DCA Failing to Comply with DPA rules - help needed!

[dolly]

I am dealing with Scotcall over a number of closed accounts...the reason being is that I want to know who they were so that I can claim charges back. (Also some accounts have never been paid off by them even though they were full and final settlements, but that is too long to go into!) These accounts have been closed 2 years and I have sent 3 DPA request letters now, each getting stroppier but they reply to me in the same way every damn time.

 

Basically they have admitted in writing that there are 9 dormant accounts but will not give me details unless I send £10 PER Account. I have quoted DPA regulations to them three times now but this most recent letter says:

 

"In order to suply information held by Scotcall in relation to dormant accounts, as advised in our correspondence of 10th July, we will be happy to supply details upon receipt of £10 per account as per DPA guidelines.'

 

They have cashed the £10 I sent them originally and send me a printout of some supposed account with a balance of - wait for this - 1p.

 

As this has gone past the 40 days now, would you just suggest I file a claim for non-disclosure? They won't give me anything at all. I do believe that there is an underlying problem with the money I paid in that one of the accounts has not been paid off, and two more have not been paid in full, leaving a difference of about £1300 to what I paid and what they allocated to creditors.

 

Any advice at all, please?

[elsinore]

Dolly, this is a tricky one.

 

Spoke to Information Commissioners Office who said that if Scotcall are the data controller then they must release the info for £10. However, if they are merely the data processor, then they are entitled to ask for £10 for each account.

 

So, if Scotcall have all the original records from the original lender(s) they must release that info to you for £10.

Where they have sparse information and have to apply to the original lender(s) for the info, they can charge you £10 for each case.

 

Obviously, Scotcall are not going to tell you which is which, or divulge any info until you cough up! Unless you have any details of the old accounts to enable you to DPA the original lenders direct, I think you have no option but to pay Scotcall. If you knew all nine lenders names and account details the result would be the same, because you would send each of them £10 with your DPA request.

 

You should be able to tell, from the info that Scotcall eventually send you, if they possessed it or had to obtain it. Then you might report them or ask for your money back if they were telling porkies.

 

There is the consolation that, if you are able to reclaim unlawful charges as a result, you can add that cost to your claims.

 

Someone else might have a different opinion, though!

 

Elsinore

[dolly]

Ouch - it is a tricky one.

 

However, I made payments to Scotcall for 2 years on a monthly basis so surely they should send me details of the financial transactions that took place as they would have them for their records?

 

They definitely have screen records of the old accounts as, in a previous conversation before this happened, they were able to tell me when last payments were made etc.

 

As far as I am aware they never purchased the debts, just managed them. My Tesco Visa (one that is in dispute as I paid agreed settlement figure and yet it never all made it's way to Tesco) shows payments from Scotcall to Tesco on a monthly basis, albeit less than half of what I paid them each month.

 

Reluctant to pay them £10 per account as all I got was a screen printout from the cheque that they cashed...no transaction history, just a start balance and this end balance of 1p.

 

Thanks

[melaniebree]

i would send the £10 for each of the accounts just to get the information. once you have sent it then they will have the 40 time limit.

 

if they still do not respond, contact me again and i will provide you with an Application for Disclosure which is a legal document that will force them to comply. It costs £65 to issue at court but this is recoverable and you would be entitled to claim for the cost of your time in preparing the Application (no guarantee a judge would award you your costs but a chance that they will). A solicitor friend of mine is drafting the documents for me tomorrow as Natwest received my request 61 days ago, have banked my £10 but not sent me a thing!

[blacksheep1979]

They have to give all the data they store on you - this will at least be info of alll the accounts and who they originally were with if not the full details within those accounts - send the letter in the templates library for non compliance

[Guest Zooman]

just sticking a penny in.

 

would the copies of the the credit agreements do for now this would cost you £9, but would get you no nearer getting the bank statements.

[dolly]

They have to give all the data they store on you - this will at least be info of alll the accounts and who they originally were with if not the full details within those accounts - send the letter in the templates library for non compliance

 

Now this is what I thought...

 

Zooman - not 100% sure of your thinking on this one so will PM you.

[Guest Zooman]

Dolly mate PM away.

 

What elsinore said in post 2 is correct they are not the data controller but data processor. DCAs only get what they need from the banks to process the claim legally and do not hold full records (this said some are just trading names of the bank but that is for a later date). I have to be honest this is the first time I have heard of someone with 9 cases with one DCA. I presume that they deal with each one separately as they most certainly are not allowed to put debts from different companies in the same pot and if they did I think we could make a case they where acting in the role of a unlicensed insolvency practitioner. And that is jail time (I doubt it would get that fair but it would teach them) anyway I most stop getting my hopes up.

[Seminole]

If it helps Scotcall are a last resort doorstep debt collector who only try to collect accounts that have passed through several other collection methods and failed. Whilst they might act on behalf of a DCA, I don't believe that they themselves would actually own the debt.

[MARTIN3030]

Yes Seminole I agree,having had recent dealings with them.

Just a brief outline;

 

My original account was with RBS,who after being unsuccesfull in getting me to pay 600 quid penalty charges racked up after only 3 months sold the debt to someone who I cant remember at the mo.

3 years later I get letters from Capquest........they tell me they are collecting this debt.

After ignoring their letters they went away.

That was until I fured off letters to rbs for dpa and cca.

Suddenly Capquest appeared again !!

I then sent them a very stern letter telling them I wanted cca docs.

Low and behold they managed to get an agreement but no default notice now as I recall if they buy the debt they have to register the default again in their name ?

 

The plot thickens..........there are more twists here than a ruck and roll convention enter Scotcall............we are collecting this debt...........

I immediately sent them a lba.........and guess what ....they send me a letter saying file been returned.

Meantime I contacy Capquest.........who are Scotcall and why are you both collecting this debt.

They told me Scotcall were there agents.

 

But I told you in 3 letters already this account is in dispute I am taking RBS to court...................talk about circles ?????

 

Banks are hard work but these people ???

 

I want to use some of my settlement to take these people to court for all the threats they have made even in the face of being told that its not a lawful debt.

[Guest Zooman]

Martin I'm lost.

 

RBS where the bank but capquest brought the debt.

 

You are suing RBS for your money then paying capquests debt with the winnings?

 

or are you suing capquest?

 

or are you suing both as joint respondents?

[Guest Zooman]

Or you could join capquests as joint claimant that would be funny.

[MARTIN3030]

the rbs claim for the pen charges is already filed but on mc,

 

I am proposing to sue them both later for the default issues.

Would you suggest doing a joint one for that?

[MARTIN3030]

I have never paid nor acknowledged the debt to the dca.

 

I have chosen to take the bank first as they are already settling with no defence.

 

I know I can take n the dca later with more resolve

[Guest Zooman]

Before I answer what grounds do you plan to sue the DCA on.

[elsinore]

Sorry for interrupting guys, but this was Dolly's thread:)

 

Elsinore

[dolly]

Have just spoke to IC helpline.

 

They have suggested that I put in a complaint to them and they will investigate it. As there have been financial transactions made to Scotcall and they are not providing details of those, they are not fulfilling terms of the DPA request. As they have also admitted that there are dormant accounts, and have these on their systems, again these should be disclosed. I have to provide all correspondence that they sent me and vice versa and await the outcome of their investigation. Thanks to you all...I expect this to be a long and drawn out saga!

[MARTIN3030]

Well at least you have a clear path to go down now,and of course supported by people who can do something.

 

I might send them all my Scotcall letters......they did the same with me till I sent them an lba then they quickly returned my file to Capquest