Questions from : Have you received threatening demands for debts older than 6 years?

[The GodMother]

fluffgirl. If u start ur own thread then u will get the help u need.

 

Link it o this thread and we can then help u.

[mrsctobe]

Hello all, this is the first time I have been on this site and am finding it very helpful. I wonder if anybody could clarify somthing for me pls.

This morning I received a letter from a company called Wescot credit serv ices acting on behalf of Phoenix recoveries ltd. They informed me that I had an outstanding debt of £98.00 and if I did'nt reply within 14 days that legal action would be taken against me.

I phoned the company as the letter did not state what the debt was for, upon them answering I stated that I hoped the call was being recorded because I was in no way agreeing with the debt by contacting them.

I ask them who the debt was owing to and they told me littlewoods and when I asked when the debt was from they said 5th of August 2002.

To the best of my knowledge I did have a littlewoods account back in 2000 and have made no payments since them or had any contact with them.

Im a little confused by the statute barred laws and just wondered if sombody would now if this aplies to my case.

After getting the imformation from Wescot I simply said I would be in touch and put the phone down.

Can anybody help pls, I knoe this is not a large amount of money but having had bad debt problems in the past which were only resolved with bankrupcy I really dont wish to start fighting these people again!

[The GodMother]

Your case is SB unless they can PROVE otherwise.

 

U can either send them the prove it letter or the SB letter.

[mrsctobe]

Your case is SB unless they can PROVE otherwise.

 

U can either send them the prove it letter or the SB letter.

 

 

 

 

Thanks for the reply GodMother and for confiming what I thought. I will send them the SB letter and see what happens.

Wish Id found this site early last year when I found myself in trouble, good to know theres help and advice out there, makes you fell less alone and realise its not just happening to you!

[The GodMother]

Just a question but what is the date of the wescot letter? Cause it went SB on the 4th august 2008 and any letter dated after that would just make them look silly.

 

Do u have a SB letter?

[mrsctobe]

Hi GodMother, sorry for the delay in replying.

The date of issue of the letter is 7/08/08 which I found quite strange myself as the date of default was 05/08/2002, which I would also dispute this as i moved to this house in DEC 2001 and the littlewoods account was to the best of my recollection opened at an address I lived at two years prior to that. I have lived at this house now for almost 7 years and have had no corrispondance during that time with littlewoods or any company acting on their behalf. The only thing I can put the letters down to now is my banckrupy last year resulting in my details being made available to these companies.

I have seen a draft of the SB letters on this site and shall be forward one to wescot asap.

[The GodMother]

kk wel if u need any help then shout us. it is best u open up ur own thread if u need furture help.

[StatuteBarred]

I can confirm that my wife yesterday received a letter from Red Debt Collection Services (i.e. Lowell Portfolio I) claiming that she owed nearly £200 to T-Mobile, despite the fact that she has not had any dealings with one2one (who were later taken over by T-Mobile) for around 7 years, and insists that she settled her account in full when she cancelled her mobile phone contract with them - which was definitely before April 2002.

 

She had received no communication from T-Mobile or anyone else concerning a debt until Lowell's letter yesterday.

 

So we believe this to be an attempt to claim a statute barred debt which we believe should not exist anyway - if the latter, then why had T-Mobile not attempted to contact her regarding this until now?

 

Anyway, we've written a Statute Barred letter to them and also written to BBC Watchdog - especially given that my wife is disabled and receiving nasty letters like that causes her significant mental distress, particularly when they mention home visits from "licensed field agents" and "legal action in the County Court"!

Edited August 21, 2008 by StatuteBarred

[kopbabe]

Hi

 

This is my first post but wondering if anyone could give some advice.

I recieved a letter from Westcot Credit saying on behalf of Phoenix Recoveries they were looking for payment of £257.49 on an outstanding debt. I phoned Westcot and asked who did i owe the money too and was told Littlewoods Catalogues. I told them i had no idea what they were talking about and that i was not going to pay them the money on just their say so.

 

Two weeks later i recieved another letter from Westcot saying unless i paid them the money they would take me to court or send round a debt collector. I phoned them again and told them i would phone Littlewoods directly and sort it with them.

 

I phoned Littlewoods and explained the letter i'd recieved and asked them when this debt was from and was told 1997 !!! I nearly dropped the phone laughing. I asked them to send me a list of all the items i had supposedly brought from them and all the signed delivery notes. I was then told that they couldn't do that as their records don't go back that far and they had now sold the debt to Phoenix Recoveries so i would have to deal with them. I have not made any more phone calls to Westcot and do not intend to do so.

 

I have sent them a letter from the templates page about debts over six years old by recorded delivery, i was just wondering if there was anything else i could do ?

 

Many thanks for any help with this

 

kopbabe:-)

[StatuteBarred]

Hi

 

This is my first post but wondering if anyone could give some advice.

I recieved a letter from Westcot Credit saying on behalf of Phoenix Recoveries they were looking for payment of £257.49 on an outstanding debt. I phoned Westcot and asked who did i owe the money too and was told Littlewoods Catalogues. I told them i had no idea what they were talking about and that i was not going to pay them the money on just their say so.

 

Two weeks later i recieved another letter from Westcot saying unless i paid them the money they would take me to court or send round a debt collector. I phoned them again and told them i would phone Littlewoods directly and sort it with them.

 

I phoned Littlewoods and explained the letter i'd recieved and asked them when this debt was from and was told 1997 !!! I nearly dropped the phone laughing. I asked them to send me a list of all the items i had supposedly brought from them and all the signed delivery notes. I was then told that they couldn't do that as their records don't go back that far and they had now sold the debt to Phoenix Recoveries so i would have to deal with them. I have not made any more phone calls to Westcot and do not intend to do so.

 

I have sent them a letter from the templates page about debts over six years old by recorded delivery, i was just wondering if there was anything else i could do ?

 

Many thanks for any help with this

 

kopbabe:-)

 

Yes, there is. I believe that you may have several grounds to complain to the Office of Fair Trading regarding the way this has been handled, as I believe that if what you say is correct, then the debt management company in question may have broken several of the guidelines laid down by the Office of Fair Trading that creditors and debt management companies are obliged to abide by (please see document http://www.oft.gov.uk/shared_oft/business_leaflets/consumer_credit/oft664.pdf for reference):

 

The Office of Fair Trading deems the following as unfair practice:

 

2.2(e) "failing to provide debtors or creditors with information on status of debts, for example, not providing requested balance statements when reasonably requested" - as Littlewoods say they have no record of the details of the debt, then getting documentary evidence from Phoenix/Westcot would therefore likely be impossible too.

 

2.4(f) "pursuing third parties for payment when they are not liable" - if you are certain that the debt is not yours.

 

2.6(d) "not ensuring that an adequate history of the debt is passed on as appropriate resulting in repetitive and/or frequent contact by different parties" - not sure about the bit about repetitive/frequent contact by different parties, but you could certainly assert that by Littlewoods not itemising the details of the debt, then this would count as "not ensuring that an adequate history of the debt is passed on".

 

2.6(h) "ignoring and/or disregarding claims that debts have been settled or are disputed and continuing to make unjustified demands for payment" - as you stated you had no knowledge of the debt, then this would certainly count as being disputed.

 

2.8(a) "sending demands for payment to an individual when it is uncertain that they are the debtor in question, for example, threatening debt recovery action to 'the occupier' or sending a payment demand to all people sharing the same name/date of birth as a debtor in the hope that contact with the correct debtor will be made."

 

2.8(i) "failing to investigate and/or provide details as appropriate, when a debt is queried or disputed, possibly resulting in debtors being wrongly pursued" - again by not being able to provide appropriate details of the debt, they would likely be in breach of this guideline.

 

2.8(k) "not ceasing collection activity whilst investigating a reasonably queried or disputed debt." - having received the letters threatening court action two weeks later after contacting and disputing the debt, you could reasonably say that this was "not ceasing collection activity".

 

As this relates to an alleged debt from 1997, then it is almost certainly "statute barred" under the Limitation Act 1980 Section 5. In which case, the following guidelines would also apply:

 

2.14(b) "It is unfair to pursue the debt if the debtor has heard nothing from the creditor during the relevant limitation period"

 

and "it is unfair to mislead debtors as to their rights and obligations, for example, falsely stating or implying that the debt is still legally recoverable and relying on consumers not knowing the relevant legal provisions"

 

and "continuing to press for payment after a debtor has stated that they will not be paying a debt because it is statute barred could amount to harassment contrary to section 40 (1) of the Administration of Justice Act 1970".

 

It is up to you to consider if you believe any of these guidelines to have been broken with regards to this case. However, if you do (or any other guidelines in the document which I have not listed also apply) then a complaint form which may be used for contacting the OFT is available here, http://www.oft.gov.uk/shared_oft/business_leaflets/consumer_credit/DebtCollectionComplaintForm.DOC

 

Remember also that the OFT has the power to revoke a consumer credit licence, which would force a debt collection agency to cease trading.

[kopbabe]

Thank you for your propmt reply you've given me lots of helpful info and ideas of how to pursue this claim.

 

Many Thanks

[StatuteBarred]

Thank you for your propmt reply you've given me lots of helpful info and ideas of how to pursue this claim.

 

Many Thanks

 

My pleasure. I have a moral objection to any debt collection agency that appears to me as though it bases its primary business model on the harassment of people over debts which they know they have little chance of legally enforcing and which they have likely purchased for pennies from the original creditor in question. I place them in the same class as cowboy wheel clampers, misplaced speed cameras and the "Bin Gestapo" who fine you if your bin is out on the wrong day or overfilled by a trivial amount - namely that I believe they offer no benefit whatsoever to the consumer and exist only to extort money - in my opinion their biological equivalent would be a parasite. I am delighted to help play the part of quinine against what I see as corporate malaria.

[TheConfused1]

Hi all

 

This is also my first post, not sure if I'm in the right place, so I apologise if I'm not.

 

Recieved a letter last week from Lowell Portfolio asking to confirm my address, which I ignored because I have never heard of them. I then recieved another letter on thursday that was to inform me they were sold my t-mobile account on the 15/09/2006 and that they would be appointing Red Debt collection agents to recover the outstanding debt. Which apparently is £600.

 

I had a contract with T-mobile or One2One as it was known back in 1998/9 and there was a mixed up with the amount of line rental I was to pay each month, it was original £15 and they tried to make me upgrade to a deal that was £30 a month. I said no, but they went ahead anyway. I tried to sort it out back then but all to no avail. I still have all my mobile statements from back then.

 

T-mobile have never chased me for the money, probably because they were in the wrong which is why I'm confused.

 

Any help would be appreciated.

[tiglet]

Two words: Statute Barred.

 

If you have neither acknowledge the debt, nor made a payment, in the last 6 years, they cannot legally enforce the debt.

 

Send them letter M and make sure it's by recorded delivery so that you have proof of service:

 

http://www.consumeractiongroup.co.uk/forum/general-debt-issues/20758-creditors-dcas-letter-templates.html

 

I

[StatuteBarred]

Right, this sounds like Lowell Group chasing after a disputed debt from T-Mobile. Definitely send the Statute Barred letter. Then speak to Ofcom. T-Mobile could possibly being very naughty by the sound of it, and Ofcom have the power to give them a good spanking if so. How excellent that you have all your statements. Tell Ofcom and send photocopies of your statements - you will want to keep the originals yourself. You will be doing a lot of people a big favour if you can prove that T-Mobile are using Lowell to chase debts that should not even exist!

[johnwilli]

Hello

 

I have been told I have an outstanding debt of £1100 from a RBS card last used 10 years ago. This is news to me as I got a mortgage with the RBS 8 years ago and also a credit card at the same time which i still have now and never missed any payments.

 

I am now being bombarded with phone calls from 1st Credit and have received a Statutory Demand.

 

I went to citizens advice but they told me to ignore 1st Credit, I just wanted to get other peoples advice.

 

Cheers John Williams

[tiglet]

DO NOT IGNORE THE STATUTORY DEMAND ... 21 days after service, they can apply for your bankruptcy.

 

You need to go to the court and apply to have this set-aside. The fact it is statute barred is a defence in itself. But certainly do not ignore it - this, IMO, is a way DCA's are getting debts that are usually unenforceable through the courts enforced.

[johnwilli]

DO NOT IGNORE THE STATUTORY DEMAND ... 21 days after service, they can apply for your bankruptcy.

 

I have just got off the phone to 1st Credit about the statutory demand for a RBS card taken out 11 years ago last used 10 years ago. I thought the number on the letter was the court phone number but it was to a manager inside 1st credit, they would not give me any details of the county court but stated they wouldn't take me to court for a debt I was disputing (which makes me think they are trying to scare me)

 

I have to get a crime reference for a card possibly taken out fraudulently, from an address not known, last used 10 years ago, I asked if she thought the police would take this seriously but she said this was the only way of stopping myself getting declared bankrupt. She gave me an extra 7 days on top of the statutory demand.

 

What do I do now???

 

Any help much appreciated

[tiglet]

Bowlarks - a debt being statute barred is most certainly a way to stop yourself getting declared bankrupt and whether this card was fraudulent or not (or whether they've simply cocked up with something at their end) it is still statute barred if a payment or acknowledgement in writing has not been made within the last 6 years.

 

DO still go ahead and get the statutory demand set aside - I may be extremely paranoid, but I wouldn't put it past any DCA to continue anyway, despite what they have told you. It doesn't cost anything to apply for the set aside.

 

Do contact the police and get a crime reference number - they may not do much about it, but it's in your best interests to do this in case you ever need this proof for anything in the future.

 

This is an example of why it's best never to speak to them on the phone - you have no proof of what has been said and they can try to blag you if they want to. I'm not saying they are, in this instance, but I would always err on the side of caution.

 

If they really want to stop the SD, they can withdraw it - fine, but don't count on it and make sure your derriere is covered.

[letitbeme]

I have to get a crime reference for a card possibly taken out fraudulently, from an address not known, last used 10 years ago, I asked if she thought the police would take this seriously but she said this was the only way of stopping myself getting declared bankrupt. She gave me an extra 7 days on top of the statutory demand.

 

What do I do now???

 

Any help much appreciated

 

Go to the police and get a crime reference No.

 

Send the crime reference No via registered post to 1st Credit

[johnwilli]

Sorry for being a numpty but how do I get the statutory demand put aside if they wont tell me the details of the county court??? Or do 1st credit go through the same one???

[tiglet]

You're not being a numpty at all.

 

Have a look here to find your local court and phone to find out if they deal with bankruptcy. They need to send you forms 6.4 and 6.5. You need to fill them in (we'll help you here, don't worry) and then take them to the court and swear an affidavit.

 

It sounds a lot scarier than it really is - if I can do it, anyone can.

[The GodMother]

Her Majesty's Courts Service - Home then follow what tiglet has said.

[tiglet]

Sorry - the link either didn't appear or I forgot to post it!

 

Thanks Chrissie!

[The GodMother]

YW tiglet