Global Debt Recovery/Tower Investigations

[mrmisled]

Help!! My problem concerns the above organisations.

 

I have read lots of threads about them on your terrific site and would like to know what steps I should now take.

 

The letter I had initially was from Tower Investigations with a London 0208 number but the head office was in Huddersfield. Its printed on cheap coloured paper in black and not very professional looking.

 

It starts "We act on behalf of a client and are currently conducting an investigation in order to establish/verify information held"...in fact its the very same worded letter as elsewhere on this site. It then gives a Freefone number and a 0208 number.

 

The one thing I have done, and now having read these forums I should not have, is telephone them.

 

They told me they were acting on behalf of LloydsTSB and I had an outstanding unpaid loan that I took out in 1993. I dont even remember taking a loan out at this time, but when he mentioned my old address my heart sank.

 

The loan was for 5 years (apparently) and in 1997 the marital home I shared was repossessed.

 

My spouse looked after our finances and (yes a fool such as I) I had no idea of the financial mess we were in. The guy on the phone gave details of my old address, my parents address, the fact that lloyds spoke to my mum and sister Jenny (they knew her name) and that I hadnt rang lloyds back suggested that I had attempted to run away from the debt by not leaving a forwarding address. He even said they called my mum in 1997 and she told them i was on holiday in tenerife (which I was) and would call on my return!! I do not remember any of this and neither does my mum or sister

.

He said that Tower Investigations had been assigned the debt on 25 Jan 00 and had been trying to locate me ever since. Despite having my mums address for over 10yrs!! Some investigator he is!!

 

He then went off on a 20 minute ramble saying this issue could be returned to the bank whereby they could then issue a court summons or worst case scenario imprisoned!!! because I had absconded from the debt!! Alarm bells began to ring with me because its just sounded like a scene on WATCHDOG.

 

So I told him I would seek legal advice and speak to TSB to verify the facts. He wasnt very happy with this and suggested it was the worse thing I could do!!!!..More alarm bells!!

 

After exactly an hour he told me he was going to write to me with the amount outstanding and I was then asked to respond with how I would settle the debt, and come to some arrangement.

 

Really my point is.. If I havent settled this debt am I still liable for it. there is/was a ccj attached to it apparently. i cant remember his exact wording.

The other thing is I found cjs on my file when i left my now ex wife in 2006 ( i knew nothing about these either..am i so naive!!)..anyway i paid them all off!!

 

I now have a mortgage, which i got in 2008 and there was no suggestion of this debt then on the banks credit searches!! Surely this will have been flagged up!

 

The demand came today from Global Debt Recovery. Again very unprofessional paper and unbelievable!

 

What should I do? Am I liable for this debt still?

Many many thanks

Edited February 9, 2012 by citizenB
spacing for easier reading

[BASFORDLAD2]

Sounds like its statute barred. The guy was lying out of his ar*e!

[padja]

Ignore it, it is statute barred it appears Global Debt Recovery have bought a job lot of old LLoydTSB debts from 1990's. They want you to feel scared and threatened thats how they hope to mug you into paying for a debt that is totally unenforceable they will never get into a court room but rely on threats like we will send bailiffs, we will get a CCJ, we will visit you, we will seek legal action etc etc etc. They buy these in bulk for a pittance maybe £200 for 10 debts of £3k all they need is to get one person to pay hey presto £2800 profit. Look around the site you will a lot of new posts about Global Debt recovery and Lloyds TSB most posted in last few days. DONT phone them dont reply to them they will soon move on when they realise you arent going to pay, just keep all letters they send you in case there is a complaint to be made to OFT/Trading Standards

[citizenB]

He said you could be imprisoned !!! tsk, tsk, tsk, I dont suppose there is any chance you were able to record that call !!!

YOU CANNOT GO TO PRISON FOR A CIVIL DEBT..

Now you know why you are advised NOT to telephone these people. They can say what the hell they like and you have no proof.. proof that would shut them down without any question.

Never mind.. the good news.. apart from the fact that you wont be imprisoned.. is that...

It sounds as though this debt is actually statute barred. This means that whilst the debt hasnt gone away.. it is considered unfair to pursue for a debt that has not been chased for over 6 years in England and 5 years in Scotland.

 

If they were to even consider starting litigation, you would have a cast iron defence in that the claim is statute barred..

In this instance, I suggest you send the statute barred letter which I have linked for you below.

http://www.consumeractiongroup.co.uk/forum/content.php?408-Letter-sent-when-debt-is-statute-barred

Fill in the blanks and send it off at the very least by Recorded Delivery.. but better by Special Delivery , keep the proof of posting attached to your copy of the letter, and print off the receipt/proof of delivery from the RM Website..

I would suggest you do check the Trust online to ensure that there is no outstanding CCJs in your name.. the link is below.. it will cost you £4.00 to check.

http://www.trustonline.org.uk/

[padja]

have you noticed Citizen B there seems a lot of new posts about Global Debt Recovery and LloydsTSB debts from 1990's appearing in last few days, looks like they just bought a bundle of them

[Bazooka Boo]

Criminals, there needs to be a lot more formal complaining to be done, not just the usual OFT&TS but media and local MP's as well.

[mrmisled]

This info is great thanks everyone.

I will copy the statute barred letter and send special delivery.

Why is this allowed to happen? Why do the banks behave so unethical? Is it legal to buy aged debts from banks? Could anyone just buy them?

What about the Data Protection Act being violated, for instance these people knew my mums address and my sisters name, they had their telephone numbers too!!

They cannot distribute this information surely!!

Is it possible to report these people to the media, as there are so many cases on here, would BBC watchdog be interested in this company?

I feel relief..but a little anger is creeping in now.

Many thanks everyone

[L1882]

Hi Misled

 

I got a call today from the same company -they tried similar scare tactics with me - though the call only lasted 4m 55s. I was less than helpful and haven't, as he demanded, called back before 5PM with my address - apparently something terrible would happen if I didn't call back.

 

I imagine I'll get a further call tomorrow where I will tell them its statute barred. After this I'll need to get some call recording equipment.

[dx100uk]

i would not waste any money on then at all

 

they take no notice

 

dx

[Bazooka Boo]

The reason why they continue to intimidate and bully people is because they think they can get away with it, so yes reporting them and complaining about them to everyone you can think of is the best way forward, OFT TS Media Press MP's etc

[citizenB]

have you noticed Citizen B there seems a lot of new posts about Global Debt Recovery and LloydsTSB debts from 1990's appearing in last few days, looks like they just bought a bundle of them

 

Yep.. and for every one CAGger they come up against and have to admit defeat, they will find 10 people from the general population who have NOT heard about CAG or their rights.. !! So it is a very profitable enterprise.

 

There is a squeeze on all sectors of the Financial Industry, including Debt Collection.. so any adherence to OFT guidelines (if they even know about them) will go out of the window.. if people complain to the regulatory bodies as a matter of course, then we might just see some action against these companies.

[citizenB]

This info is great thanks everyone.

I will copy the statute barred letter and send special delivery.

Why is this allowed to happen? Why do the banks behave so unethical? Is it legal to buy aged debts from banks? Could anyone just buy them?

What about the Data Protection Act being violated, for instance these people knew my mums address and my sisters name, they had their telephone numbers too!!

They cannot distribute this information surely!!

Is it possible to report these people to the media, as there are so many cases on here, would BBC watchdog be interested in this company?

I feel relief..but a little anger is creeping in now.

Many thanks everyone

 

 

Hmm, banks have always behaved in this manner.. they have not been challenged so continue to try it on. The more they are found out and reported the sooner they will be stopped.

 

When the DCAs purchase these "debts" they are bought in bundles.. they are given the minimum information.. eg name, account number, telephone numbers and balance.

 

You will find if you respond to their initial demand for monies, that you either dont know anything about the debt, or want a copy of the agreement.. they go into panic mode and claim they have to refer back to their client !

 

Often the original creditor will have shredded vital information, if they had it to shred in the first place. So they have sold an account for which they have no proof of liability .. written it off their books and obtained tax relief. The DCA has bought a pup at less than face value of the debt.. and will use any means they can get away with in order to get their money back..threats, discounts, more threats. Because not only have they probably lost the small amount they paid for the account, they have lost the mega profits by being able to eclaim the full amount of balance..

 

IMHO, original creditors should be forced to provide a full package of information.. whether they do have a valid agreement, whether they did issue valid default notices and or termination notices. Whether there is an unresolved dispute, whether they have already come to a payment arrangment with the debtor or whether the account is statute barred, etc, etc.

 

But that would then mean that they wouldnt be able to offload a lot of accounts and where they were able to provide the information. it would probably have been less expensive for them to take court action. Or if they didnt want the extra work involved in litigation, it would make the debt more expensive to sell on.

 

In respect of the data being passed on. If the account holder provided telephone numbers etc. then I think they can pass that on to a third party.. only if there is a clause in the terms and conditions that allows for that.

 

They should not have passed on your Mum's information, unless she had given her permission, especially if the account is nothing to do with her. She would need to take that up with the company/Information Commissioner on her own behalf.

 

There is often requests for contacts to speak to the media. Admin usually posts these requests up in the Announcement section