Vanquis being unreasonable

[bangbang777]

Update! I have just received my mail and a letter from Vanquis. They have written they are prepared to refund me 132.00 charges. They also say that my offer to pay £5 a month is too low and they are prepared to accept £12 for the 1st 3 months.

They wrote to me in April 09 and advised my offer of £5 was too low. Now its not that I don't want to pay but at the moment that is all I can afford, hopefully I will pay extra in the future but not at themo.

 

I do not know what to reply. I have not sent the above letter off just yet. They state in their letter that part of their terms and conditions if I do not make payments on time they can pass it on to a DCA.

 

Even though they are offering to refund charges, what I want them to refund is all the repayment option plan payments they had been applying to my account from the opening of it.

 

Any ideas what I should do next please?

[bangbang777]

Bump

[Bazooka Boo]

OK, bearing the time of night, and my inability to read your full thread:p

 

From what I have read, they have offered you £132.00 refund of their 'unlawful' charges, and your offer of payment is too low?

 

Your response should be that as they are unwilling to accept your offer of payment, that they should without delay, take you to court,where the judge will decide what amount you are now paid.

 

 

 

Boo;)

[havinastella]

stop sodding about and put in a proper claim for all the charges.

 

This will also include the compound interest at the rate of the card and 8% S69 Cort interest.

 

This will wipe out the balance.

 

when did you say you took the card out?

[bangbang777]

Thanks BB and HAS,

I sent a cca to Vanquis in Feb 09 and I opened my account with them online in Oct 08. They sent me back a few sheets of terms & conditions. They admit they do not have a hard copy, or an on screen shot of my application. I applied by ticking the box.

[Bazooka Boo]

Thanks BB and HAS,

I sent a cca to Vanquis in Feb 09 and I opened my account with them online in Oct 08. They sent me back a few sheets of terms & conditions. They admit they do not have a hard copy, or an on screen shot of my application. I applied by ticking the box.

 

Yes, any credit agreement post 2007 is now deemed to be CCA compliant, especially if it was an online application.

Although I would have thought they would have something to say that you and they have an agreement:confused:

[bangbang777]

Thanks BB they have not sent me nay agreement just sheets and sheets of terms and conditions. They wrote to me and said that they do not have a copy of the hard copy and as I had applied online and been accepted this was proof that I was entitled to the card.

 

What a bunch of plonkers, would it not be easier for them to say yes we accept your offer, and sort this mess out instead of writing non stop b###### to me. They will have to accept in the end and if it goes as far as court then I will pay them £1 a month.

[surprise]

As aleady said a Judge would only make you pay what you could afford. Tell Vanquis they have two choices accept the £5 or take you to court. Also remind Vanquis that any papers provided to the Court would show that you have not tried to avoid your liabilities but that Vanquis have been deliberately obstructive in accepting the offer that you can afford. Also remind Vanquis of th Banking Code.

[bangbang777]

Thanks surprise, your advice has been taken and letter is written and ready to be posted r/delivery 1st thing Monday.

[bangbang777]

A big thanks to all who have helped me deal with my debt. I posted my letter off a few days ago and have received another letter from 1st credit today. I don't think this is the response to the recent letter I posted, anyway this is what they have written, are the DCA's having sales on now like the high street stores or is this a joke.

 

Dear ####

 

Pay within the next 7 days to guarantee maximum discount availabilty

 

In times of economic hardship and through maintaining your repayment plan our client, VANQUIS BANK is currently in a position to allow generous discounts to many of its paying customers for a limited period.

With this in mind we are pleased to offer you the opportunity to settle your debt by way of full and final settlement with a discount of up to 30%. Payment within 7 days will ensure maximum discount available, as shown below.

 

 

Days to Discount Discount Balance

0/7 30% £482.48

8/30 20% £551.40

31/60 10% £620.33

 

To take full advantage please ring ################

On behalf of first credit.

 

 

Now I don't want to sound thick but I don't have any repayment plan se up with the fockers yet, and 30% is 482.48 is not what I owe. They think they are doing me a favour, I can't see how. It's because of them and their added interest and charges things have gone up, and if they agreed to an arrangement from day one half of this would have been paid by now.

 

Any ideas what response I should give, or should I just carry on dealing with Vanquis, because I did not reply to the first letter 1st credit sent me

[surprise]

Looks like Vanquis have sold the debt to 1st Credit which was a bit naughty of them knowing there was a dispute on the account. Just hold fire until Vanquis write back to you. Did you have any notice of assignment from 1st Credit? A famous trick of 1st Credit is to send a notice of assignment on the creditors letterhead. However, Vanquis should have told you they were selling this on.

 

Wait and see for now and see what happens.

[bangbang777]

Thanks surprise, I have not sent 1st Cred a notice of assignment, and nor did vanquis tell me they sold my debt. Should I send 1st Cred a NOA now or just wait for vanquis to reply?

[surprise]

If Vanquis does everything by the book, which they obviously haven't, they should tell you that the account is being sold to 1st Credit and 1st Credit should tell you that they are now the owners. You don't have to do anything.

 

I would wait and see what the true position is when Vanquis reply to your letter.

[bangbang777]

Thanks for the advice surprise, will sit tight and wait for Vanquis's reply and let you know.

 

Thanks again

[Bazooka Boo]

Take a read through the OFT debt collection Guidelines, and you can see for yourself exactly the number of these guidleines they ignore, which is why you should complaint to the OFT, TS, ICO, FOS and any one else that has an interest in these draconian companies!

[sweetnsour]

Now the strange thing is that yesterday, they were giving me a discount and today they have threatened me with court action. I don't get this:confused:

They have wriiten today saying:

 

 

Dear #######,

 

 

We regret the above sum remains outstanding. If the matter is not resolved, we may have no option but to recommend to our client that legal action is taken against you. If successful it may result in.

 

The usual crap of applying to court, deducting from wages, charging order, assests seized.

 

I think I should write to 1st cred and explain that my account is in dispute with vanquis and they have gone against OFT's guidelines and sold on this debt. Jesus, why don't they just bloody accept my offer of repayment instead of doing all this:mad::mad:

Edited August 15, 2009 by sweetnsour

[Bazooka Boo]

Did first credit send you any information saying they were now the owners of the debt and are legally allowed to persue you for payment?

And did Vanquis send you a notice of assignment (NOA) stating who was now the owner of the debt, or who would be attempting to extort money from you?

 

The letters are all computer generated, and if the system hasn't been updated then it will just churn out the next threatogramme on the list. ignore it.

 

By all means send them the account in dispute letter, and tell them that you have reported them to the OFT and the FOS for their time and trouble in harassing you.

 

If you need the Links just ask, in fact here;The Office of Fair Trading: Contact us

debtcollectionguidance@oft.gsi.gov.uk

 

Financial Ombudsman Service

 

Consumer Direct

 

How to Complain

 

Boo;)

[surprise]

You could just drop 1st Credit a line to the effect I DO NOT ACKNOWLEDGE ANY DEBT TO YOUR COMPANY. This account is in dispute with Vanquis I am awaiting their response. When you post it get a proof of posting card from the Post office. The Post Office will stamp it for you and it is free. 1st Credit can't say that you are ignoring them then.

[bangbang777]

I have received a reply from Vanquis, blimey that was quick. They have written that they will try and resolve my enquiry as quickly as possible and keep me informed. Thanks surprise and BB your advice really has bought some good results, lets just wait and see what they decide after receiving my letter

[vint1954]

I have received a reply from Vanquis, blimey that was quick. They have written that they will try and resolve my enquiry as quickly as possible and keep me informed. Thanks surprise and BB your advice really has bought some good results, lets just wait and see what they decide after receiving my letter

You could try the letter below, to the DCA

 

Dear sirs,

 

IMPORTANT NOTICE, DO NOT IGNORE.

 

Ref account:

 

I refer to your letter of xxxxxxxxx 2009, received xxxxxxxxx 2009, requesting the full balance of the above account to be repaid, and my initial responce dated xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx. No debt to your client is acknowledged.

 

I am rather bemused to receive this letter from yourselves. On xxxxxxxxx 2009 I made a formal request to your client pursuant to s.78(1) of the Consumer Credit Act 1974. They have failed to comply within the statutory time limit, or at all. It should not be necessary to have to remind you that the provisions of s.78(6) now apply. This account was placed in dispute on the xxxxxxxx 2009 and Vanquis remain in default of supplying the required alleged agreement.

 

In the circumstances, your and your clients threat of legal action would appear to be a breach of the Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations 2008 and the Office of Fair Trading Guidance on Debt Collection and your attention is drawn to this guidance document.

 

Your attention is also drawn the Information Commissioners Office on Data protection, as passing details on to a third party while an account is in dispute is contrary to the Data Protection Act. I have previously issued letters to Vanquis under s10 of this act. You may wish to advise your client and remind yourselves of the implications of ignoring the Data Protection Act. Currently fines for this type of offence are £5000 per issue with compensation recorded through the Courts averaging £8000.

 

Should you or your client bring proceedings, they will be robustly defended, and the Court's attention drawn to the above statutory breaches . Furthermore, I reserve the right to bring the conduct of your client to the Court when the issue of costs is being considered.

 

I suggest that you immediately return this account to Vanquis to be resolved and cease processing all data in relation to myself.

 

I trust this makes the situation clear.

 

 

 

Yours sincerely

Edited August 18, 2009 by vint1954

[bangbang777]

Thanks vint1954, thanks for that advice I will write this out and send it

 

 

thanks again

[bangbang777]

If you haven't posted yet there are a couple of things. Firstly if you are going through their complaints procedure they have 8 weeks to deal with the matter. There are a couple of things I would change. 1st paragraph "I do not believe that you should have sold this debt on to 1st Credit". Alter this to read "in accordance with OFT Guidelines whilst there is a dispute on the account you should not pass/sell an account to a DCA". Secondly where you have stated 14 days - "I expect you to deal with this complaint within the timescales has laid down within your internal complaints procedure".

 

 

A big thanks to everyone for helping me sort my mess out with Vanquis. As advised I wrote a letter of complaint to 1st Credit and have received a reply yesterday. They wrote

 

We acknowledge receipt of your complaint. In accordance with the regulations we detail our complaints procedure.

 

Then below they have written out their complaints procedure, now I am a bit confused. First they say that they have acknowledged my claim then send me the procedure. My question is that can I rest assure that my complaint has gone through or do I go through the procedure as they have stated.

 

Any help would be very appreciated, thank you all.

[surprise]

Sorry, really busy on helping someone out with HB at the moment but I thought the complaint letter was going to Vanquis. What complaint did you make to 1st Credit.

[vint1954]

A big thanks to everyone for helping me sort my mess out with Vanquis. As advised I wrote a letter of complaint to 1st Credit and have received a reply yesterday. They wrote

 

We acknowledge receipt of your complaint. In accordance with the regulations we detail our complaints procedure.

 

Then below they have written out their complaints procedure, now I am a bit confused. First they say that they have acknowledged my claim then send me the procedure. My question is that can I rest assure that my complaint has gone through or do I go through the procedure as they have stated.

 

Any help would be very appreciated, thank you all.

What was the proceedure that thy asked you to follow?

 

Vint

[bangbang777]

Thanks vint1954

 

ACCOUNT IN DISPUTE

 

Dear Sir/Madam,

 

Your ref:

 

Thank you for your letter of x & x July 08, the contents of which are noted.

I refer to my letter of x June 09 a copy of which is enclosed for your perusal and ease of reference. I do not acknowledge any debt to your company. Vanquis have not sent me a notice of assignment stating that you are the owners of the debt.

As holders of a Consumer Credit Licence you are obliged to comply with the Office of Fair Trading Guidelines on Debt Collection. I would therefore be obliged if you would provide me with an explanation as to why you are attempting to collect on an alleged debt which was disputed with Vanquis prior to your first contact with me, and has yet to be resolved.

As per OFT guidelines Section 2.8k "not ceasing collection activity whilst investigating a reasonably queried or disputed debt."

 

I have sent an official complaint to the OFT and FOS for your time and harassing me.

 

 

Yours faithfully

 

 

 

This is the letter I sent them, and this is what they have said is their complaints procedure. Gordon Bennet if they just accepted my offer from the beginning I would have paid quite a bit off by now.

 

 

1st Credit Ltd Complaints Procedure

 

 

1 Complainants will be asked to put their complaint in writing. This will be to ensure no misunderstanding occurs as to the exact nature of the complaint. A complaint form will be provided if required.

2 Alternatively the complaint will be dealt with based upon verbal comments.

 

 

3 A written acknowledge of a complaint will be sent to the complainant within 10 business days of its receipt, giving the name of the job title of the individual handling the complaint for the company. If a final response can be prepared within 10 business days of receipt of a complaint, the company may combine its acknowledgment of the complaint with the final response.

4 Complaints are investigated by a designated person who has the authority to settle the complaint, or has ready access to someone who has the authority.

 

 

5 Witjin 5 weeks of receiving a complaint 1st Credit Ltd will send the complaint either:

 

 

a) A final response which sets out the final view on the issues raised in a complaint and whether: The complaint is accepted and where appropriate, the redress, or the complaint is rejected, and, where appropriate, the redress, or the complaint was rejected with reason for rejection;

 

 

b) A response which Explains that 1st Credit Ltd is not in a position to make a final response, the reason for the delay and when it is expected to be able to provide a final response;

 

 

c) At the end of 8 wks after its receipt 1st Credit Ltd will send the complaint either;

 

 

1) A final response; or 2) A response which

 

 

explains that the firm is still not in a position to make a final response, gives reasons fot the further delay and indicates when it expects to be able to provide a final response; and

 

 

informs the complainant that they may refer the complaint to the FOS if they are dissatisfied with the delay, and encloses a copy of the FOS's Service's explanatory leaflet.

Yours sincerley

 

 

Worst Credit.

 

 

 

 

This is their complaints procedure. Vanquis sold this debt to them without my knowledge. I sent Vanquis an Official Complaint letter and they have replied and are investigating. I sent the complaint letter to 1st Credit to tell them that I am dealing with Vanquis and not them because I am still in dispute with them.

 

 

Its all a bit muddled up and I don't know what I am really doind at times, I am just being guided by the you lovely people on here.