Icon Collections and Premium Choice. missed premium

[CableDolt]

Hello everyone,

 

I'll start this from the beginning:

 

In February 2012 I went away in Kenya for two months with work where I had no internet/mobile phone access of any sort. In the March while I was away I missed the final payment of my car insurance with Premium Choice. I'm not entirely sure how that happened and hold my hands up to having to pay it. I was currently paying around £30 a month for my car insurance. What is interesting to note about this is that there was no physical correspondence sent from Premium Choice about this failure to pay - when I returned home I had no letters from them saying I'd missed a payment.

 

I returned back to the UK at the end of April and as I said above there were no letters from Premium Choice so I didn't think anything was wrong.

 

From May 2012 until around March this year I've been getting periodic letters from Icon Collections saying that I was in debt with Premium Choice who have now sold my debt and Icon want a whopping £159.36 from me.

 

At this point I was a little confused as to how I owed Premium Choice this money because as far as I knew my annual insurance with them ended in March. I emailed them and received a very polite response from them saying that pretty much they tried charging me in the March but for whatever reason it didn't go through so they tried again in April and the same occurred. Due to the fact I was in Kenya I had no idea this was going on so this couldn't have been nipped in the bud when it first happened. In the email from Premium Choice they also said that the matter was out of their hands now as they've sold my debt (which to them, with additional charges they put on was something like £61.

 

Icon also emailed me at one point and I emailed them back and informed them that I was willing to pay the actual amount I owed Premium Choice but they could (politely) shove it if they thought I was going to buckle and give them an extra £100 just because they said so. I received no response to this email.

 

In March this year I went off to Afghanistan for 6 months and while out there I got another email from them (along with a bunch of letters at home which I obviously didn't read. I don't want to think about the number of times they rang my mobile as it was switched off at home). The second email they sent was rather generic and said they were still collecting the £159.36 and that was it. I replied to their email saying that could they continue any correspondence via email because I was unable to answer my phone/read their letters because I was abroad, and that once again I was willing to pay the actual amount owed and not the fantasy number they have apparently made up. I received no response to this email, again.

 

Fast forward to today and I got a letter from Icon saying the following:

 

Dear Sir

 

Re: Premium Choice - Amount Due £ 159.56

 

Following our Debt Recovery Officer's recent enquiry on your address, we are informed that you continue to be linked to this property.

 

Therefore as you have not responded, we can only assume that you have no intention of making an effort to clear the sum outstanding, even by instalments.

 

LEGAL PROCEEDINGS ARE NOW BEING DRAWN UP AGAINST YOU

 

We are preparing legal proceedings against you and therefore you have rendered yourself liable for the follwing costs along with Statutory interesticon, which will accrue daily.

 

COURT FEE £ 15

SOLICITORS COSTS £ 50

 

A Court Summons will be served upon you shortly which will result in bailiffsicon attending your property and removing goods if a Judgement is secured against you. This could also severely reduce your future opportunities of obtaining credit as the Court Judgement will be marked against you.

 

 

*****ACT NOW BY CALLING 0844 5679998*****

 

 

If necessary, a copy of this letter will be retained by us and be used as evidence in Court to show that every effort has been made to avoid proceedings against you.

 

Yours faithfully

 

Legal Department

Icon Collections International Ltd

 

 

I'm getting sick of this now. On two occasions via email I've offered to pay back the amount I actually owe (in the region of £60) but I wasn't going to let them slap an extra £100 on top for giggles. They haven't responded to these offers at all. What would my next move be as I have no intention of letting them rip me off. I know that I do actually owe them (or rather, owed Premium Choice) some money but surely they have no legal right to just add arbitrary amounts to a debt?

 

Thanks in advance,

 

- CableDolt

[mch1991]

Don't worry, they're nothing more than a silly powerless debt collection agency.

 

Debt officer? Haha! Anyone can enquire about someone's residential status through the electoral roll and so forth, why they're making themselves sound like some high and mighty power is beyond me. Debt officer meaning office phone jockey.

 

Personally, if they claim they've purchased the debt, then ask for a notice of assignment under s.196 of the Law of Property Act 1925.

 

Ask for a break down of all fees and charges that have been added. You aren't liable to pay disproportionate fees and charges, only the original among that was originally due.

 

Don't worry about court action, any claim from these morons would be easy to defend against especially as the balance is made up of unenforceable charges. Further more, as they make a solid threat of legal action, remind them of their obligations under the civil procedure rules 1998 and practice direction on pre action conduct.

[dx100uk]

type in icon

 

in our search of the top grey toolbar

 

they are sending out these type of letters to lots of people

 

thinking they can spoof people

 

dx

[fletch70]

Personally if that is the exact wording of the letter I would be reporting them to the OFT and calling consumer direct. The arrogance of them in assuming that they would win any claim .