Regal Help? I'm a bit stuck!

[unwrittensource]

Hello,

 

Sorry if you seem to be having to answer the same questions over and over but I have searched the forum and while it has been very very helpful to myself I have been unable to answer some other questions which I hope can be answered here.

 

I am in debt with Natwest for a credit card and for an overdraft, Regal Credit have the credit card which did stand at £954 and capquest have my overdraft debt which over the year has grown to £594.

 

Regal sent me a threatening letter and I called them up, they stated they would need the full amount and I stated I didnt have that kind of money and no, I wouldnt be able to borrow it from anyone. Regal asked me a few questions about how much I get paid (Around 12,000 after tax) and they pretty much buillied me into paying £153 a month. I was just able to pay this due to me sharing a flat with my girlfriend, however she is originally from New Zealand and is heading back home at the end of the month, so all the bills are down to me to pay.

I called Regal at the begining of the month and stated that due to unforseen circumstances there is no way i can meet the £153 by the 14th of this month (Which is when the payments are due) and wont be able to make those kind of payments for a long time. I stated that the only way I would be able to live on the money I have is to offer around £25. The Regal "Adviser" stated that was not good enough and explained that if I was unemployed I would still have to pay £50 a month and that this wasnt acceptable. I stated that there wasnt much else I could do, I dont have the money to pay that amount and I am doing the decent thing by calling them up to arrange an alternative. He wasnt having any of it and stated that he would reduce the payments to £120, I still said that doesnt solve the issue. A bit more arguing and he said £78 and I said thank you but I still cannot accept your offer as I literately wont have money to buy food for the month if I do. He said that was the lowest he was prepared to go and that he had reduced the payments by half. He was still very rude on the phone and again explained that an unemployed person would still have to pay the minimum of £50. I asked him if he is suggesting I become unemployed to pay the debts. He then suggested the only way to settle this is to send in my bank statments etc to prove that I dont have enough money. I asked for all the information I needed from then and hung up.

 

It was then that I found this forum and done my homework. I emailed them the reduced payment letter and had not heard anything for over a week, then I received a phone call at the office I work at (I am still very angry as I dont know where on earth they got that number from and they keep ringing it and getting me into trouble at work!) from a guy called "Chris" stating that he's responding to my email. He stated that while he understood that I was in a difficult situation he couldnt accept payments of £25.50.

 

My budget works out that I have £15.50 left however I pay Capquest £25 a month and felt that it was unfair they would be getting less. (I know, stupid me.) This budget, however, does not include road tax a clothing allowance, just my bills, my debts and less than £50 for food.

 

He again, stated that an unemployed person would still have to pay £50 a month and done the math for me over the phone. Someone on JSA gets x amount every two weeks, thats £25 a fortnight which equals to £50 a month. I said there wasnt much else I could offer, I then said I am offering £25.50. £10 of that is from money I should be spending on food but I felt it wouldnt be fair to be paying one debt company £25 and the other £15. The debts are currently around 594 each.

After more talk he said he would "meet me half way" and stated that he would reduce the payments to £34.50 for a period of 3 months, then they would review my case and up the repayments. I asked him if I really had any choice to which he replied "No" so as the lowest payment I said it'll have to do for now and hung up.

 

That day I sent the CCA letter off and the decreasing repayments letter (because i had not heard back from them in a week and it was getting close to the payment date.).

 

I use my girlfriends bank account as I can only get a basic bank account which I can only withdraw £200 a day and it doesnt have a chip and pin. So when she tried to cancel the direct debit from regal just incase they still tried to take £153 there was no direct debt. Instead they have used a kind of "point of sale" system to take money out of the account whenever they wanted. She then had to cancel the card to get re-issued a new one so they couldnt take money out.

 

I havent paid the £34.50 which was due today as I now dont have the money due to my car needing a new tire, also I didnt know if I should while I've sent out a CCA request. Should I have continued paying? Are they really going to take me to court?

 

They have deffinately received the letters today as they have been trying to ring me, at home, on my mobile and again using the office number even though I told them they shouldnt be calling me there.

 

What are my next steps? Sorry this is so long winded. Regal have been extremely rude to me etc where as CapQuest have been nothing but nice to me, they were the ones who offered the repayments of £25 so Im quite happy with them. I havent sent a CCA request to CapQuest, should i?

 

Thank you for help everyone who replies!

[Revenant]

Hi uws

 

Welcome to CAG

 

You have just found out why it's always said . . keep off the phone

 

They are treating you like a mushroom (Feed you s**t and keep you in the dark) as if you were unemployed and on benefits the most you'd be expected to pay is £1

 

Down to basics, do youself an I & E excersise starting with you priority bills (Rent/Rates/Elec/Gas/Food etc etc) once you have got a truer figure for your disposable income without leaving yourself in hardship then make a revised offer, you're in control not them

 

Get everything in writing emails are ok but you can't really beat a paper trial and DO NOT send them any extra details eg Bank Statements as they have no right to that info

 

If they don't like your payment suggestions that's tough and if you set up a plan with any of them try to use a SO not DD/Card and as long as you keep to your end of the bargain IF they decided to try the Courts a Judge would not be impressed one little bit as you've shown willing

 

Do a bit more home work, keep off the phone (If they call just tell them to put it in writing) but laso point out that by calling you at work they're breaching OFT Guidelines, here's an appropriate letter you can use . .

 

http://www.consumeractiongroup.co.uk/forum/content.php?493-Harassment-by-telephone-response-letter

 

amend it to suit and then keep us updated

 

Your in control now so try not to worry

 

Regards

 

R

Edited March 15, 2011 by Revenant

[blueboy6970]

What a load of old crock.

 

If you are unemployed the maximum a Judge would possibly order you to pay is £1 per month.

 

STOP TALKING TO THESE FOOLS ON THE PHONE.

 

Send them the "communicate in writing" letter.

 

Wait for the CCA deadline 12+2 days, send the "in dispute" letter if you get nothing back, then stop the payments to them.

 

Unemployment Benefit is for the recipient to survive, not pay back a greedy DCA!!! :-x

[maroondevo52]

Hi,

 

Have you any idea how many charges you have on the Credit Card ?

[unwrittensource]

Thank you for your responses.. I feel a bit more confident now, however I do feel I will be getting charges or something to this account as I havent been able to pay the £34.50 they tried to "sell" me on the phone for this month.

 

I will send the comminucation in writing letter off tomorrow, however in both letters I sent to them I did state that I look forward to hearing from them in writing.. I doubt they even pay attention to that though do they?

 

I'm guessing they CAN refuse my offer of £15.50 and I have seen the letter template for if they refuse. What happens if they keep refusing? Should I just continue to make a postal order to them of £15.50 with a cover letter stating it is to be paid to my account Ref: XXXXXXXX?

[ashmk]

It's tuff if they rufuse.

It's your money, you decide how to spend it.

 

Just pay them what you had decided you can afford and stick to it. To hell with what they think, they won't do anything more than rant at you down the phone and that can just be ignored.

[unwrittensource]

the credit card had a 700 limit and i think it got to 500 or 600 and i was repaying it slowly but I was working as an apprentice and at the time was only getting £250 a month for 50 hour weeks so eventually I couldnt keep paying it. So probably around 300 to 400 are charges, I'd have to check. However everything was attached to my natwest bank accounts online, after I couldnt keep up with the repayments the credit card account was removed completely from my online account so I couldnt do anything with it anyway. I went into my local natwest branch to ask what was going on, they told me that the account was closed and no one else has access to it. I didnt even have access to it until I received a letter from regal telling me to pay up.

[maroondevo52]

You can re-claim the Credit Card charges, including the £12 ones.

[unwrittensource]

I'll have to look into re-claiming those. They will hopefully pay off most of my debt then.

Thank you for your help guys

[unwrittensource]

Hi again,

 

Just another quick question. I sent the CCA letter and budget letter to Regal on the 10/03/11 recorded delivery. I have kept copies and the receipts for proof, however I've just checked the tracking thing Royal mail have on their website and it says this

 

Item A******GB was posted at ***** and So *** *** on 10/03/11 and is being progressed through our network for delivery.

 

I'm guessing this means they havent received it yet? If that is the case does the 14 days start when they have RECEIVED the letter or the date when I sent it?

 

They have been calling me every day for the past week which I have not been answering as I have stated I do not wish to be contacted via phone, I have taken a week off of work yet they have some how found my office number and continue to call that each day too, even though my co-workers have stated I'm not in all week. Its getting me in a lot of trouble at work. I will be sending a letter out either tomorrow or Monday to them re: the telephone calls to remind them.

 

Thanks for your help

[unwrittensource]

Can anyone help me clear this up? I've just checked royal mail tracker again and it still states the same thing.

 

I need to know whether I can send the "ran out of time" letter soon?

 

Thank you

[Blondmusic]

Contact Royal Mail and ask if the letters have been delivered. First Class recorded post usually arrives the next day.

[Halibutt]

The Post Office are having delays with their track & trace website updates at the moment. Chances are that if you sent Recorded Delivery, then the item(s) have already been received and signed for.

 

Have another check tomorrow and/or the next day and you should see the delivery/signed for date. Personally, I'd give them 12 + 2 working days from the date on which your letter was signed for.

[unwrittensource]

Well they've got until Weds 30th to reply. The phone calls have stopped FINALLY and I still havent received a letter from them about not paying them the "agreed" £35.

The letter is dated the 10th, I've got proof it was sent on the 10th.

 

However Royal mail have put post through my letter box which were suposedly recorded delivery and stated that I'd signed for it when I was deffinately at work.