Provident Collecting??

[bsj]

I think it is statute barred, the date of sale has nothing to do with statute barring, the statute date is the last time contact was between you and the lender by way of payment.... if they say £1 was paid towards it just before it was sold ask for proof of who made the payment, you are entitled to this information.

 

 

I asked for this information from the catalougue today and they could'nt tell me the last time a payment was made to the account as they don't have the info,just the date the debt was sold on.

So i'm sending the statute barred letter to provident,let them prove otherwise.

[havinastella]

If its a catalouge company they won't have a valid credit agreement from before 2004 anyway.

 

JOgs

[bsj]

If its a catalouge company they won't have a valid credit agreement from before 2004 anyway.

 

JOgs

 

 

That's what i thought when they could'nt tell me what the last payment date was,if they had proof of the debt they should of been able to fulfill my qestions,not so.

 

Oh and i just learnt that wescotts status changed today to current,but it's pending,now i'm confused,phoning the OFT again in the morning i want to know what that means exactly.

 

I was pretty certain it was a sb debt anyway,i felt dissapointed to learn the default date,now i learn i was correct it's from the last payment and that would of been a time when i was in hospital,that's how i can pinpoint the date of last payment.

[ajs444]

The original debt is discounted by 10% and the offer is pay back the discounted amount, interest free over 25 weeks or 50 weeks, debt cleared credit file cleared, what's the problem?????

[bsj]

The original debt is discounted by 10% and the offer is pay back the discounted amount, interest free over 25 weeks or 50 weeks, debt cleared credit file cleared, what's the problem?????

 

Firstly provident are not a collection agency.

 

It's against the law to put pressure on a debtor to take out more credit to pay another,when they can't afford to.

 

Secondly it's a statute barred debt so it drop off my credit file soon anyway.

 

I thought we were all on the same side here,do you work for them?

[ajs444]

No, wife got same offer for GUS catalogue debt.

Have taken up the offer to clean up credit file.

[mr.ton]

The original debt is discounted by 10% and the offer is pay back the discounted amount, interest free over 25 weeks or 50 weeks, debt cleared credit file cleared, what's the problem?????

 

Maybe they dont want to repay or dont have the money to repay??

[PGH7447]

No, wife got same offer for GUS catalogue debt.

Have taken up the offer to clean up credit file.

 

you may pay em but if you have had a default registered then it is there for 6 years anyway

[bsj]

I don't have the money,and as the default has been on my file since 2004 it makes no difference.

It will drop off in a year,iv'e no wish to get credit i can't afford.

 

If i were to take the offer then could'nt pay it,i restart the timeclock on the original debt and have the problem of another creditor chasing me.

 

So all round not taking up their generous offer leaves me in a better position,they can't legally enforce it through the courts because it's statute barred.

 

All they can do is sell it on for someone else to beg for the money.Then i can report them for chasing an SB debt.

 

I'm in a win win situation.

[KMF]

Just been reading through this thread.

 

I'm a Provident customer & my agent was out earlier. We get on well & he knows I've had debt problems in the past so he told me that provi have bought Wescot & that it will be local agents calling on people.

I told him I didn't think that's right because a lot of people will have good relationships with their agents but now it seems that they're turning into debt collectors. I told him that if it was anyone else I would tell them where to go but I wouldn't tell him.

His advice if he was to ask me anything was not to admit the debt & say I know nothing about it.

He's apparantly been told that while an agents is going to a house anyway, more people might pay old debts & he also said they will be offering plans.

I was actually very p'd off about that & if it comes up, I have no intention of paying, I'd be more likely not to pay my provi debt.

I know my agent well enough to know that he won;t hassle me but I'm sure they won't all be so good.

[bsj]

Well well well !!! thank you for that info,i knew there had to be more to it.

 

I even had a good poke around on their site and could find nothing connecting them to a DCA.

 

A new intimidation tatic although i have to admit they are alot nicer than any other DCA i have had the misfortune to deal with,seems DCA's are getting very desparate.I will admit the agent that did call on me was very nice,but knew nothing of Law or guidlines.

I have heard nothing back from them since the housecall,i'm sure your right that won't all be as pleasant because they rely on their commision.

 

Your very fortunate to have an agent that is pleasant as most are i'm sure,but now watch a change take place now they a DCA.

Especially any new agents they recruit.

[PGH7447]

Theres been nothing in the news re westcot and provident but several threads are mentioning that the provi are collecting on westcots debts, so whether they have "bought" them out or not is debatable, however if the Provi wants to disgrace itself by becomming a DCA thats their look out - the same rules apply to then as to other DCA's No Doorstep collecting

[blondie46]

I had the same letter from Provident last year. Being a muppet and not being sure of what to do I paid them up, only after getting a discount of over £80 though. Now Wescott are chasing me for the debt again, and are ringing me every day ...

[JGJ]

Has anyone got a link for the OFT as I want to send them an e-mail re Wescot Wan**rs.

 

"EXEMPLO DUCEMUS"

[cerberusalert]

The Office of Fair Trading: Contact us

 

[email protected]

[JGJ]

cerberusalert,

 

Thank you for the rapid response, as ever.

 

"EXEMPLO DUCEMUS"

[uiop]

HI, I have just had a similar experience so I thought I would share my own findings/info. Any help with my questions at the end would be appreciated...

 

3 days ago I was in my house and there was a knock at the door. The person there said they were from Provident Personal Credit and they wanted to speak to me about two outstanding debts.

 

These debts were for companies who I had delt with in the past (approx 5 years). When I spoke to the person at the door they didnt have a lot of info, no reference numbers or paperwork they could give me. Only amounts and who they were originally with. They wanted me to sign up there and then for weekly payments. I declined as there was no way I was signing anything without looking into it fully. Especially for some random person at the door. I said I would look into it and be in touch. (They seemed to be indicating that I had until the end of the week, at which point they said "I dont know what happens, it could go to court")... which i'm thinking is a scare tactic.

 

When I told my wife about this she said that as far as she knew Provident only supplied loans. They sell them to people who need them on door to door visits with high interest. This was news to me and so initially it seemed like they might be trying to con me into signing up for a loan (£20 per week on 1 payment and £18 on the other).

 

Anyway, a little more digging yesterday and I found out that the company who supposedly passed Provident the debt are Wescot. I found this out when I spoke to the guy from Provident again and while i was speaking to him i asked who he is telling me I owe money to. He said Provident. I then asked if they were trying to sell me a loan, and if the 2 amounts discussed were total amounts or would have interest added.

 

The response was that the amounts were totals and no interest/charges would be added. He also said it wasn't a loan... it was a plan to get my credit rebuilt and if paid off i could have a loan with them in the future.

 

So, based on the other info in this thread it seems like they do think I should be paying, that its not a [problem] as i first though. My next task is to find out if I still actually owe anything on those accounts, or if they were cleared as i think they were. (Who knows what random charges have been added in the last 5 years to increase the "balances"!)

 

Also, does anyone know what I can do whilst investigating this (i will settle the debt if owed), for other companies i would send them a recorded letter with either statute barred notice (if it applied) or "i do not have a debt with your company" letter to buy some time. Provident dont seem to have an office though... or not that i know of other than their HQ. So if the guy comes back and I give them the letter there is no way to prove i did? Any suggestions. (I live in Scotland)

 

In the mean time i'll be trying to find the paperwork from the original accounts and call to find out the date of last payment and balance at that time.

[cerberusalert]

If you're in Scotland the Statute Barred period is 5 years.

[JGJ]

uiop.

 

You "MUST NOT" deal with people calling at "YOUR" home claiming that you allegedly owe money to them, or any other organisation they claim to represent. Tell them to go away and to contact you only in writing, do not give them any information at your doorstep, especially acknowledging alleged debt.

 

You must check your files etc. to see if there is anything outstanding, when you have done that, then it can be dealt with appropriately with advice and guidance from the site team and caggers.

 

There are plenty of template letters for you to send to them if you check the CAG Library. You must not allow these people to cajole you into thinking you owe money to them. "THEY have to prove to "YOU" that you in fact do owe monies, "YOU" do not have to prove to them you don't.

 

Remember all letters to them to be by at least signed for delivery and DO NOT sign them. Print only.

 

 

"EXEMPLO DUCEMUS"

[bsj]

Theres been nothing in the news re westcot and provident but several threads are mentioning that the provi are collecting on westcots debts, so whether they have "bought" them out or not is debatable, however if the Provi wants to disgrace itself by becomming a DCA thats their look out - the same rules apply to then as to other DCA's No Doorstep collecting

 

 

I have found nothing to substaniate the rumour that wescott have been bought out by them,i think they just got a thing going on.

[uiop]

Thanks JGJ, in terms of writing to them, because its the door to door person that I am dealing with and they wont give me any local address. Do we think that writing to the Head Office is the best course of action?

 

Also, thanks everyone for the info in this thread. I am sure it will help a lot of people as it has myself.

[bsj]

Thanks JGJ, in terms of writing to them, because its the door to door person that I am dealing with and they wont give me any local address. Do we think that writing to the Head Office is the best course of action?

 

Also, thanks everyone for the info in this thread. I am sure it will help a lot of people as it has myself.

 

I sent my letter to head office,may of been the reason the agent was'nt aware of it.

I'm pretty sure it got ignored,but they have'nt got back to me as yet.

 

I had to giggle at a line in your post,'it's a debt repayment plan and if you pay it,you can have a loan in the future from us'.Touting for future buiseness too.

 

With the interest rate they charge,no thanks.

 

Have you complained to TS and OFT?

[uiop]

 

Have you complained to TS and OFT?

 

Hi, at the moment no. Once I have the full info I will though... i am quite sure that many people would just panic in this situation and sign up. Especially when they throw in the mention of court. That shouldnt be allowed to happen.

[JGJ]

uiop,

 

Yes address is,

 

Provident Personal Credit Limited

Colonade

Sunbridge Road

Bradford

West Yorkshire

BD1 2LQ

 

Their in house SOLS.

C.K. Edrupt & co Solicitors

Water Lane

Bradford

West Yorkshire

BD1 2JL

 

"EXEMPLO DUCEMUS"

[uiop]

Excellent, thanks. Will get that sorted asap.