Lowell - how cheeky!

[Guest thecheekofit1981]

Hi all, long time lurker first time poster.

 

I thought I should let you know about a cheeky trick Lowell tried to use on me. My neighbours have been telling me for while now (about 6 months) they've been receiving telephone calls from a witheld number and a 0141 number asking to confirm if *my name* lived at *house number*. None of my neighbours know my surname (and I'm glad now!!) and refused to confirm anything - a couple let rip down the phone I was told. The last phone call came on Wednesday the 9th Jan - last week - asking my elderly neighbour if I lived next door, but they got a letter wrong in my surname, pronouncing it wrong. She couldn't confirm. Yesterday I received a letter addressed, sure enough, to me with the surname spelt wrong from Lowell! The worst part was they said they had used a credit referencing company to confirm I lived at the address which is IMPOSSIBLE. I have no credit. Nothing. Zip. No credit card. No contract mobile phone. No current bank account. So where did they get it from then....?

 

Correct me if I'm wrong but isn't that illegal? What can I do without confirming I live at that address? Once I write to them, I've let them know I got the letter, albeit with the wrong name.

[ODC]

They are on a Phishing Trip. Do not respond to them.

 

The 0141 number would not have been Lowells they use 0113

[cerberusalert]

I believe Lowlife's Scottish Paramilitary wing MacKenzie Hall have been known to use 041 no's. (They can be bought for as little as £49.99 from 0845 Numbers 0800 Numbers 0800 Freephone Numbers 0808 Numbers 0845 UK Numbers Geographic & Non Geographic Numbers & more - Numberstore )

[Bookworm]

And of course, Scotcall are in Glasgow and them and Lowells are thick as thieves. Fancy that.

[Guest thecheekofit1981]

I just thought I should add aswell the letter stated that if no response was received within 48 hours they would pass it to their Red Debt Collection dept.

 

The letter was dated the 11th and I received it on the 16th hahaha! 48 hours yeah right.

 

It makes me mad that there are people out there getting letters like these and losing sleep over them like I used to, convinced someone will be knocking at the door or towing my car away.

 

Bring on Red Debt.....heard so much about here them I'm looking forward to hearing from them!

[cerberusalert]

Red is the empty chair across the table from the Lowlife one!

 

No doubt they have some fun at 1 Apex View playing 'musical chairs' et al

[StormWarrior]

a credit referencing company to confirm I lived at the address which is IMPOSSIBLE. I have no credit. Nothing. Zip. No credit card. No contract mobile phone. No current bank account. So where did they get it from then....?

 

Do you have electric, gas or water supply? A credit referencing company can simply check the register of electors. There are loads of ways to check or even find who's living at an address.

[Guest thecheekofit1981]

I have water and gas suppliers yes, but I'm not on the electoral list. Never have been.

[StormWarrior]

Water and gas is enough to give you a credit history.

 

 

As an aside, if your over 18 and responsible for a property in Egngland, I think you may find you have a legal obligation to register.

[ODC]

There are loads of ways they can trace you through their good buddies in the Credit Reference Agencies. Have you ever filled out a warranty for something you have purchased. Have you a mobile phone. Is your car registered with the DVLA. Have you a mortgage. Have you a store loyalty card.

 

Frightening isnt it that some call centre oprative in a DCA has access to all this information. Who needs MI5

[Guest thecheekofit1981]

Surely thought (as I do have someof these) I would have had worse than just phishing letters? Surely they would have sent a summons by now, I've been in the house 18 months!

[ODC]

Lowells have been threatening me for a couple of years now. I have asked them to take me to Court. They know they cant becuse apart from the fact they do not have an executed CCA the debt is well and truly Stat Barred. I am feeding out the rope to them. They have tied themselves up in so many knots and hopefully will shortly hang themselves with it.

[StormWarrior]

Some of the DCA's are very inefficient. To be honest if I was thier clients, i'd be tempted to ditch most of them. I was involved in a case last week, where the Bailiff took 2 years to return an account to a council, who trhen took 2 years to follow it up. Result £2K of Council tax wrote-off by the court

[Guest thecheekofit1981]

I feel I should add something else here, as I think this is reading as though I'm avoiding paying them.

 

The debt they are chasing is a credit card taken out in my name by someone I used to live with through Capital One. BCW tried to chase me for it and stupidly, very stupidly I made an offer in writing just to get rid of them and I genuinely didn't know how to fight it. Then I moved house and left it behind, now Lowells obviously have taken it from them and are chasing me for it.

 

If BCW had put a CCJ against me, would I know in my new address?

 

The person who has done this has also done it with Next Directory, Monument (I think I won that one), HSBC, Halifax, Bank of Scotland (I think, that was a phishing letter too). I've added up what I know about and it comes to about £40,000. That WASN'T MY MONEY.

 

Where do I start? If I lose, I can't afford to pay them all!

[ODC]

First of all do not panic. Did you admit the debt was yours or take responsibility for it.

[ODC]

Never speak to the people on the phone. If they start to pester you for payment send them this letter.

 

http://www.consumeractiongroup.co.uk/forum/show-post/post-162367.html

 

Write in large BLOCK LETTERS at the top I DO NOT ACKNOWLEDGE ANY DEBT TO YOU OR ANY COMPANY YOU PURPORT TO REPRESENT.

 

Send it along with a £1 postal order and send it recorded delivery.

[Guest thecheekofit1981]

I went through my (very thorough) filing last night and on the 6th June 2006 I wrote BCW a letter stating that I did not agree with the amount I alledgely owed and I did not admit that it was my debt, I was offering such and such amount per month. Then I moved house and to be honest, I was moving to my first house after being homeless for a year, paying off someone else's debt was the last thing that was going to stop me being happy.

[Bookworm]

Do as OCD says, and stand firm, you're quite right, you shouldn't have to pay someone else's debt, it's not your debt, tell them to sod off.

[Guest thecheekofit1981]

So what would be the best course of action now?

 

I was thinking I could do the same that I did with the Monument card. I wrote to them disputing it, I gave the name of the officer involved, my crime ref number and i DEMANDED that they send me the application form at least so I couldn see the fraudulent signatures. They wrote back saying the account had been opened blah blah (when I wasn't even living at the addess it was opened at) and they would apply for the forms. They then wrote back again to say it would take 28 days etc for the forms to come through and I never heard from them or any other company regarding that card again.

 

Perhaps I should give the police a call tonight and get them involved.....

 

What do I do if I contact them and then others come through?

[1stlifeline]

The debt they are chasing is a credit card taken out in my name by someone I used to live with

 

Sorry but am I missing something here? If it was taken out in your name did you agree to that or was it fraudulent.

[Guest thecheekofit1981]

We lived in the same house, one post box. She had the key.

 

Absolutely fraudulent. I didn't agree to it whatsoever. I only found out about it when BCW wrote to me after I had moved out.

[Guest thecheekofit1981]

OH, she also managed £150 with Studio catalogue. I won that one and had it taken off my credit file after I proved I didn't live at the address.

 

One down....god knows how many to go.....I only find out what she's done when the DCA writes to me!

[fro]

Good luck, seems like you have a real battle on your hands - but as you've witnessed yourself can be won.

[ODC]

We lived in the same house, one post box. She had the key.

 

Absolutely fraudulent. I didn't agree to it whatsoever. I only found out about it when BCW wrote to me after I had moved out.

Have you considered reporting her to the Police.

[Fuzzgin]

Hampton do have an address near Glasgow, or it's surroundings I believe. I'll check it later. Certainly in Scotlland. They're the ones that keep sending me letters threatening action in the county court.

 

I can't now as it would mean shifting the cat on my knee and the poor old thing's rather ill.