Please Help - Urgent - In Court 30th Sept.

[Boss-man]

Dear All,

 

I really need some urgent advice. I poseted about this matter a while ago but didnt get a response and then thought by speaking to a solicitor we had sorted this.

 

Its on my behalf of my sister.

 

She has a secured loan with Picture which is in arrears. The loan was taken out three years ago for 75K and they have the 2nd charge on the property. The first charge on the property is for northern rock and is for around 150K. The house itself is currently only valued at 140K. Northern Rock are not currently seeking a repossesion.

 

Basically Picture have issued repossesion proceedings for arrears of 6.5K. However my sister currently has a case pending against Picture for the mis sold PPI on the account and is claiming 19.5K from them (it is being properly handled by a claims specialist). On speaking to a solicitor she was advised that Picture cannot reposses the property whilst the account is in dispute and that she should inform the court of this and request an adjournment for the possesion hearing until the dispute is resolved. She duly did this, paying the fee for an adjournment.

 

She has just been told now that the adjournment has not been accepted and is in court on Wednesday

 

Where do we go from here?

 

I would really appreciate any help anyone could give on this.

 

Many thanks in advance.

 

Boss-Man

[Ell-enn]

Hi there, I take it she has not put forward any defence statement to the court? If not - we will need to do one for her to take to court with her on Wednesday.

 

Can you get together all the documentary evidence you can regarding this PPI claim.

 

Is your sister in a position to make any payments going forward until the PPI is settled?

 

I didn't see your previous thread regarding this, sorry. When did you post the details?

 

Ell-enn

[Boss-man]

Hi Ell-enn,

 

Thanks for the response.

 

She sent a document to court when asking for the adjournment which provided details about the PPI claim and documentation from the claims company about the case.

 

She also included copies of her offers of payment plans to Picture and proof of postage to which she has had no response from them.

 

If you let me know exactly what you need I can get this information from her.

 

The one thing that I cant understand is why it would even be worth Picture going for possesion looking at the figures above - they would get nothing at all.

 

I really appreciate your help on this.

 

Many Thanks

[Ell-enn]

Hi, what stage is the PPI claim at ?

 

The only thing that worries me is that some judges tend to only consider the matter which is being brought to court which is the fact that the account is in arrears (i.e. agreed installments under the mortgage agreement have been missed).

 

Therefore he/she will only be interested in how and when the arrears will be cleared. If there is no proposal for payment going forward then they could make an order for possession. I'm not saying this will happen - only pointing out that it could.

[Boss-man]

Hi Ell-enn,

 

I beleive a claim against Picture is in the process of the being issued. She was advised by a solictor that if an account is in dispute then a lender cannot issue possesion proceedings - is this incorrect?

 

I fully understand what you are saying, i will be talking to her at length tonight about this as she is now thinking she may be better to let things take their course and go and find somewhere to rent (considering the negative equity on the property is around £70K).

 

She can certainly afford to pay something per month to picture but realistically not the full amount plus something towards arrears. Her normal monthly payment to Picture is £900 per month - the payment on her mortgage itself is only £550.

 

If a possesion order was issued how long would she have before she had to leave the property and what part would the her mortgage lender (who has the first charge) play in things?

 

I really appreciate your advice on this one. Its difficult to advise her on what best to do.

 

Many thanks

[Ell-enn]

It is a difficult situation. I'm not saying that the information you have been given is wrong regarding bringing a possession claim while the account is in dispute. What I am saying is, that the judge may not acknowledge that fact.

 

Unfortunately judges aren't always fully clued up on points like that and are only able to look for a remedy to clear the arrears. It could be argued that there can be no dispute regarding the arrears as it is a fact that payments have been missed and had there been no PPI included in the payments - would they have been made or would they still have been missed?

 

I think you need a good statement for court - what was the reason for the arrears? (the judge will want to know that).

 

If possession was ordered, it is usually 28 days (sometimes 56). At the end of the 28 days if the debtor has not left the property the lender will apply for an eviction order - this could give up to a further 14 -28 days to move out. However, if an eviction notice is received it can be defended - but you will need a very good case.

 

If you need help with a statement for court please let me know.

 

Ell

[Boss-man]

Hi Ell-enn,

 

Thanks for the advice so far. I could probably do with a little help in producing a defence. I was going to go something along the following.

 

(1). Point out about the current claim for the PPI side of things with the supporting documentation and point out that an account should not be the subject of possesion proceedings whilst in dispute.

 

(2). Outline the reasons for the arrears. This was a combination of coming off fixed low rate mortgage (mtg payment was practically double as is a Northern Rock mtg and the standard variable rate is still high despite the low base rate). Increase in Pictures interest rates. Reduction of both defendants overtime and bonus payments due to economic downturn.

 

(3). Proivde a budget plan and offer the normal monthly payment plus £20.00 towards the arrears (they could just about afford this but it would be tight) on an ongoing basis until the PPI claim is settled which would effectivley clear the arrears with a surplus.

 

I would really appreciate your advice on the above.

 

Many Thanks,

[Ell-enn]

Hi there, I have made a few adjustments to your statement and emailed it back to you - hope you don't mind.

 

Make sure that on your appendices you write the Claim number on the top left hand corner and the Appendix number on the top right hand corner. You will need 3 copies of everything (i.e. 3 sets). 1 for the judge, 1 for the other side and one for themselves to refer to.

 

When they get to court (get there early) they should ask the usher to give the statement to the judge if they say it's too late, then they will need to give it to him/her in the courtroom at an appropriate time.

 

Ring the court today and ask if they have any duty legal reps there tomorrow - if they do then approach them when they get to court and ask them to accompany into the room.

 

Any other questions, just shout.

 

Ell

[Boss-man]

Many Thanks Ell-enn, I will let you know how things go.

 

Boss-Man