Capquest 'CCJ' letter re Cap1 debt - Northern Ireland

[theshuffler]

Hi Folks i hope im posting in the right place here, I live in Northern Ireland though that shouldnt make any difference to the laws of the land , i recieved the following letter from capquest this morning and i know there a lot of holes in what they are saying but i would appreciate some advice . The debt refers to capital one.

 

On 22nd oct 08 a judgement was made against you which represented only a part of the balance due as we endeavored to keep legal costs to a minimum so that we did not place any further financial burden on you . ( yeah yeah ) Balance due £ 771 Judgement sum £386

 

The current judgement order may now be passed back to our solicitors HL legal department to start enforcement proceedings . If this is neccessary we will seek to enforce such an order with a warrant of excecution. In the event that we do obtain a Warrant of execution a court enforcement officer ( Bailiff) will be assigned to attend your address and carry out the Warrant . The bailiff will take an inventroy and levy your goods. You will be informed that the bailiff has impounded the goods and you will be asked to sign a walking possession agreement, acknowledging the goods are in the possession of the bailiff. If full payment or a satisfactory payment plan is not made the bailiff is authorised to remove the goods for sale to pay the debt and costs.

 

As you will appreciate we have already commited to use the court process and this will continue. By obtaining the judgement it has prevented the judgement amount to become statute barred for a futher 6 years, meaning we can still enforce the judgement for that tie or longer with the courts permission. We have endeavoured to be fair and reasonable blah blah blah , the situation will not go away blah blah blah contact us before 29 sep 09 to stop further action and save you more expense and a possible visit from the court bailiffs.

[ScarletPimpernel]

I've started a new thread for you, theshuffler.

 

Actually, living in NI does make a difference where law is concerned; this is generally a good thing.

 

I suspect that the Crapquest's letter is bullsh1t.

 

My feeling is that Crapquest are following the likes of Cohens and Copes, and sending out these letters to scare people into contacting them. The legal expenses stuff is nonsense. I doubt that any CCJ exists; if challenged, they will claim it as an 'admin error'.

 

That you are in Northern Ireland is interesting, because it is a separate jurisdiction. Any court claim would have to be issued through the NI Courts, You would of course have been sent paperwork. It's worth noting that there is no NI equivalent of Northampton Bulk Centre, so a claim would have to have the appropriate papers (such as the credit agreement) attached.

 

There are no bailiffs in Northern Ireland. There are Court Enforcement Officers, but they are employed by the Courts Service and do not act in the same way as mainland bailiffs.

 

For a solicitor to practice in Northern Ireland they must be on the Roll of Solicitors in Northern Ireland. HL Solicitors are not permitted to practice in Northern Ireland (though they could instruct an NI solicitor to act for them).

 

I will ask a couple of other NI residents to have a look at this.

 

Before advising upon how to deal with this, it would be useful to know what has happened before.

 

Has this letter appeared out of the blue, or has this been an ongoing matter?

 

Have you at any time asked for a copy agreement, and if so what was the response?

[42man]

Some excellent advice from SP.....i'd also urge you to email this to the Office Of Fair Trading too..it is completely misleading, and is in breach of quite a few of the OFT's guidelines...

[ScarletPimpernel]

I have asked ODC and Noomill060 to take a look at this, since both are familiar with the NI system.

 

My initial thoughts are to draft a letter asking Crapquest for details of the judgment, to allow them to dig a bigger hole for themselves.

[lickthewallfatboy]

capquest are talking through their butts as usual

 

if they have got a CCJ in England,it's invalid as you are not in the jurisdiction,and would be relatively easy to get struck out

 

and I think it might prevent them from trying again,if they are stupid enough to try

 

NI Court Enforcement Officers will come out to your house,go through your income and expenditure and arrive at a figure to be paid back every month

 

as Scarlet points out,there are no bailiffs in Northern Ireland

 

I think it had something to do with the IRA threatening to shoot any that tried to seize goods from debtors-you know how it is

[ODC]

Personally I agree with the other posters on here. The language Crapquest has used in their threatomatics shows that they are talking bollocks. They quote stuff that they cannot do under Northern Ireland Law.

 

Judgements in Northern Ireland are enforced by the Enforcement of Judgements Office in Belfast and it is they who would be contacting you to enforce any judgement not Crapquest or their mickey mouse solicitors for rent HL Legal.

 

To check if in fact a judgement has really been issued you could spend eight quid here Check the registers for your CCJ, judgment and fine records - Trust Online but personally I would wait and see.

 

Quite a few NI folk got Christmas Cards from Crapquest in the form of SDs. These too were only a bluff as yet again they did not follow the proper procedure for issuing them in N.I. (I know what was wrong but Im not going to alert Crapquest;))

 

Another thing is that under the County Courts Act creditors are NOT allowed to split a claim so yet again Crapquest are talking bollocks and IF they got a judgement for £386.00 then thats their lot. They CANNOT come back again for another bite of the cherry as a certain well know solicitor regularly tries.

 

To sum up - Sit Tight and see what next they come up with.

[noomill060]

So they used the automated MCOL in Northampton???

 

Did you even receive a court summons?

 

I wonder how they intend to enforce this...?

 

The Scarlet Pimpernel and I both know by our own experience that this could only be done by the Enforcements of Judgements Office in Belfast and even then they (the EJO) would need to bring this before the Master- a Northern Ireland High Court judge- who would no doubt be most unimpressed with the letter you received!

 

(No bailiffs in Norn Irn- due to them being declared fair game by the IRA, the system was replaced by a much fairer (and safer!) system in 1971)

 

I think you can afford yourself a little fun with these muppets.

[noomill060]

Check with the NI Courts Service in Belfast, just to see if they have in fact got a CCJ against you in England.

[sillygirl1]

They CAN NOT go for part of the judgement only, that is incorrect, the only time that is allowed is if the claim is on the Fast Track and is more than £5000. I suspect the letter is a scare tactic, you should report it to the court concerned and to the local Trading Standards pronto

[theshuffler]

Thanks folks as usual everyone is on the ball with advice , in all honesty im unsure wether or not there was a county court judgment made , i was in business and it went belly up so i got a lot of letters as you would expect from the various leeches who think that they should become rich on the back of other peoples misery. I will read and reread the information provided and decide on a course of action . I have not yet sent away for proof of the debt , maybe by doing that, and they dont come up with the proof then i can have the alledged county court judgement lifted ? Surely if they cant prove a debt then they had no right to bring me to court? Is what they are stating about the statute barring correct? Also noticed on the bottom of the letter the following.

 

Please note that should legal action be instigated against you and you are not a resident in England then you will be subject to the due litigation process applicable under the jurisdiction of your residenceand this matter will be reffered to our Scottish/ Irish lawers for action.

Edited June 21, 2009 by theshuffler

[ODC]

Please note that should legal action be instigated against you and you are not a resident in England then you will be subject to the due litigation process applicable under the jurisdiction of your residenceand this matter will be reffered to our Scottish/ Irish lawers for action.

 

 

Dont think a Scottis or Irish Lawyer would do them much good in NORTHERN Ireland. Different jurisdiction. Idiots

[ScarletPimpernel]

Further, their letter claims that they've already got a CCJ, and it seems to me that the very first thing to do is establish whether this is the truth or not. If it isn't, they are very clearly in breach of CPUTR and OFT Guidance.

[cerberusalert]

I can't see how they've got a CCJ against you in England unless you had a previous English address which they have used.

 

It's easy enough to check though, although it will cost £8 CCJs, court orders & fines - Search yourself and others - Trust Online

[theshuffler]

After some consideration and rather than send away to the courts to see if there was a CCJ issued against me , i think i will ask Capquest to prove that they have one , if they can send one and it was issued outside of Northern Ireland im sure we can find a nice polite way to tell them where they can stick it. However if they do have one and it is issued from here i imagine i can have it struck off on the grounds that they havent tried for the full amount or just asking them to prove the debt, surely no proof no CCJ ?

 

My hunch is Capquest will quietly slip into the background under the veil of an admin error . The advice on here is invaluable as always and my deepest thanks to all who have contributed so far , any views on whether this is the right way to go or do i sit back and watch Capquest commit Hari Kari ? If what i have suggested is the way to go can anyone help with the drafting of a letter requesting the CCJ ? Is there a timescale for them to reply to me?

 

Again many thanks folks for your time and consideration.

[lickthewallfatboy]

i think i will ask Capquest to prove that they have one , if they can send one and it was issued outside of Northern Ireland im sure we can find a nice polite way to tell them where they can stick it.

 

I seriously,SERIOUSLY doubt that there is one against you in NI

 

it's just not the way things happen

[ScarletPimpernel]

Let them dig a hole. Send this, not mentioning the split claim:

 

 

I do not acknowledge any debt to you or any company you claim to represent. All communication in this matter should be in writing.

 

I refer to your letter dated (date) in which you claim that a judgment was obtained against me on 22nd Oct 08.

 

As I do not recall receiving any Court papers relating to this matter, I must ask you to provide further details, such as the Claim number and the Court where the alleged judgment was obtained.

 

I will be in a position to respond to your letter once you have provided the details I have asked for.

 

Yours etc.

 

When they've replied, some back, and we can work out the best way to focus unwelcome regulatory attention on this shower.

[noomill060]

Yup, that will do for starters!

[theshuffler]

Cheers all.. Its in the post, im sure we can rely on CapQuest for some entertainment over the summer, will post their reply

[noomill060]

Excellent.

[theshuffler]

Right folks still no word from Capquest regarding proof of the CJJ , however while doing a bit of a tidy up i came across the papers the sent regarding beginning court proceedings , and guess where the case was,? yeah you got it Northampton . My initial thoughts are to see if Capquest can deliver proof of the CJJ before i do anything else , any advice on the next step?

[ScarletPimpernel]

If the initial claim was made in Northampton then it was made in the wrong jurisdiction. Apart from anything else, it's a very clear breach of the OFT Guidance:

 

Unfair practices include: ...taking or threatening to take court action in the wrong jurisdiction, for example, taking action against a Scottish debtor in an English court unless legally justified.

 

 

Basically, English Courts have no power in small claims relating to people resident in Northern Ireland.

 

I think you should make a formal complaint to Capquest, insisting that they get the judgment set aside immediately. They could then make a claim through the NI court, but they will have to make sure that the paperwork is in order - the slack admin standards of Northampton do not apply in NI.

 

You should also complain about their empty bailiff threat, and ask them to confirm that the solicitors they have named are qualified to practice in NI (HL Legal aren't permitted to practice in NI). Others will no doubt be able to give further advice on making a claim for damages for them damaging your credit rating by their actions.

 

You should be making a big noise with Trading Standards, too.

[ODC]

Normally I am a big fan of your advice SP. However in this case a lot of fun could be had at the expense of CRAPquest if they try to enforce a wrongly issued CCJ. If the OP has a good MP then a super complaint could be made to the OFT without letting CRAPquest know. There are quite a few NI members on here whor received Christmas SDs from Crapquest which were never followed through so the complaint could get quite messy for our friends in Fleet. One SD could be excused as human error but if a number of complaints were added together then that argument would be blown out of the water.

 

It is highly likely that when the claim went to Northampton someone there actually had the gumption to realise they hadnt the jurisdiction and told Crapquest. Crapquest being the cupid stunts that they are think they can pull the wool over the OPs eyes.

[ScarletPimpernel]

I like your thinking, ODC. A letter from an MP is sure to focus Capquest's attention, and NI MPs are, in my view, rather more proactive than their mainland counterparts.

 

As an aside, as I am currently not far from Capquest's offices, I did a quick recce. I know where they live...

[ODC]

My MP as you well know is a qualified Barrister and judging by the disappointing results his party received at the Euro Elections Im sure he would be delighted to help.

 

He has really helped me in a number of matters in relation to officialdom and my former employers.

[ODC]

PRACTICE DIRECTION – PRODUCTION CENTRE - Ministry of Justice

 

Claims which may not be issued through the Centre

2.1

The Centre will not issue any claim form which is to be issued in the High Court.

 

2.2

The Centre will only issue a claim form if the claim is for a specified sum of money less than £100,000.

 

2.3

The Centre will not issue any of the following types of claim –

 

(1)a claim against more than two defendants;

 

(2)a claim against two defendants where a different sum is claimed against each of them;

 

(3)a claim against the Crown;

 

(4)a claim for an amount in a foreign currency;

 

(5)a claim where either party is known to be a child or protected party within Part 21;

 

(6)a claim where the claimant is a legally assisted person within the meaning of the Legal Aid Act 1988;

 

(7)a claim where the defendant’s address for service as it appears on the claim form is not in England and Wales;

 

(8)a claim which is to be issued under Part 8.