DCA harassment for my deceased Grandfather...please help

[Lisey Loo]

Hi, not sure if this is in the right place so please move it if need be.

 

My Grandfather died in August 2010 and ever since then I have had endless letters and calls to my mobile regarding a debt he apparently owes to Phillips & Cohen. They are making me ill.

 

As he & my Grandmother were never in debt ever in their lives & didn`t even have a credit card as they were `old school` & believed in saving for what you wanted, this matter is making me go crazy. They never bought anything with credit always cash from a shop.

 

They have continued to call & send the letters to me after I have sent a copy of his death certificate and several letters to them asking them to stop but they refuse to acknowledge that his has died and want the money from his estate, I think it`s £200 now. We could barely afford his funeral & had to get help from the DWP to pay as he`d been ill with cancer for many years and had strokes/TIAs since 1998.

 

All I can possibly even connect this to is an order I made online for him several years ago for some trousers which I paid for online with my credit card. As the order was going directly to him, I gave his address for delivery.

 

If anyone can help put a stop to this I will be forever grateful. I`m getting calls from 8am every day until 9pm and every letter with his name on asking for money upsets me all over again. They have his first name wrong and are addressing him by his middle name.

 

How can I get them to stop?

[cerberusalert]

Make a complaint to your local Trading Standards via http://www.direct.gov.uk/en/Governmentcitizensandrights/Consumerrights/index.htm

 

If your grandfather left no estate any debt he may have had would have died with him & you certainly are not responsible.

[dx100uk]

http://www.consumeractiongroup.co.uk/forum/showthread.php?114576

[Lisey Loo]

Thank you so much for your quick reply.

 

I should`ve said that I contacted them last year & the only advice they gave was to write to the DCA with a copy of the death cert & they were convinced that would put a stop to it all.

It made no difference.

[cerberusalert]

'Phone consumer direct again and explain that you followed their earlier advice but these parasites are still harassing you, they should escalate the complaint.

[Lisey Loo]

Ok, I will do, thank you.

 

I hate all this going on, I can`t sleep because of it.

 

Thanks so much for your help.

[BRIGADIER2JCS]

Is this Phillips & Cohen all the time

or is any other company chasing.

 

Brig.

[Lisey Loo]

Phillips & Cohen.

[Surfer01]

They are committing an offence under the Protection from Harassment Act 1997 and I would use that act against them and also claim compensation. As it is a criminal offence you can involve the police and they are obliged to act on your complaint.

Alternatively as you have already sent them a letter, send them another letter registered mail advising that if they contact you or your family again you will escalating the matter and seeking compensation through the courts for undue harassment under the Harassment Act or something along those lines.

[Lisey Loo]

I`ve tried telling them that what they`re doing is harassment but they carry on. I wasn`t aware of the actual act though, thank you for that.

They were sending all the letters to my Nan`s address and I could see how much it was upsetting her so when I wrote to them telling them to stop and that he`d never bought anything ever from the internet I gave them my address to shield her from it all.

 

I hate them so much!! It feels like they are tarnishing his memory by accusing him of all this cr*p and lying all the time.

[BRIGADIER2JCS]

Lisey, The way to go from here is to make a Formal Complaint

with a time limit of 7 days for a reply.

I would suggest that you say something like this.

Dear Sirs,

FORMAL COMPLAINT

 

Take note Mr.xxxxxx died on xxxxxxx copy of death certificate attached herewith.

The estate has been settled and there are no funds remaining,you will therefore

remove all data relating to this matter from your files forthwith, failure to do so

WILL result in action against your firm for harassment, and the OFT will be advised

of your conduct as will Consumer Direct.

I am sure I do not have to point out to you the relevent sections of the OFT Guidance 2003-2011

or the Harrasment Act (S).

This my bfinal response to you on this matter as the is no possible resolution to your claim.

send the recorded delivery addressed to the Compliance Manager.

 

Brig.

[Lisey Loo]

Wow Brig, thank you so much.

 

That sounds like a great letter, I shall get that done today and posted to them tomorrow. I just hope it works, nothing else has ever stopped them.

[BRIGADIER2JCS]

Happy to help Lisey let us know what

happens, there's more in the armoury

if needed.

 

Brig.

[Lisey Loo]

Thank you so much, all of you. It helps a lot knowing I`m not alone in dealing with this ****.

[sillygirl1]

Don't forget to add

 

and a complaint will be made to the Solicitors Regulatory Authority as your governing body.

 

The SRA won't do much but they are starting to clamp down on the 'solicitors for rent' who are specialising ONLY in debt collecting, deceased debt collecting has a lot of rules and this lot are taking the proverbial.

[Lisey Loo]

Thank you sillygirl1, I appreciate your help. Will add that to my letter.

 

I really don`t understand how these people can think what they do is ok in any way, makes me sick.