about this.

Edited June 26, 2018 by dx100uk
Spacing

[surreyscouse]

contact them and explain that you have had to stay in hospital and can you resume your £10 p/w payments

 

. They should be ok with this (although may ask for the past 5 weeks money).

 

do you have any proof you were in hospital ?

Or maybe your doctor can do you a letter.

If it did go to court then at least you can show you were willing to negotiate and it's not like you can sort things out from a hospital bed is it ?

 

I would try and talk it through to them, they probably don't want to go to court any more than you do

[Layla_ck]

Unfortunately, i have had lots of dealings with Wescot through my partner's debts.

 

1. Don't be intimidated by them

2. NEVER have any contact with them over the phone, they lie through their teeth and are totally inept!

3.Send all correspondance recorded delivery, and make sure you note it in your letter

4. Get as arsey as they do, and threaten that if it does go to court, due to you financial circumstances etc that you will no doubt be allowed to make a much lower payment over a longer period of time

5. I usually always put on the offer letters that payments will be increased as and when possible as I wish to clear this debt as soon as possible

 

HTH

 

Layla

[poochball]

As above Wescott are better contact by Letter recorded Delivery. Sometimes you do get someone nice on the phone though this is rare.

 

Don't let them intimidate you, if it did go to court it would work in your favour as most likely the court will accept the £10 per month.

 

In your defence you could explain you were at the doctors etc and if you can get proof of this then that would be even better.

 

Best thing to do though is call and say you are making payment and explain the circumstances. Most times they will be understanding.

 

Hope this helps.

[maggie]

wescott left a message for me to ring them on a number beginning with 0870.

 

As stated previously my debt with them is from studio cards and gifts.

 

After browsing this forum,

i realise that charges had been applied to my account with Studio,

before the debt was passed to Wescot

 

 

.I want to find out what amount of charges were added to my original acc.

with studio.

 

Do i send the £10.00 D.P.A. request to Studio for the amount of charges levied,

or do i ask Wescott to provide them?.

 

Also ,do i inform Wescott that the account is in dispute before i send the D.P.A. letter or when i have requested the information from Studio?,

 

I will also request in writing that they no longer contact me by telephone but by letter.

 

Any help would be most appreciated.

[Hugh]

Does anyone have an address for Wescot debt collectors?

[buzby]

They are local to me in Glasgow, and they have a 'large client' office based in Hull, so you;ll get the details listed on 192.com - The Largest UK Directory Enquiry Service

[poochball]

Hi,

 

The Address I use for Wescot is:

 

Wescot Credit Services Ltd

PO Box 137

Dunedin House

45 Percy Street

Hull

HU2 8HF

 

However, if you have a dispute or some problem and don't hear anything. Add Process and Compliance Coordinator to the address. They have a habit of "loosing letters" even when sent recorded which to me is useless.

[michaeludell]

i have had dealings with westcot..

...... about five years ago i had home contents insurance through norwich union,

but as i was moving to germany and they could not insure me over there i had to cancel my policy....

.....end of story........or so i thought.

 

earlier this year i had a letter from westcot caliming x amount of pounds from me, in relation to my old policy with norwich union

...this completely baffled me, as i have heard nothing from norwich union...

 

so i phone norwich union ,

on the war path asking why they set westcott onto me,

without even contacting me themselves,

 

the very helpful fella,

after lots of memory jogging got my details on screen and said my account was closed and had been for years

 

, there was never an issue with it....

 

so i phone westcott back, call them allsorts

[number1234]

with regards to everyone who has said either that wescot are "inept" and that you "call them allsorts",

 

can i just say this is exactly why i ended my emplyoment with wescot

- i could not stand the way i was being spoken to by customers.

 

i come from a long customer services background and have never been spoken to as rudely as i was when working for wescot.

 

i was always professional and polite when dealing with customers

, but 9 times out of 10,

i would get a torrent of abuse thrown at me.

i had to leave as it was causing me to sink into depression.

 

with regards to paying of a large debt, £10 a week should be fine if you have offered to pay that, you just need to discuss it with the agent you speak to.

 

i accept that some agents are rude on the phone but most of us are just trying to do a job, and someone coming on the phone screaming and shouting doesnt do anyone any favours.

 

some of the names that i was called are too disgusting to repeat, and i would never dream of speaking to anyone the way i was spoken to.

 

please remember we are all human beings, and everyone deserves respect.

[buzby]

It is unrealistic to say you called Sky to cancel, THEN expect you were somehow back with BT. It is not an 'either OR' situation. You can tell Sky you plan to terminate, but it remains your responsibility to arrange whatever new telco you require to take over your service, and Sky will then let them.

 

If you didn;t do this, then Sky would continue as your supplier, and all costs incurred would be at your agreed rate.

[freedonia]

with regards to everyone who has said either that wescot are "inept" and that you "call them allsorts", can i just say this is exactly why i ended my emplyoment with wescot - i could not stand the way i was being spoken to by customers. i come from a long customer services background and have never been spoken to as rudely as i was when working for wescot. i was always professional and polite when dealing with customers, but 9 times out of 10, i would get a torrent of abuse thrown at me. i had to leave as it was causing me to sink into depression. with regards to paying of a large debt, £10 a week should be fine if you have offered to pay that, you just need to discuss it with the agent you speak to. i accept that some agents are rude on the phone but most of us are just trying to do a job, and someone coming on the phone screaming and shouting doesnt do anyone any favours. some of the names that i was called are too disgusting to repeat, and i would never dream of speaking to anyone the way i was spoken to. please remember we are all human beings, and everyone deserves respect.

 

Just trying to do a job?

 

[Madas]

Hi,

 

I need a little advise if anybody can help.

 

I recently applied for a mortgage but was declined!

I ran a credit report to check on why this could happen,

I found a default on my account from wescot so i have searched all the paperwork i seem to hoard to find out what this could be for.

I found it was for a mobile phone i had with Vodafone!

This is where it gets confusing.

The phone in question was transferred to my ex boyfriend,

but vodafone transferred the wrong numbers!

I wrote to them to inform them of this and never heard anything again.

 

I have since moved from the property that debt was registered at so have had no correspondence with either vodafone or wescot.

 

Unfortunately this debt is not 6 yrs old yet!

Its only 5 years old so my concern is how i go about getting it removed from my credit report without getting into a big battle about the debt being recorded to me in the first place in error.

 

Anybody got any info they think may help me,

I would really appreciate any help.

 

Thanks

[buzby]

(1) Wescot cannot default you. ~ You had not given them permission to do so, so if they are shown as the primatly insticator, get them to remove it.

(2) 'Transferred' seems confusing, and the end result of no consequence to you. If they transferred the 'wrong' numbers, then your original agreement remained and you liable for it.

(3) Ensure this IS on you file. You may be seeing your Ex'BF's default but linked to yours.

 

As you have less than 12 months to it being a no-show on your file, it may mean a lot of effort for little gain. The issue you needd to address is the debt if it was still with you, remained your reswponsibility.

[Madas]

Hi Buzby,

 

Thanks for replying,

Do you think the default could be the reason the mortgage was declined?

 

(1) Wescot cannot default you. ~ You had not given them permission to do so, so if they are shown as the primatly insticator, get them to remove it.

 

How do i go about getting them to remove it without being lumbered with the debt?

 

Sorry for all the questions but im new to all this and have no clue what to do.

 

Thanks

 

Madas x:)

[buzby]

Hard to say, Madas - have you checked all 3 of your Credit Files (at £2 eaxh) to see what they say?

 

Once you have them all, check everything and if the same data shows up on different files (permissible) make sure it is correct. If not, take it up with the firm lodging the data. If they refuse to amend the data and it is wrong, make a formal complaint to the ICO ofice and they'll take it further. Firms can ONLY modify your credit file if you give them permission to.

 

As you never had direct dealings with Wescot, they cannot alter your file - ONLY the network that claims you broke your agreement.

[Madas]

Hard to say, Madas - have you checked all 3 of your Credit Files (at £2 eaxh) to see what they say?

 

Once you have them all, check everything and if the same data shows up on different files (permissible) make sure it is correct. If not, take it up with the firm lodging the data. If they refuse to amend the data and it is wrong, make a formal complaint to the ICO ofice and they'll take it further. Firms can ONLY modify your credit file if you give them permission to.

 

As you never had direct dealings with Wescot, they cannot alter your file - ONLY the network that claims you broke your agreement.

 

I have checked Equifax & experian but they are the only 2 i have run.

This issue is on equifax but not on experian!

[buzby]

CallCredit is often overlooked - sometimes there's nothing there either, but it makes sense to check. You can also ask whoever rejected you wich agency/cies they used.

[loverboy74]

wescot trying to collect on debt which is all credit card charges, £270 left to pay yet £320 in charges, they say does not matter now that OFT lost case, I said bull UTCCR 1999 sec 5

[Xrader]

I was staying in an rented house where I had taken a contract with virgin media, and had left the country since then entrusting my house mate to pay the bills and had transferred the direct debt to his name and his bank accounts. When I returned after a span of over a year I received a letter from wescot stating I had unpaid virgin media bill of £159/-; and to find that the house mate to whom I entrusted to pay had left the country. The thing is that I was out for the country for over a year (1 year 3 months). then How could they have renewed the contract in my name (i.e. if they did renew it at all) and If the direct debt was set from someone else's bank account how can they hold me liable for paying back. also is there anyway I can find out what they have charged me for i.e. which months and if I had a valid contact with them for the time they claim to be charging me.

 

Please Help me ! ! !

[buzby]

Sorry, but YOU took out the contract, and the responsibility remains with you - it's not like an Olympic Torch being passed on and on with your responsibility ending when yuou no longer have it.

 

As you housemate chose not to pay it, it remains YOUR responsibility to do so - being 'out the country' is no excuse unfortunately. THey hold you liable as YOU took out the contract, and did not cancel it, that is the only way you end your commitment.

 

As for who 'renewed it' - from whaqt you say, nobody did. You contract will run continuously until you cancel. The 12 monthsis NOT the contract period, but a MINIMUM term, this means you need to pay up for any unused period UP to that date (if you cancel early). After 12 months, you need to giv 30 days notice.

 

Your only way out of this default is to pay up the amount owed, and pursue your 'mate' for the balance. You may have difficulty in doing this, but this is of no interest to the company, YOU were their customer, nobody else.

 

Finally, DD's have no bearing on the issue - it is only a mechaniusm to credit an account. I does not transfewr any obligations under the contract or prove anything other than the person paying wished to credit that account.

[Xrader]

Thanks for the advise, I now have a clear idea what to do.

[Roryhamster]

Hi all, was wondering if I could get a little advice? My other half received a letter asking for £11.98 on behalf of "Red Hot". Well I reckon we can all guess what sort of thing that's about!!! Anyway he is sure he's never signed up to anything like that. I send out a letter recorded delivery saying prove it and we receive a final notice saying it must be payed before 9th Feb or blah blah blah. He's moved house since then so we only got that letter yesterday after it was redirected to his parents new address (he now lives with me)! We also got a letter saying they can confirm he subscribed on the 6th of Aug 2006 and that his card details were declined. If we want further info on T's and C's he should refer to documents issued on subscription. He swears he has never received any subscription documents ever from anyone. I have drafted another letter basically saying stop hassling us as the debt is in dispute and that we want all original documents of the said subscription and that it was a legal obligation from "Red Hot" to tell him the debt was sold to Wescot. He is now worried they will put a black mark on his credit report if he doesn't pay it. Should he just pay as it's only £12 or should I send the letter???? He is adament he has never subscribed to them at all. I'm worried that all this recorded delivery will amount to £12 soon!!! And if he does pay it, will they have his account details and take more money out? He tried to pay online last night but the page conveniently doesn't exist and we're worried if we pay be phone we won't have a receipt of payment. Other people have said that they rarely proceed for money under £100 so wasn't expecting a letter back after the prove it one. Will it harm his credit rating if they do pursue? It's really stressing him out... please help!!!

[buzby]

Is this 'Red Hot TV'? They operate on a pre-pay basis - for if his card was declined (or someone else used his name - not uncommon) then the service terminates. There is little point sending a prove it letter to Wescot as they won;t have ant of this information - simply deny their claim and ask for the principal company, if they believe they have a legitimate claim - to contract him to prove their claim.

 

As to whether his credit file can be affected - probably not if it is RHTV, but this would be a function of the original firm IF they had put this in their T&C's. The DCA cannot do this - so he needs to check his file and see what is there. If there is nothing showing by now, it is unlikely there ever will. This could only follow a successful claim against him in court, and he did not pay within 28 days, which leads to a CCJ. This would appear on his credit file.

[Roryhamster]

Thanks for the quick reply He is positive he has never signed up to anything on sky such as Red Hot TV as it was his Dad's sky box. He's never received anything through the post either. I would have thought that if it was tv then if the card was declined then they wouldn't have showed anything so nothing would be owed??? Or am I just naive? I reckon it could be someone signing up as him as his friends back then were a nightmare. Surely that sort of thing happens a lot with young lads, you'd think they'd not be bothered pursuing £11.98! Have you ever emailed Wescot instead of writing to them?