Just a quick question (CCJ)

[DeadlyDirk808]

Hello All,

 

Looking at my credit report the other day on Experian,

 

a CCJ appeared on there (never been there before) from 2011,

for a smallish amount of £350,

but it's been registered against at an address I haven't lived at for about 7 years now,

and in a geographical area more than 50 miles away from me

(not that it has any relevance whatsoever!)...

 

I am actually looking to rent a house or a flat, and am wondering if it would show up on an estate agent's credit check,

seeing as the address is from 7 years ago

and won't be part of my application anyway,

and whether I'd end up losing a £250 referencing fee...

 

. What do those experienced people think??

 

Thanks in advance!

[renegadeimp]

Yes it would. If you have no knowledge of it, you would need to investigate ans see if you can get it set aside

[DeadlyDirk808]

I've actually just enquired about this with the court now,

 

and it seems that it's a debt I actually paid off in 2012,

so time to get on to the company themselves!

 

Do you think I could get the whole thing removed,

bearing in mind that the summons where clearly sent to an old address

and I knew nothing about it until the last few days.

 

The fact that the debt was paid off in 2012,

without the knowledge that there was even in a ccj in place

might add some weight to this claim.

 

The company are writing to the court to inform them that it was paid off.

 

To make the scenario more interesting,

 

I have a letter, dated after the ccj

threatening court action over the same debt!

Thoughts?

Edited April 11, 2014 by DeadlyDirk808

[DeadlyDirk808]

Who do I need to write to to ask for the CCJ to be removed?

[renegadeimp]

If the CCJ was paid a while after the court date,

then it wont be removed but you can get a certificate of satisfaction for it.

 

However, if you had no knowledge of any court action

and paid the DCA

and they didnt tell you,

then you could contest it as they arent allowed to do that.

 

basically you were paying as agreed,

but they still took court action,

on an old address anyway.

[DeadlyDirk808]

Well yes, I paid it in 2012 with no knowledge that I was ever summoned to court, it seems the summons where sent to an old address, and the only time I knew about the ccj was when I checked my credit report earlier. It never appeared on my credit file until recently, and I didn't know what it was for until I spoke to the court today. So to summarise, 1) I never received the summons as they where sent to an old address, therefore had no knowledge of a judgement being made against me, 2) The debt was paid in 2012 (still had no knowledge of the CCJ at this point), 3) Became aware in the last few days of a CCJ against me, made in January 2011 , which with further investigation turns out to be the debt that I had paid off in 2012. I have spoken to the company who are writing to the court to confirm that it has been settled in full.

 

Have I got any hope of having it removed?

[renegadeimp]

While you were paying this DCA, did they know your new address?

[DeadlyDirk808]

Yes they did,

 

they wrote me a letter that at the time looked a standard "we're going to take you to court",

 

the first letter I actually received from them,

 

looking at it today

with the knowledge that they had already done the ccj

it looks like it was to threatening to summon me to court to go over why I hadn't paid the debt.

 

It's quite an ambiguous and cleverly worded letter

as it makes a fleeting mention of the judgement,

but without the knowledge that had already been done

 

it just seemed to be a threat more than anything.

 

Nevertheless, once I'd received this letter and establishing that I had an account with them I promptly paid it off.

 

Hope this makes sense.

[renegadeimp]

If they did that, and they issued on the old address, then they are bang out of order. I'll see if i can get you some help.

[renegadeimp]

Btw, which DCA was it?

[DeadlyDirk808]

Here is the letter...

 

"NOTICE OF INTENTION TO PROCEED WITH ACTION

 

Dear Mr x,

 

Safeloans will make an application on 06/07/2012 to the court for you to attend to be questioned as to your means to the pay the (CCJ) judgement debt.

 

You will be served with a copy of the court order to attend before the court.

 

Non-compliance of this order may result in serious repercussions.

 

Questioning will be by a court officer unless a judge agrees there are no compelling reasons for questioning to take place before a judge.

 

You will be asked to sign a statement of truth and you will be asked to produce all relevant documents

including but not limited to:

pay slips,

bank statements,

building society books,

share certificates,

rent book,

mortgage statement,

hire purchase

and similar agreements,

court orders,

any other outstanding bills,

electricity,

gas,

water

and council tax

bills for the past year.

 

This intended action can be avoided.

We would rather mediate the repayment of this loan with you and 3 repayment options for you to consider."

 

Now,

with what I learnt today,

this letter makes a lot of sense.

 

It's dated the 22/06/2012,

it makes clear reference to a CCJ being obtained,

and encourages mediation rather than court action.

 

Now, imagine you've never had a CCJ before in your life,

never been threatened with one, etc

then this lands first by e-mail,

then a couple of days later by post.

 

Naturally, the debt was paid rather quickly!!

 

The CCJ was done in January 2011,

and was issued at an address I moved out of in 2007,

the address I got the loan at doesn't even seem to come into play at all.

 

I don't want much,

I just want the CCJ stricken from the records!

 

It was quite a relief in the first instance when I discovered I paid it already!

 

Thanks.

[renegadeimp]

Ahh so its a PDL. Typical tactics sadly. Which DCA was it that was chasing you?

[DeadlyDirk808]

It was the actual company themselves, the pd lender...

[renegadeimp]

Ahh. Gotcha.

perhaps have a read of the PDL forums.

 

It seems safeloans like to do this kind of thing a lot.

 

I've asked the site team to see if they can step in and advise if possible,

but they might not get to the thread till tomorrow.

 

In any case, if they can help, theyll advise asap.

[DeadlyDirk808]

Thanks for your help buddy, really appreciate it!

 

I've spent the last year sorting out my finances and settling the few defaults

and outstandings I have had,

 

then this pops up!

 

Really demoralising to say the least!

[slick132]

Hi DD,

 

You need to apply to the court to have the CCJ Set Aside on the grounds that the Claimant used an old address despite knowing your current address.

 

You should do this using Form N244 as soon as possible. A fee will be payable unless you qualify for fee remission.

 

Do you know what court dealt with the claim.

 

[DeadlyDirk808]

I do,

it was Oxford County Court (combined court),

 

I've already spoken with them and safeloans and

 

the young lady at safeloans,

despite the situation was helpful and

 

said she would write to the court to confirm that the debt was satisfied in 2012.

 

The ccj was registered at an old address I moved out of in 2007,

the loan was taken out in 2010 at a different address,

and they finally wrote to me at my current address in summer 2012.

[dx100uk]

I don't think, as such,

the service to an old address, wil play any part here.

 

the fact that the claimant is writing to the court

will be enough, on its own,

to get the CCJ annulled

and wiped as an 'admin' error.

 

you shouldn't have to pay for anything or fill any forms in.

 

let the claimant do the work/cost for you.

 

poss keep in-touch with the claimant,

findout when the letter was sent.

and then badger the court for confirmation its annulled.

 

dx

[BRIGADIER2JCS]

I agree, have you asked for a copy of Safe Loans letter to the court?

[slick132]

Hi DD,

 

I would not rely on the Claimant doing anything here to help you have the CCJ "removed" from the register. If they confirm it was settled in 2012, that is what will be shown on the Register but the CCJ will still show for 6 years from 2011.

 

Getting the CCJ Set Aside will depend on whether you can satisfy the court that :-

 

1. You only just now learned about the CCJ because the PDL used an old address.

 

2. They used this despite having your (then) current address when the Claim was issued.

 

3. You kept the PDL aware of your address at all times.

 

I think you will struggle to get the CCJ Set Aside. You misunderstood the letter in June 2012 for one that just threatened court action, but it does refer to the CCJ and making arrangements to pay it off.

 

On balance, you may decide it is worth the risk of paying for a N244 Set-Aside Application, to try and clear your CRA files for the future.

 

[slick132]

Hi Dirk,

 

Just to add to my last post, Site Team Andyorch has said he also doubts a Set Aside Application can succeed here.

 

You settled the debt after the CCJ was made and, even though you misunderstood at the time, this leaves you with no defence.

 

Best you can do is to ensure the records are updated to show the CCJ is marked as settled in full with the correct date.

 

[dx100uk]

opps didn't see the dates

 

silly me

 

dx

[slick132]

Not just you Dx.

 

I also failed to see some of the crucial info in various posts when I first read the thread.

 

[DeadlyDirk808]

Yeah, looking through some of my posts it doesn't actually look clear (the chronology of events), I think your spot on Slick, I will struggle to get anything other than the ccj being marked as satisfied (the wheels are already in motion on this), purely because of that letter that I misunderstood at the time, although my defence at the time was that I was completely oblivious that I'd received a ccj on this matter, and with it being the only ccj I've ever received, I had no idea what the process is/was. The accompanying paperwork, i.e a fact sheet, lists questions on it like "What is a CCJ" and tells you what impact they can have, and that if you pay the ccj within 1 month it'll be removed, etc. This letter was sent in June 2012 whilst the CCJ is dated January 2011. (Debt was cleared in June 2012)

 

So anyway, with that issue to one side as I'm pretty sure it's here to stay on my file until January 2017 as satisfied at least, back to the original question, how badly will this impact when I'm trying to rent a house or a flat, and on my credit reference as a whole? I'm already guessing that High Street Lenders will turn their noses up at me, and with regards to car finance I'm looking at sub-prime lenders with an APR of 49.9%?

 

And, as it's registered against an address I moved out of in April 2007, will it even be seen by some/most lenders?

[slick132]

Hi DD,

 

The reality is that a CCJ will almost certainly show up when a lettings agent does a search. It'll show against your name despite the old address being used. However, that will not necessarily preclude you from being able to rent a property.

 

My advice to you is to always disclose the CCJ and briefly explain that is is settled and was only made because the claimant used an old address.

 

If you are honest about the CCJ, that honesty should count in your favour, as opposed to them finding out about the CCJ through searches which would probably then count against you.