Is it worth asking if a creditor will accept a full and final settlement?

[jools153]

Hi - Wonder if anyone can help me with this. I have had a debt plan for nearly 7 years - currently paying each of my creditors about £6 a month. My total debts are about £24k. I have one CCJ for the largest debt which is £10k. The rest are smaller amounts (smallest being £650) I have just completed a financial review with the CCCS and based on my income and expenditure it is going to take me until 2049 to pay it all off!!! My circumstances are not likely to change in the next few years so I am wondering whether its worth writing to my creditors with a copy of my budget planner and explaining this predicament. If I was to be able to get together an amount of money (my parents may be willing to lend me about £1,000) and offer them a proportion each as a final settlement how likely do you think it will be that they would consider this. I have been paying them off for 7 years already and they are looking at another 38 years potentially to get it all back!

Any advice gratefully recieved.

Thanks

[rebel11]

Hi jools

 

Welcome to CAG

 

The guys will respond shortly.

[firstship]

Jools.............I would like to think that £1000 would be accepted as a F&F I very much doubt that it will it is only 5% approx of the total debt,Need some more information you are on a dmp with CCCS,are all the debts with the OC or are some with DCAs?????????????It may be possible to clear those with DCAs depends on the size of the debt in each case.CCCS are I consider quite good but do not go for F&F through them............await your response...............FS

[jools153]

Hi. As far as I am aware some of them are still with the OC. Creation financial services are an original OC I owe them £1600 (originally it was £900 but they added a load of charges etc) There is £1500 to Interim justicia which was a barclaycard. RMA resolve is another one, can't remember what the balance is on that one. There are about 3 or 4 with CL Finance which includes the one that is a CCJ. I am waiting for a statement from the CCCS to clarify who the creditor are. I see what you are saying about the full settlement - I just don't know what else to do with it and can't imagine being saddled for another 30 odd years!

[jools153]

I have just been reading posts about getting charges back - the one I mentioned earlier is creation financial services. There was an insurance on the account which I wrote asking them to remove long before it went to a DMP and they kept adding it - hence I was paying them £6 a month and they were still adding a percentage of the balance on as an insurance so instead of reducing the balance it was increasing at a huge amount each month - in fact I think i originally owed them £900 when I got into difficulties and now the balance is £1600! I eventually got them to stop adding it and they refunded me two months insurance as a 'goodwill gesture!' but I am now thinking I should challenge this? How do I go about this as I have none of the original paperwork.

Thanks for advice x

[firstship]

Hi....if Creation are still taking PPI send a letter recorded delivery that you wish to cancel the PPI,..NOW..did you have to take out PPI to get the loan/card.....???????????? you say they refunded 2 months as a gesture Oh how big hearted of them!!........My guess is the PPI was a condition as already stated,can you confirm??Are the charges from Creation interest and fees you can claim some of this back.When you get your statement from CCCS look at the smaller amounts with DCAs these are prime for F&F let us see if we can help with these,are you aware if any of the debts have been sold to another company???????????You need also to CCA each creditor as long as they are loans or credit cards,you cant CCA your Bank Account, send it to who ever is chasing the debts,cost £1 each creditor send recorded.Sorry lot of questions to answer and lots of letters to send.The creditors have 12 working days to respond if they dont tell us we can help you with the next letter...sorry lots of things to do but you will win through in the end...............good luck.........FS

[jools153]

Thanks FS. Creating have stopped adding the insurance a few years ago but intotal managed to nearly double the debt! I don't recall if the PPI was a condition of the card being taken out (its a store card) I was just 18 when I signed up for it. My guess is I ticked the boxes they told me too! I have cca'd them a few years back because someone told me to and they sent me a copy of the credit agreement I signed, interestingly I have not ticked the box on the form for payment protection or for card protection so I have no idea what these 'insurance' amounts were. Regretfully I have not kept any of the statements from years ago where these were applied. Is there anyway of gaining this information from creation themselves? If I had a copy of all the statements then I could see how much of it was late charges, interest and insurance couldn't i? Mind u are they really likely to send this out to me? Sorry I have lots of questions too!

Just on that note - you ask if any of the debts were sold on. I believe all the ones that CL Finance chase me for are ones that they have purchased - fraser card, debenhams and HSBC they have acquired. (HSBC being the one they CCJ'd)

[firstship]

Jools...........OK to get all the missing information you need to SAR Creation cost £10 send recorded and be specific ask for copies of all statements since opening the account,copy of the agreement for the account copy of PPI agreement,and all data they hold on you.As you have already CCAd Creation and you say the PPI is not indicated as being asked for,you need all of the Data from your SAR to be able to confirm just how much you have paid in PPI,and exactly how many charges have been made and can be recovered,at a guess I think most if not all the debt can be wiped out. ....Regarding the CL Finance items CCA them it will disclose if they can produce the agreements and also add to the letter (letter on Cag file template) the line "I do not appear to have any record of a Notice of Assignment with the date you purchased the debt"......................SAR they have 40 days to comply...........CCA they have 12 working days to comply,get these underway,we can help you if you are unsure..............To answer your question if you ask for SAR and CCA they are legally required to comply.....Was HSBC your bank account???????........................FS

[jools153]

HSBC was a bank account overdraft and a loan combined. I will find the SAR letter in the templates and get that off tomorrow if I can. I will also CCA CL finance and let you know how I get on

[jools153]

OK - here is a question for you. Today for the first time in about 10 years I have looked at my credit report (been to scared to look at it before now!)

Now what is strange is that according to the report I have 1 CCJ (no shock) but the only other debts recorded against me are the ones by CL Finance and Creation!! One of which is satisfied and the other two amount to £2100. Well I know from the CCCS that I have debts in excess of £20k so howcome these are not showing on my credit record? It says on there that all defaults whether satisfied or not come off your credit file after 6 years and I know most of these debts are about 8 or so years old - so have they dropped off? If thats the case then why are CL finances and creations still on there because they are as old as the ones to say RMA resolve or Interim justicia. I don't get it. I am very confused and would appreciate some help. Thank you in advance x

[firstship]

Jools...........all this is possible what dates where against those items still on your credit file??????????????????....FS

[jools153]

OK - it says I have 9 credit accounts against my name. Two of these are British Gas which is obviously my energy supplier - these are satisfactory. One is Natwest (my bank) again satisfactory. The ones that are debts are: Creation financial service (they are an OC) they have it down as one payment late, they have a special arrangement indicator on the account and the arrangement started on the 01/09/2002!! Interestingly my credit limit was £750 and the balance is £1693 so that tells me that nearly £1k of it is PPI and charges!!! However they have not defaulted the account and as long as I pay the arranged amouth each month they seem to be marking it as satisfactory.

The other two are C L Finance. THe first one is settled and was settled and the special arrangement date end was 01/06/2009 (this will be on my file until June, 2015 by the looks of it!)

The second one is the one I still have open and is again flagged as a special arrangement rather than a default. The balance is £503 and the repayment started 01/08/2002.

I am thinking the way forward with this is to SAR both of the ones that are still outstanding and try and get the charges and PPI (if there was some on the latter account) removed, then get a settlement sorted as soon as possible? Is it possible to get the negative data removed from the credit file once settled or will that have to stay on there for another 6 years?

my other question is that if i ever went for a mortgage in the next few years what is the likely hood of the other stuff I still owe showing up if it is no longer on my credit report?

Sorry to bombard you with questions. This has been a real eye opener!

[firstship]

Jools.........credit file data lasts for 6 years,on rare occasions when F&F negotiated the credit file data being removed can happen,very rare.Regarding obtaining a mortgage with a trashed credit file NO not at a sensible interest rate,there is always some company who will lend money at huge interest rates do not go there,if I have given you any advice that is helpful take note of the last one do on borrow money that is from any dubious lender................dealing with DCAs is bad enough.As I have stated SAR those companies that you require statements from and PPI data so you can work out how much to claim back.CCA those companies that you require just to produce a signed agreement.The debts that are small and owned by DCAs,list them and we can give you some idea of what to offer as F&F and what is more how to word it,get the SARs and CCAs underway..................Probably not what you want to receive from me,however accept your credit file is trashed and get on with claiming back as much as you can to reduce your debts and clear those that F&F is possible.........all the very best.....FS

[jools153]

Hi FS. I have SAR'd creation now. I will CCA the rest of them over the weekend. Just to clarify - if I cca them and then SAR them - is it possible they can log any more data on my credit report? or now that it has dropped off is that it - can't be put back on there?

[firstship]

Jools.................if it has dropped of your credit file in your situation it should not go back and will not be affected by SAR or CCA request,Creation is the company that you had PPI with so to get all details SAR required,the remainder at this stage CCA will be OK.The Companies that you might get a good result from will be the smaller debts that have been sold to DCA,this will show up when the CCA response or not is sent,then F&F can be looked at...............keep in touch.............FS

Edited November 5, 2010 by firstship
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[jools153]

Right ok I have all the information i need on the rest of the creditors.........

1.) Moorcroft - estimated balance owing is £794.27 (Says its a Santander card but I think it was Egg originally) Presumably they have bought this debt. Should I CCA them or SAR? - no longer on credit file

2.) NCO Europe - Estimated balance owing is £8655.58 - Again I think this is a DCA - should I CCA them or SAR? No longer on credit file

3.) RMA Resolve - Estimated balance owing is £1623.98 - I think they collect on behalf of American Express - Should I CCA them or SAR - No longer on credit file.

4.) C L Finance - Estimated balance £503 (formerly a store card (house of Fraser) - this is on my credit file.

5.) Intrum Justicia - Balance is £1506.19 (formerly Barclaycard) not sure if they bought the debt or collecting it on behalf of BC - not on my credit file anymore.

I have sent a SAR to Creation and am waiting to hear back from them.

I look forward to your advice x

[firstship]

Jools...Hi....answer your No2 first NCO Europe are being investigated by OFT speak to CCCS and ask what is happening?????????No1 you need to determine as to whether Moorcroft actually own the debt CCA them,their response will determine this,if they do it is possible they will accept a low F&F,wait and see.....No3 RMA resolve CCA them again it will determine who owns the debt.....No4CL finance this will be a good one to clear as well.but CCA them first.......No5 Intrum Justicia CCA them as well to determine ownership.......The SAR to Creation glad you have this underway as Ive said before they 40 days to reply,although I am sure they will respond before the 40 days...............lots of CCAs but it will allow you to determine the best course to take,we will help you all the way..............................regards.....FS

[jools153]

Thanks FS - all letters are done and will be sent recorded delivery tomorrow. Why are NCO being investigated? I am a bit worried about that debt(because its for another large amount) that they will slap a CCJ in place to prevent me getting the charges (if any back) I really do not want another CCJ!

[firstship]

Jools........sorry not trying to worry you,NCO had a "corporate invasion" and lots of data removed,ask CCCS what the current situation is as you have read that NCO are under investigation by the OFT,they I am sure are still paying them on your behalf,as they would not be foolish enough to do so unless they consider the risk to high.As long as NCO do not approach you direct and ask for payments to be made direct to them..............not to worry ask CCCS.........................FS

[jools153]

Hello

I received a letter yesterday from intrum justitia saying that in order to comply with my request that they need me to complete a form which I have now done. They also want me to send proof of ID (which I have also done) Whilst looking for my ID I came accross a letter from them in response to a CCA request that I sent them a few years ago (barely remember doing it) and it says that they are not able to provide me with a copy of the original credit agreement because the account has been in arrears for more than 6 years. Does this mean that they cannot prove the debt? The letter states that I have not disputed the payments for x amount of years and that I should continue to make payments....................if you can advise please I would be very grateful

[firstship]

Jools...Hi.....the letter from Intrum J the form they have asked you to fill in,if it is Income & Expenditure do not send it,they have also asked for ID do not send,the income and expenditure can only be asked for by a judge for court purposes,the request for ID,if you think about it I am sure they have communicated with you for statements and letters etc what has changed you are still the same person at the same address,be suspicious.Their statement they cannot supply an agreement as the account has been in arrears for more than 6 years is rubbish,my guess is they do not have an agreement at all.You have CCAd them and 12+2 days has gone by send them account in dispute letter,add a couple of lines to the dispute letter..."You understand that an I&E form can only be demanded by a court and as for my ID you have contacted me on numerous occasions why do you need my ID I am the same person and my address is that which you have been happy to send letters to in the past"..........................should be OK.............FS

[jools153]

Hi FS

the letter they sent a few years back said that they do not hold a copy of the agreement so they are not able to produce one. The form they have sent is just basically what I have asked them. It asks for my reference number, name and address - nothing else. I thought it was a bit of a delay tactic. I have been at the same address for over 10 years so there is no dispute over that. They have not asked for income and expenditure or anythng - just for this form to be completed and signed. They also rang me today to check if I would be making a payment this month - they have never done that so I thought that was a bit weird

[firstship]

Hi...........the phone call probably because you have CCAd them,and they are aware they do not have an agreement,so send them the "account in dispute letter"the form you have signed just make sure your signature has a line through it or some method that makes it different slightly ,from your usual signature,as it wont be the first time that a signature has been lifted and added to an agreement.So far looks good..............I am not an advocate of not to pay debts because of non compliance by the OC,that is up to you to decide,however the CCAs and SAR I have suggested will I hope put you in a position where I/we can advise you of the legal options open to you.In between times lets wait for further CCA responses,if you do not receive replies from the other creditors within the 12+2 days then send account in dispute letter,it will strengthen your position as and when you seek a F&F with the smaller creditors,the SAR they have 40 days to respond so a while to go yet............regards..FS

[jools153]

HELP - Intrum Justitia have been sending me letters saying that they are going to pass the debt on if I do not make a payment (Ihave missed one month so far because of the SAR that I have sent them)

CREATION - have sent me a default notice and reapplied interest and late charges. £80 this month!! The original debt with them was £900 and now its £1800!!! I rang them and told them that as I have an arrangement with them and am paying monthly they cannot add interest and charges. They said that they have not recieved an up to date Income and Expenditure list from me so they have started interest and charges again. I completed a new I&E with the CCCS at the beginning of November so I was hoping that they would have had that by now. I am so cross. Creation still have 30 days or so to comply iwth the SAR though - I am so worried that before long this creation debt is going to go up into the £2k mark its crazy - is there anythihng I can do to challenge them on the interest and charges they have started adding?

[firstship]

Jools...Intrum Just can pass the debt or sell the debt and there is very little you can do about this,because you have applied for an SAR do not stop paying them (if you are in a position to pay) at the moment it sounds like the usual threat,are you paying them through CCCS??????????????,or are you still paying your creditors outside of CCCS?????????Creation,have you advised CCCS of their current threats,and yes you can claim back the charges etc,it would appear in both cases the SAR has caused them to react,which makes you wonder why,no agreement comes to mind.,do not send an I&E to Creation,do not phone them either even though their letters tell you to...................tell me how you are paying each creditor,I though CCCS where involved?????????>>>>FS