Question re debt and starting DCA to buy ones debt back.

[robd4567]

Hey guys I have a quick question re debt.

 

Most of the debts I have are with DCA's I was wandering something could one start their own DCA and offer to buy the debt back of the debt collection agencies to wipe out the bad debt and any default linked to the debt? If so how would one go about buying back their debt of a dca what would they need to do to start a dca? The reason I ask is a lot of people I know have problems with DCA's and I wandered if one could start up a dca to buy their own debts and debts of their friend and simply wipe them out by winding up the company. Would the credit reference agency transfer the information in to the newly created Debt collection agency or would it stay in the name of the old one? I just thought it would be interesting to see if it could be done?

[dundeelaw]

Before being able to operate as a collection agency for the collection of consumer debts (private individuals) a Consumer Credit Licence from the Office of Fair Trading (OFT) is required. The application pack can be obtained from the OFT enquiry number 0207 211 8000.

 

 

Registration will be required under the Data Protection Act 1998; contact the Information Commissioners Office.

 

Public Liability Insurance is required for your office premises and ideally, to cover you for unforeseen professional mishaps, Professional Indemnity Insurance. Your insurance broker will advise you.

 

 

It can take upto 3 years to get a good start in the business and you will need a good business plan for those 3 years incase you require external funding.

 

A business bank account is needed and good and effective banking facilities should be negotiated.

 

It will be helpful to work with a firm of accountants to advise you on tax matters and prepare annual accountsfor your business. If you do not already have an accountant look in your yellow pages for local firms and visit some of them to discuss your start up business and get quotes for work needed; or you may have a friend who is already working with an accountant that may suit you as well.

 

 

In due course it will be necessary to work with a firm of competent solicitors to take debts through the court stages. Currently agencies themselves may not sue direct on behalf of clients nor may they employ an in-house solicitor to do so. Most likely you will want to have discussions with a number of firms to assess their services and obtain quotes for working with them.

 

 

Agency owners should be aware of legislation which includes the:

o

Data Protection Act

o

Insolvency Act 1986

o

Administration of Justice Act 1970 - section 55

o

Consumer Protection Act 1987

o

Debt Collection Guidance by the Office of Fair Trading

 

The laws regarding harassment must be observed and the threat or use of violence to the debtor or their family is illegal

 

http://www.csa-uk.com/media/editor/file/Factsheet.pdf for more information.

Edited October 4, 2010 by dundeelaw
formatting issue

[craigers]

i suppose in theory its possible, but what a slog! i recently received a letter from a dca saying i could "buy back" my debt. obviously i politely declined, although i wonder if it would be possible to buy it back and then remove the default. dca would need to have small print stating they retain ownership of crf data, otherwise i'd say "buy back" is misleading and worthy of a complaint.

[buzby]

Not really, A DCA has no ability to amend your credit file, that remains with the original debtor. So they can sell it on to A, B ,C & D, but none of the remainders can do anything to amend your file as you never game them permission to do so in the first place. Only the original creditor asked and probably got the right. So whilst what you say is theoretically possible, wiping your credit file is not.

[craigers]

buzby, if this is the case, then how do some dcas enter a second concurrent default? lowell did this with me for two accounts while the oc defaults were already on file. dcas have the power to remove, they just choose to be very very difficult. i believe when the account is sold to a dca under property law, the right to make crf entries is also inherited.

[buzby]

You would have to have agreed to this as part of your original agreement with the first company. They cannot do this simply because they claim ownership of the debt. Further it is illegal for two defaults to exist for the SAME debt. In both these cases, a complaint to the CRA should result in a speedy removal. If this fails, then a complaint to the ICO will resolve the issue.

[craigers]

if the right to report isn't transferred with ownership of the account, then why have the ico or courts never ruled on this?

 

i'm afraid to say there is nothing speedy with the cras. despite sending proof that two defaults are for the same account, they still insist on contacting the oc and dca, and only if there isn't a response within 28 days or the oc or dca confirms it is a duplicate will they remove one of them. the ico are far too slow. 10 months after lodging my complaint, it still hasn't been assigned to a caseworker.

[buzby]

How can they 'rule' on something that isn't relevant? It is the Consumer who MUST waive their right to privacy (by allowing their data to be shared). Each case must be treated on its own individual merits, however, as the consumer must EXPLICITY agree to the use of their data, it remains within their control to accept or deny the use to which their data is used.

 

For example, if no request to share is made at the time of the original agreement (or a subsequent request that is not rejected), then no sharing can take place. The most common is that such disclosure is required by the outfit the agreement is with, although never stated as such, the trend is that these firms are foregoing their right to pursue Consumers through the courts, preferring the less risky tactic of selling on the debt to a third party. Whilst there is nothing to prevent them doing so (this is commerce, after all) the abilty to report to a CRA regarding the debt is not.

 

This can only happen if the Consumer has entered into an arrangement where thewy have (in effect) agreed to their data being shared by the original firm, AND any other firms who takes on the administration of the debt. When this happens, then the only protection is that the markers (for the same debt) must not be duplicated - if effect making it looks as though the consumer has defaulted on two different arrangements.

 

The ICO is the final arbiter for a free reversal. You can if you wish force the issue by taking the errant firm to Court. This cannot be done through MoneyClaim, but an action demanding a course of action be complied with. By calling on them to offer evidence of your explicit agreement for your financial dealings with them to be shared or reported. If they cannot show this, or in default of any defence (the mst usual course of action), the judgement is then used to instruct CRAs to remove the erroneous data, whilst you pursue the DCA for your costs. I've done this three times and it has worked a charm each and every time.

[craigers]

wow! never heard of it happening before. i don't suppose you can quote case law?

[peter199]

wow! never heard of it happening before. i don't suppose you can quote case law?

 

I am sure i read about the case but i'm not sure of the details i think it was a year or 2 ago

[buzby]

You only get 'case law' when it reaches the High Court - all these actions are at County/Sheriff Court level - but it isn't rocket science. If the Data Subject has not given permission for data sharing, then they cannot. All the evidence I needed was a printout showng that they had.