'past due credit services' chasing 'British Gas' debt

[gemma1983]

I am repaying a debt through 'past due credit solutions' (Original company owed 'British Gas')

 

I have paid every month although a couple of times I have been a day or 2 late in making payment (ie: if payment date has fell on a Sunday so paid Monday)

 

My payment was due on 29/10/12 but was working and completely lost track of date so I rang on 31/10/12 to make my usual £30 payment.

 

I was told i would need to go through an income and expenditure so proceeded to do this.

 

after listing everything i could off the top of my head (along with trying to keep 3 children quiet)

I was told that my disposable income was too great to continue paying £30

and I would have to finish the account in 2 payments of around £94.

 

I would just need to add at this point that this company do not take into account some things that need to be paid out like personal bills

and what they consider to be ''non-essential'' items (even if it is genuine payments).

 

I couldn't understand the figure as it seemed way too high and I knew I did not have the amount left over ''to play with'' that they thought I had.

 

Oh they also don't consider clothing children as essential!!

 

Needless to say this call ended in frustration with no payment being made as my £30 payment would not be accepted.

 

After terminating the call I decided to dig out some paperwork to try and see what I was missing

as I knew I didn't have any income left over at the end of the month.

 

I found some wage slips and realised I had over estimated my wages from employment a

nd had missed off my mortgage payment (I rent a larger property to accomadate my children and pay a mortgage on a smaller property that my sister resides in),

 

my sons nursery fess had also been overlooked.

 

When I rang back and explained this oversight I was advised that my payment plan could be reinstated if I called the following day once it was the start of a new calendar month.

 

I rang the following day and was told by a manager that she had over ruled the previous colleagues decision and demanded that I make the payment of around £94.

 

As you can appreciate that sum is 3 times the amount I had been expecting to pay and simply did not have access to this amount.

 

I literally have about 5 payments left to clear this debt and really want to do so but am unable to do it at the amount they are requesting all because I rang 2 days late to pay.

 

Can someone please help as I am getting nowhere with this company (the manager I spoke to was very judgmental, patronizing and unwilling to listen or accept my payment) and I really do not want extra costs adding as I am so close to being free of this debt!

Edited November 3, 2012 by gemma1983
wrong company name

[havinastella]

Hi Gemma and welcome to Cag!

 

I have moved your thread to the correct forum!

 

Don't worry, you are in good hands!

[gemma1983]

Hi Gemma and welcome to Cag!

 

I have moved your thread to the correct forum!

 

Don't worry, you are in good hands!

 

Thank you so much!!!!!!!

 

I am really stressing about this and it's driving me mad!!!!

 

I find it completely disgusting the way these companies think they can speak to people and reading the posts on here i can see i am not alone.

 

I look forward to any advice you can give re this matter

 

Gemma x

[dx100uk]

god please STOP PHONING THESE FLEECERS

 

how did they get ahold of this BG debt?

 

 

when is it from?

 

if you've got a genuine debt with BG, then PAY BG

 

not some muppet DCA that have NO LEGAL powers

 

dtell us abou the debt please.

 

dx

[caro]

Hi Gemma and welcome to CAG.

 

First thing you need to do is stop speaking to them on the phone. If they ring again just tell them to put in writing what they have to say, and then you can deal with it. You could ask them to include their bank details. Then put the phone down!! This way you can pay what YOU want.

 

Firstly it saves you the stress of having to talk to them, and secondly it gives you a paper trail should they try any more tricks.

[rdm2006]

Send it by cheque or postal order - google them for the name and address.

 

You decide what and when to pay not them

[dx100uk]

who says the debt is owed anyway?

 

we need more info

 

dx

[gemma1983]

After reading numerous posts on here I think it might be wise for me to contact British Gas and ask them to give me details of the original debt? Would i be right in doing this?

[gemma1983]

If I do owe British Gas it would be from Oct 2010 up until I got my gas up and running around 4 months after that.

 

I couldn't make payments before that time as the previous tenant owed the supplier and I had to prove i was a new tenant so that I could keep my gas account with british gas.

 

When my payment plan was set up with british gas i asked if the gas i had used in those 4 months would be included in the fortnightly payments i would making on the payment card british gas were going to send me and they said yes, which i though was the case until i received the first letter from PDCS.

 

I am now realising what an idiot I was for ringing these chancers as I have made approx 12 payments of £30 to them over the last year

 

Frustrating!!!!

[gemma1983]

When I moved into my current property 2 years the previous tenants had outstanding debt with a different gas company but I wanted to remain with British gas (god knows why lol)

 

The other gas company needed me to prove I was a different tenant in order to change my gas supply over. I did this by sending them a copy of my tenancy agreement.

 

In the meantime I spoke to British Gas as I seemed to be in some kind of utility limbo and unable to pay British Gas until the switch over had been completed.

 

I was advised that once the switch over was complete the payments I made to British Gas would include my gas usage in the interim of this change over.

 

I was happy with this and once my payment card was sent from British Gas proceeded to make the fortnightly payments requested by them, believing this included the arrears that had built up through no fault of my own.

 

About a year ago i received a letter unexpectedly from a company called ''past due credit solutions'' stating that I owed around £448 on an outstanding British gas account.

 

I had received no correspondence from British Gas re: this matter and was quite alarmed as it stated ''further action would be taken if I failed to pay''.

 

I rang PDCS to query this and explained the situation that had arisen when I first moved into the property.

 

I was advised that the payments I was making to British Gas only included my current usage and not this outstanding amount,

looking back now after reading the advice on here i was clearly a fool to ring them but hey ho.

 

i set up a payment plan for £30 a month to be paid on 29th. i couldn't set up a standing order as they do not accept maestro for SO's.

 

I have paid every month without fail although this week was the third occasion in year that i have paid a day or 2 late

(sometimes the payment date has landed on a Sunday when they are closed)

 

Monday was the 29th this week and i rang to pay on the 31st as I was working on the 29th and 30th.

 

I was asked to complete an income and expenditure over the phone to establish if I could afford a higher payment.

I knew that i wouldn't be able to afford more than agreed £30 but as they wouldn't consider some of my outgoings

they stated that I had a disposable income of around £250 per month (I wish!!!!)

 

They also do not consider clothing 3 children as an essential outgoing.

 

After a frustrating phone call which resulted in the agent not accepting my payment and me being unable to afford the £94 he was demanding that I pay the call was terminated by me.

 

I then looked through my paperwork and discovered some items that I had not been asked about during the call

and had therefore not thought to to mention (hence it looking like I had a larger disposable income)

 

i then rang back and spoke to another adviser,

to which I explained the situation and was told that my £30 plan could be set back up if I rang the following day at the start of a new calendar month.

 

When I did this I spoke to a manager who said she had overruled the previous colleagues decision and that i would have to pay the higher amount requested.

 

I again explained to her that some items had been missed off the I&E

but she said ''we are going on what you stated'' (like it's not allowed for someone to forget something out of all the things they pay!!!)

 

I said I could provide proof of the outgoings that i had missed off but she wasn't interested in any of it.

 

To top it off, later that day another staff member rang me saying it ''was a scheduled call as i had not made payment that month''

to which i responded that I wasn't going to have the same argument with him as I had had with 2 other agents

and unless he was ringing to accept to accept my £30 payment then the call was a waste of time.

 

The call was then ended by myself due to the disrespectful way in which I was spoken to.

 

The first and third agents I spoke to threatened that further action will be taken which is ridiculous as I am not unwilling to pay, I just cannot afford the amount they want.

 

I have nearly cleared this account and desperately do not want more charges to be added as I just want to get rid of this debt (that really wasn't my fault in the first place)

 

THIS IS ALL THE INFO RE: THIS MATTER

[dx100uk]

well they cannot add any charges whatsoever

 

i would ring british gas now and confirm the payment made to PDC ARE going to BG!!

 

 

dx

[caro]

Don't pay them another penny until you have written proof of what you owe. You are under no obligation to give them any information of your income and expenditure, and it's certainly not down to them to tell you what is essential and what isn't. It IS up to them to give you proof that you owe them anything.

 

I agree with DX, ask British Gas what, if anything, you owe them. You certainly don't need to pay the previous tenants debts!

[Surfer01]

If am understanding this correctly,

you should have only started paying BGAS from the day that they started supplying you and not from the day you moved into the property.

 

If it took you 4 months before you became a BGAS customer again,

the 4 months payments would have had to go to the previous supplier and NOT BGAS.

 

Did you take any readings when you entered the property and who was the supplier at the time you entered the property?

Also when did you change across to BGAS?

 

They have no right to ask you for an Income and Expenditure breakdown.

 

Only a magistrate can make you supply one.

 

Ignore any debt collectors and pay BGAS directly.

 

 

They have to accept your payment even if it is only £1!

 

If you use Internet banking pay them over the Internet by direct transfer.

 

Alternatively their website should allow you to make payments.

[gemma1983]

Thank you very much for your advice re this matter and I will definitely do what you have suggested.

 

I will let you know how I get on or let you know if I have any further problems.

 

Thanks again, Gemma x

[caro]

Please do. It's always good to hear how things work out. Good luck.

[izzitme101]

They must have sent a load out, i got one today, left bg in march, have had no contact whatsoever from them, and was on a prepayment meter for five years beforehand. They wont be getting anything off me.

Am i right in thinking that having been on a card meter for that long, there should be no accrued debt, and that if they didnt update the meters to charge more, then its their fault?

Edited November 5, 2012 by izzitme101

[izzitme101]

ahh there we go,

quick call to bg,

and they confirm nothing was owing when i left,

and are going to send me a letter confirming,

which i can then send on to pastdue.

 

number is not easy to find to talk to bg without an account, i used 0800 1070184

[gemma1983]

The annoying thing is I have been paying the account off!!!!

 

I did actually owe BGas from my previous property, which is why I needed to stay with them when I moved into my new house.

 

I have no issue with paying what I owe, it's the fact the debt collection agency, past due credit solutions are totally unhelpful when it comes to late payments and resolving an account.

 

They expect you to magic money out of nowhere.

 

I am going to ring BGas and find out if they have been receiving the money I have been paying to PDCS and take it from thete, before PDCS start sending me threatening letters again.

 

(Like the one I received in the first place that prompted me to ring to sort out the debt owed.)

 

I will try that number now and let you know how it goes.

 

Thanks for that.

[izzitme101]

I shifted over to ebico, saved loads of money, same rate all year round and no standing charges, or front loading.

[gemma1983]

Hmmmmmmm British Gas rather unhelpful,

basically just said that the debt doesn't belong to them anymore

as they have sold it to PDCS and it's them I need to deal with.

 

I double checked that British Gas are not going to chase me for anything and was assured no...

..it's nothing to do with them.

 

I'm coming to the conclusion that PDCS can kiss my arse for the other £186 that is owing,

I have already paid them around £360 which I'm sure is a hell of a lot more than they bought my debt for.

 

If anyone has any further advice other than what I have decided to NOT do (i:e pay bullies who make peoples life a misery)

I would be very happy to hear it.

 

If PDCS ring me I will tell them to contact me in writing only and also to prove what I have outstanding.

Good strategy? Thoughts appreciated.

[Surfer01]

Dispute the debt for whatever reason and DCA should return it to BGAS.

[gemma1983]

I will be doing when PDCS undoubtedly contact me with one of their lovely letters!!!!

[gemma1983]

Update:

 

I have had a few phone calls from this company, which I ignored and awaited the inevitable letter........it arrived today.

 

Basically stated that the above account remained unpaid and if continued to remain unpaid then they would instruct their client to issue court proceedings against me.

 

My response to this letter is as follows and is what i will be mailing to them tomorrow. Just wanted to check that what I have put in my response is ok........here goes.......

 

Dear Sir/Madam,

 

I am writing with regards to letter you sent dated 15/11/12. The account remains unpaid as I was two days late making payment (as I was working) and my plan was cancelled as I was unable to pay the £186.58 in full and could only afford to make the £30 payment I was scheduled to make.

 

Your so called ''friendly and helpful'' advisor’s were anything but and I was left frustrated at being unable to make my payment. I was asked to go through an income and expenditure form over the phone and was told that my disposable income was too high to continue making £30 payments and the full amount HAD to be paid. I am a single working mother to three children and knew for a fact that I did not have the disposable income stated by the advisor. After terminating the call I checked through my paperwork and realised that some outgoings had been overlooked. I then phoned back to correct this error and was advised that my payment plan could be reinstated if I phoned the following morning (01/11/12) at the start of a new calendar month.

 

When I phoned as arranged the next morning I was told by a manager that she had over ruled what the previous advisor had said and that I had to pay the full amount. I explained that some outgoings had been missed off but she said that that was what the income and expenditure form stated and she had to go by that.

 

I now know that only a Magistrate can request an I&E and that your company do not have the power to demand, let alone act upon such information. Also, any offer payment must not be refused when a client is willing to pay as set out by the Office of Fair Trading.

 

I very much wanted to settle this account as I was near to clearing the amount with only a handful of instalments left to pay so, I rang British Gas to see if I could pay them directly. I was advised that I do not have any outstanding debt with them and my account was purchased by a Debt Collection Agency ie: PDCS.

 

In your letter it is stated that if full payment is not received then your company will advise your client (British Gas) to make a claim against me in court. As British Gas no longer own the account (and the call centre operator that answered my call categorically stated that they would not chase me for any such amount) then this threat of ''recommending to our client that they should issue a claim in court'' is made under false pretences and is therefore unlawful.

 

I found the whole business of dealing with your call centre staff most distressing, intimidating and humiliating. They believe it is appropriate to question people on essential outgoings and then dismiss them if it doesn't 'fulfil' the criteria on their form. They are just call centre staff, NOT registered bailiffs (which even if they were would still not have the authority to conduct themselves in the manner that they do ie: not being a Magistrate and requesting completion of an I&E). I just wish I had had the information I now posses to deal with your bullying staff at the time they refused my payment and treated me as second rate just because I owed some money.

Whatever happened to ''without prejudice'', considering I had already paid a substantial amount on this account and wasn't refusing to pay, just merely two days late calling to make payment.

I would just like to add, this account should never have been passed to/bought by you in the first place as it was an oversight made by British Gas. However, as soon as I was aware you held this account, I phoned to arrange to make payment in instalments which I continued to make for many months until this unfortunate situation arose.

 

I am still willing to clear this account but, at a rate that is affordable to my circumstances. Which either I or a court will determine, not a Debt Collection Agency. I look forward to your response regarding this matter, with a view to continue a payment plan. I would commence this through the online payments system as I would not wish to deal with your rude and aggressive call centre staff again. I did try to make payment online after my plan was cancelled, however this option had been suspended to me so maybe you could look into resolving that.

[dx100uk]

IMHO these spoofers have had enoug honey out of you already.

 

i'd do and send nothing.

[gemma1983]

Well I am interested to see what their response to this would be