Cap Quest Problems

[Keith W]

Hi All,

 

Yesterday the postman delivered 4 letters to me, they were all from a firm called Cap Quest Debt Recovery.

 

Two of the letters were about a debt they say they had purchased from littlewoods finance for the sum of £150.68.

 

The other two letters were about a debt they say they purchased from National Westminster Bank PLC for the sum of £3740.16

 

Now all the letters were addressed to me in so much they had my surname, however they had the Christian name wrong, they were addressed to a Derek and not to Keith which is my Christian name.

 

Also I have never had any dealings what so ever with Littlewoods Finance or with National Westminster Bank and I certainly do not owe these companies any money.

 

These letters were obviously meant for someone else with the first name of Derek but I am wondering how they ended up coming to me and how did Cap Quest get my address?

 

Also I am not sure of what the best course of action is, do I write to Cap Quest saying they have got the wrong person or do I do as some have suggested and just ignore these letters?

 

I know that I do not owe any of these companies any money but receiving these letters have still caused me upset and stress and they have seriously upset my wife as well who is now worried that debt collectors will be calling at our door.

 

Any advice or help you can give me would be greatly appreciated.

 

Take care, Keith

[havinastella]

Hi Keith and Welcome.

 

Unfortunately these parasites don't listen to rhyme or reason and as you have a name like someone who owes money, the b@stards take it on themselves that it is you.

 

Don't bother ringing them and send this

Dear Sir/Madam

 

You have contacted me regarding the account with the above reference number, which you claim is owed by myself.

 

I would point out that I have no knowledge of any such debt being owed to O2.

 

I am familiar with the Office of Fair Trading Debt Collection Guidance which states that it unfair to send demands for payment to an individual when it is uncertain that they are the debtor in question.

 

I would also point out that the OFT say under the Guidance that it is unfair to pursue third parties for payment when they are not liable. In not ceasing collection activity whilst investigating a reasonably queried or disputed debt you are using deceptive/and or unfair methods.

 

Furthermore ignoring and/or disregarding claims that debts have been settled or are disputed and continuing to make unjustified demands for payment amounts to physical/psychological harassment.

 

I would ask that no further contact be made concerning the above account unless you can provide evidence as to my liability for the debt in question.

 

I await your written confirmation that this matter is now closed. Otherwise I will have no option but to make a complaint to the trading standards department and consider informing the OFT of your actions.

 

I look forward to your reply.

 

Yours faithfully

 

 

 

 

Edit to suit and do not sign

[Curlyben]

Looks like CQ are on one of their phishing trips again.

 

Psst this version of the Prove It letter is better to work with.

 

Dear Sir/Madam

 

You have contacted me/us regarding the account with the above reference number, which you claim is owed by myself/ourselves.

 

I/we would point out that I/we have no knowledge of any such debt being owed to (insert company name).

 

I am/we are familiar with the Office of Fair Trading Debt Collection Guidance which states that it unfair to send demands for payment to an individual when it is uncertain that they are the debtor in question.

 

I/we would also point out that the OFT say under the Guidance that it is unfair to pursue third parties for payment when they are not liable. In not ceasing collection activity whilst investigating a reasonably queried or disputed debt you are using deceptive/and or unfair methods.

 

Furthermore ignoring and/or disregarding claims that debts have been settled or are disputed and continuing to make unjustified demands for payment amounts to physical/psychological harassment.

 

I/we would ask that no further contact be made concerning the above account unless you can provide evidence as to my/our liability for the debt in question.

 

I/we await your written confirmation that this matter is now closed. Otherwise I will have no option but to make a complaint to the trading standards department and consider informing the OFT of your actions.

 

I/we look forward to your reply.

 

Yours faithfully

[Keith W]

I have a few more questions if I may.

 

Some people on these forums say you should write "Without Prejudice" on the top of letters, is this correct?

 

Also as they have written to me about 2 separate companies do I write 2 separate letters or just the 1?

 

Do I also need to include there reference numbers as well as the name of the companies they say I owe money to?

 

There also seems to be some conflicting advice on this forum, some people say just ignore these fishing type letters whilst others say write to them, which really is the best course of action?

 

Thanks for your help, it is much appreciated.

 

Take care, Keith

[Curlyben]

Entirely your choice, but to be honest there isn't much to be gained and in this case I would recommend not to anyway.

 

List all the referenced account numbers in the header and send one letter.

 

Now from vast experience, I tend NOT to respond to the first letter, but wait to see if they write again.

As you mentioned it may simply be a phishing excersise.

[havinastella]

Hi Keith

 

'Without prejudice' means it cannot be used in court, so never use it.

 

It's up to you if you leave it or reply, the problem is they will probably Issue a default against your credit record either way, leaving your record in shatters. So defending it is normally the best course of action.

 

Jogs

[havinastella]

Nice to see you back CB

 

Jogs

[Keith W]

Post delete

 

Sorry, had a brain fart

Edited July 15, 2008 by Keith W

[Keith W]

Another quicky

 

You say not to sign the letter, is it OK to print out your name after the yours faithfully or is that a no no to?

 

Take care, Keith

[palomino]

Another quicky

 

You say not to sign the letter, is it OK to print out your name after the yours faithfully or is that a no no to?

 

Take care, Keith

 

Yes that's fine. In fact you should do that.

 

Some DCAs have been known to use signatures creatively (scan it in, and then cut and paste onto a legal document) so stay off the signature.

[Curlyben]

Just grab yourself a nice handwriting font and use that

 

Free Handwriting fonts

[Keith W]

Hi All,

 

I sent the letter you suggested to Cap Quest and received a letter back from them today.

 

First thing I noticed was it was not even my surname on the letter, the only resemblance to my name was it started with a w and ended with a t.

 

I wrote to them about both of these supposed debts in the one letter but have only received a reply that references the Littlewoods one.

 

I have attached the letter for you guys to take a look.

 

Any advice on what the next step from here is would be appreciated.

 

Take care, Keith

cap quest 18 july 2008.pdf

Edited July 21, 2008 by Keith W
Had to edit to upload a PDF as my image was reduced in size for some reason

[Curlyben]

Well simple answer, file under ignore, they are obviously attempting to chase completely the wrong person.

I would now send any and all mail that is incorrectly spelt straight back to them, with Not Known At This Address.

Now this ISN'T an untruth at all as they are clearly phishing.

 

Ps the scans too small to read

[Keith W]

Have uploaded a PDF of the letter, the forum resized my image for some reason.

 

They had my surname spelt right the first time they contacted me it was just the Christian name that was wrong.

 

The Christian name was still wrong on the letter thye just sent me as well as the surname.

 

Seems they can not read either as I placed my name on the letter I sent them

[Curlyben]

Well you have clearly pointed out their mistake and yet they have chosen to do nothing about it.

Shame really, that's their problem and not yours.

 

Looks like they have given up anyway.

I fully expect an apology letter shortly as they have the wrong person.

[Keith W]

So I do nothing unless they start hassling me again?

 

If I had the time and the money I would sue them for all the stress and worry they have caused me and my wife.