Can they put a charge notice on my house?

[nickformbristol]

HI All,

 

This is my 1st thread so very new to this great site.

 

I have had a letter from Mercantile Data Bureau saying i owe 13K from an old Abbey dept 2+ years ago, i don't know how they found out where i live (Maybe some one can tell me how they do this?) what should be my next step they are saying they are profiling me to find out if i am a home owner etc.

 

My questions are

 

1. What sould my responce be?

2. How did they find me?

3. Can they put a charge order on my house for the dept (it was an unsecured loan)

 

Please help as this is playing on my mind

 

Nickfrombristol:sad:

[debt4get]

first thing is to send a letter asking them to prove you owe the money

second they probably found you on the voting list

they certainly cant put a charge on your house ONLY a court can do this and you are a long long way from court yet

[nickformbristol]

Thankyou very much for such a prompt response, is there a standard format letter i should be sending asking them to prove i owe the money?

[debt4get]

hang on will find it for you now

[debt4get]

http://www.consumerforums.com/resources/templates-library/86-debt-collectors/581-cca-request-letter

link here enclose £1.00 p.o. DO NOT SIGN LETTER just print name

[nickformbristol]

Thanks very much, most helpful

 

Nick

[vint1954]

http://www.consumerforums.com/resources/templates-library/86-debt-collectors/581-cca-request-letter

link here enclose £1.00 p.o. DO NOT SIGN LETTER just print name

You could try this prove it letter first, wait for a response, then send the CCA request. Make them work to prove the debt.

 

Dear Sir/Madam

 

Account no:

 

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.

[nickformbristol]

Great thankyou, very helpful

Nick

[nickformbristol]

I have just got a letter saying i owe 13k from 2yrs back, the dept is to the Abbey and the collection agency is Mercantile Data Bureau.

This is the first letter i have got after 2yrs from anyone regarding this dept.

 

Are they just sending letters out on the off chance i will respond or are they certain i live there, i am on the voting register but have been at past properties aswell.

 

Do i just phone and say not known at this address or what do i do?

 

nickfrombristol

[maroondevo52]

Hi,

 

I take it the letter was addressed to you, what was the debt.

 

Regards.

 

Scott.

[nickformbristol]

Yes the letter was addressed to me, the dept was for 13k to Abbey.

 

The agency is Mercantile Data Bureau.

[nickformbristol]

Sorry the dept was an unsecured loan for a car

[maroondevo52]

Two threads merged.

 

nickfrombristol,

 

Please stick to this thread on this subject.

 

Regards.

 

Scott.

[nickformbristol]

Sorry i don't know how this happened or how to correct it

[bigkacker]

In short yes!

 

They can put a charge on your house, they would need to take you to court first of all to do so. For a debt of 13K I would be very carefull because this is the kind of balance a Debt Collector would want to get secured upon your home.

 

Many Debt Collectors will enforce Judgement via a charging order regardless of whether you are paying or not. This secures their interest, also because the debt was taken out after 2006 they are within their rights to apply post judgement interest.

 

You could CCA them, however because the debit is only two years old there is a good chance they will be able to provide an agreement and enforce the debt.

 

They will have tracked your adress using your Experian file most likely which will link from your old address to your new one. They are entitled to trace you provided they do not break the law in doing so.

 

It is a simple matter to see if you own your own home, they will simply do a land registry search of your address which will say who the proprietor of the property is.

 

My advice to you would be to acknowledge the debt and come to an affordable monthly payment plan with them. You may be lucky and they may not have the agreement but this will antigonise them. You have admitted to the debt in your first posting.

 

On the same subject do not take any **** from them, make sure you pay what you can afford and provide them with an income and expenditure form. If they reject your offer of payment then they will most likely get a charging order against you.

 

I know this is not what you were wanting to hear, but I am just being honest. There are far to many people on this forum who have ended up with Bailiffs at their door because they boycotted their debts on the advice of somebody in this forum.

 

It would be foolhardy for you to defend any claim on the advice of a total stranger in a web forum. If you know you owe them the money fpay it.

[ambershadow]

If your property is jointly owned this would only be a restriction and if you sold your house and had a good solicitor you would not have to pay the debt back from the sale proceeds

[F_DCAs]

Ignore bigkacker. Get the company concerned to provide proof before anything else.

[nickformbristol]

I have just got a letter saying i owe 13k from 2yrs back, the dept is to the Abbey and the collection agency is Mercantile Data Bureau.

This is the first letter i have got after 2yrs from anyone regarding this dept.

 

Are they just sending letters out on the off chance i will respond or are they certain i live there, i am on the voting register but have been at past properties aswell.

 

Do i just phone and say not known at this address or what do i do?

 

nickfrombristol

[Bazooka Boo]

Do you owe this money?

Have you ever had an account with abbey?

If not, then they are on a fishing trip sending out threatogrammes to every one with the same name as you.

If you don't owe them this debt, then I would simply file the letter for future reference and simply ignore it, NEVER PHONE THEM, if you do not owe them this money and you make contact disputing it they will bombard you with empty threats, thinking they have got the right person.

 

Ignore it and wait to see if they send anything else, then we can go from there.

[nickformbristol]

I think i owe the dept, but like i have said it's been over 2 yrs and i have never heard a thing. Now i get a letter.

[ODC]

What is the alleged debt for.

 

It needs to be six years before it becomes Statute barred

[diamondgirl]

Think I'd just wait and see what I got next from them.

Have you checked your credit file with someone like experian if not I certainly would just to make sure they've not put anything on your file?

DG

[nickformbristol]

The dept a was unsecured car loan

[debt4get]

I agree with f dcas as he says ignore bigkacker asking for a cca is your right and whether or not this antagonises them is irrelevant, mostly they will supply you with a copy. whether or not it is enforceable is the next step in take. you can roll over, pay and every month they will ask for more and more until they are bleeding you dry, you are better fighting them at this stage than later.

as bigkacker says Many Debt Collectors will enforce Judgement via a charging order regardless of whether you are paying or not. This secures their interest, also because the debt was taken out after 2006 they are within their rights to apply post judgement interest.

and yes post judgement interest is sometimes allowed but not before judgement...if you read around these threads many people here have taken the advice of site and have come out much better off than just acknowledging and paying

[Bazooka Boo]

Can you scan and post the letter they sent, removing all of your details and anything that will Id you to them, Ref. No's, bar codes etc

This lot are well known for phishing for information.

Was it signed by a 'Mark Davies'??

 

According to companies house, this company was called Mercantile Debt Management Ltd but dissolved in 2006.

 

If you think you owe the debt, then as DG says, have a look at your CRF, but be warned, doing this may start a barrage of other DCA's jumping on the bandwagon. However it will tell you whether or not this outfit has placed a mark on your CRF.

 

If your CRF isn't important to you, and lets be honest why would it be? Then checking it will be of no real benefit, just file their letter and wait their next move..

 

 

Boo;)