Link Financial - General guidance appreciated...

[emandcole]

Hi to all the sharp minded legal caggers out there. May I pick your brains?

 

General thread about this story here:

 

http://www.consumeractiongroup.co.uk/forum/debt-collection-industry/221243-link-financial-check-out.html

 

but in this thread I hope to gather a bit more legal advice.

 

Long story short as possible for history:

1. GE assign disputed account to Link without my notice.

 

2. GE/Santander subsequently issue letter apologising for their failure to issue a final response . They issue an apology cheque for £50. (I see this all as unlawful rescission of contract and they admit as much).

 

3. I am vindicated in placing the account in dispute due to this submission but Link now issue claim in Northampton.

 

4. Assignment was equitable as GE still replying to letters and adjusting account balance just 15 days before Link issue claim due to their admission of fault as detailed above.

 

5. Link however have started the claim in their sole name when clearly the assignment was equitable so GE/Santander should be listed as co-claimants in any action.

 

All of this already puts them on the back foot of course in many ways and I am in no way worried about this matter as there is so much wrong with the entire situation.

 

6. Link try to get me to return court paperwork/court response to them in the hope I follow that advice and the court doesn't hear from me. Their attempt to get a judgment by default hacks me off and I complain to the court manager and trading standards. TS agree that Link have attempted to pervert the course of justice and advise me they have passed my evidence and complaint to the licensing section of the OFT . I will of course hear nothing further about this but I have something extra to take to court.

 

7. Link fail to supply a whole raft of requested info despite a SAR which reveals a very patchy history. I then make a CPR request for full disclosure which is better but still have not seen any default notice, and the statement history they provide misses huge chunks out meaning it is impossible to audit the account. The 'agreement' they have is very old and missing all manner of info so no worries that it is enforceable in any way.

 

8. Notice of assignment appears to be a standard welcome letter.

 

9. No actual deed of assignment either.

 

10. Amount claimed is completely wrong due to origial creditors failure to reserve the contractual right to apply any charges to the account (The original reason for dispute the creditor finally acknowledged with a balance adjustment held by Link). This adjustment however was not full by any means and was a fraction of the amount they had helped themselves to.

 

11. Eventually I paid the court to have an application notice ordering them to supply the full documentation listed in their particulars of claim.

 

That's where I am as of today and the application meeting is coming up in a little while (date withheld in case of the Link spies). My question relates to what happens next and I'd be hugely grateful for a brief overview of how this matter is likely to proceed.

 

 

• Do I merely turn up and if they're playing ball they have all of the documentation I have asked for with them? If so do I just get to look at it and that's it or is there more to this?
  

 

 

• Do I need to take anything along at this stage?
  

 

 

• Once this hearing is over will the judge make an order based on the compliance, or not, of Link so we can proceed?
  

 

 

• Due to Link being awkward to date I have not been able to submit a defence. If they play ball and lets assume they have everything and it's all in order I presume allocation q's will be sent out. Is that correct?
  

 

• Do I need permission for my fiance to attend with me? (She's nothing to do with the claim but her support would be good)
  

 

• If Link do not turn up or if they do turn up but are unable to produce the required documentation am I right in thinking I can then make an application to have the claim struck out?
  

 

 

• Having written that I have a substantial counter claim to make and am aware that if I ask for a strike out I will effectively forefeit my right to claim this. How do you proceed so that your counter claim is protected? Do you just let it run its course safe in the knowledge that the claimant hasn't got any real hope of winning?
  

 

Lots of questions I know but very grateful for any help and I can then in time pass this wisdom to others also. The great CAG format!

 

Intending to update this thread now as we head towards the application hearing so may be of use to others as it all develops.

[The_Grumlin]

What documents have been supplied and what is missing?

 

Link are likely to turn up (an agency sol). They may want to talk to you before the meeting/hearing cos they haven't a clue about the case.

 

You need to have your speach worked out for the Judge the reason why is essential that you get all the documentation. For example the conflicting information on the ownership of the alleged debt, so a need to ensure Link have full legal title to the debt by way of contract/deed would be essential. I have seen other threads where GE have called Link their "collection agents".

 

You will need to ask the usher to ask the Judge to allow an other person to be in the court ( if allowed they must be quiet).

 

I have been down this route, in my case I was granted an order and dependant on the supply of documents was allowed to submit a full particularised defense. They were allowed 28 days, they took and were allowed 42 odd. In the end I got all the documents and then WON in court based on recreated (or fabricated) DN.

[emandcole]

Hi and thanks for your interest,

Link have failed to produce a default notice, complete statement history for the last 6 years as required by various companies acts (The original creditor has admitted they've completely lost around 18 months of info between 2005 and 2009), assignment deed, the original creditor has not sent a notice of assignment either. I'm not at all worried about defending this claim, Link should be the worried party given the situation here.

 

I will ensure my argument is well evidenced with all references to statute and case law to hand. I know many judges are totally reliant on you spoon feeding them and as such I fully expect to have to take them through it step by step.

 

Thanks for the advice about asking the usher, one of the things I was uncertain of. As for Link being collection agents if that's the case they have no right to bring this action in their own name so they're sunk from the very start.

 

Congrats on your win...must have felt good

[The_Grumlin]

Sounds very par the course for Link.

 

I would be careful when you come before the Judge as the first one I had was very much in the "you owe it you pay it" camp, luckly his attitude changed when it became apparent that Link had NOT supplied any documents or a witness statement before the hearing.

 

I found there is a mixture of Judges, I was lucky to have in the hearings after two other Judges who were up to speed on consumer law.

 

I'll try and track down the link to the thread with letter from GE to this particular CAG member, it was very interesting reading. In regards to my own case I ended up this four NoA all different and most were defective. I did get the Deed, I say I got the deed but it obviously a fabrication - luckly for Link we never got that far as the DN was defective.

 

I think the loss of statements is one of your strongest points, I would if it is in the statements check the interest charged from default notice to alleged sale as I have found on a few threads and my own an over charge of interest. Also when (if) you get the DN check the account number and compare against your GE one.

[The_Grumlin]

http://www.consumeractiongroup.co.uk/forum/legal-issues/213936-ge-money-me.html

 

Read the letters attached in the first post, you will note GE do not say sold. They say transferred to their debt recovery agency.

[emandcole]

Great advice, will have a look at the thread later and have a good read. The missing statements are a strong defence irrespective of the rest of it, plus I have a letter from the original creditor stating they have 'lost' these statement dates so Link will have a job conjuring them up.

 

If I was Link given the situation I'd be on Cag and really not looking forward to going to court at all