Capital One Lowells and debt outstanding dispute

[trickyricky]

OK guys, here is one that you may wish to give me some advice on.

 

I took out a credit card with Capital One a good few years back not quite sure when as I cannot find any of original paperwork

but I would imagine it would be around 2004 -2005.

 

Unfortunately, I became disabled in 2007 and was unable to work and eventually I defaulted on my card in 2008.

 

I worked out a plan to pay a token amount each month and this was accepted but I was also getting periodic calls

asking for a financial status and asking if I could pay more.

 

I got fed up with the calls and wrote to them stating that all communications must now be in writing

and telephone calls would not be entered into.

 

I was then getting letters asking for a financial statement which I duly completed and gave them.

Then I was getting letters still asking for this despite the fact I had already sent it to them this was happening on a regular basis.

 

They seem to lose things or state they haven’t received it.

I wrote countless letters of complaint about their service but to no avail

 

Finally, I think they were getting fed up with me complaining and I got a letter back in late 2009

stating the debt was now with a DCA (Welcome Solutions).

 

I wrote to Capital One stating that as far as I was concerned I had fulfilled my end of the bargain

and that I would not be dealing with Welcome Solutions and that I would continue to send my monthly payment to Capital One

and they can do with it what they like.

 

At the same time I wrote to Welcome Solutions telling them amongst other things that I had a dispute with Capital One a

nd I would not be dealing with their company.

 

I got a letter back from Welcome Solutions to say they had passed the debt back to Capital One,

I guess they did not want involved.

 

After that Capitol One still kept messing me around with financial statements etc until I was totally hacked off with it all.

 

In February 2010 I sent them a letter together with a cheque for £15.00.

 

In the letter I stated clearly that the £15 pounds was for full and final settlement of the account

and I quoted the account number, I also wrote the same statement across both sides of the cheque.

 

They cashed the cheque and that was the last I heard from them.

 

Over four years later I receive a letter from them last month stating they had sold the debt to none other than Lowells.

 

The next day I receive a letter from them saying how they bought the debt and I am liable for the outstanding balance.

I wrote back to them stating that as a far as I am concerned the debt was cleared back in 2010,

I did not at this point tell them my reasoning behind this.

 

I told them I want nothing to do with them and I won’t be contacting them again and suggested they contact Capital One.

 

I also sent a letter to Capital One stating that I do not owe them anything and it was up to them to dig through their files

to find out why as I was not doing their job for them.

 

I eventually received a letter back from Rachael Cornfield and she said she had found my letter of February 2010

regarding the full and final settlement payment but Capital One do not have to accept the terms within the letter

and she quoted their terms and conditions This is what she wrote –

 

‘Under General section C , it states Any delay in enforcing our rights under this agreement shall not affect our rights.

We may also accept late payments or partial payments, or cheques or money orders marked as payment in full or something similar,

without losing any of our rights under this agreement’

Therefore, as we have not agreed to the terms and conditions of your payment, the remaining debt is still outstanding’

 

As far as I am concerned, by virtue of the fact that they presented the cheque to my bank

and were paid the money they therefore accepted my payment terms.

 

If under their terms and conditions they were not going to accept my payment and the content of the letter

which clearly stated it was for full and final payment then why didn’t they simply return the cheque with a letter to say

that they did not accept this?

 

Capital One have never been in touch regarding this matter until now some 4 years later when

 

I received their communication last month stating they had sold the debt.

 

Any comments suggestion very welcome

 

Thanks

[ims21]

Hi

 

Sorry to say that your action with the £15 isn't a full & final settlement.

 

These things have to be negotiated and agreed between both parties.

 

If it were me I would send Lowell a CCA request.

 

Also SAR to CapitalOne to see if there are penalty charges and/or PPI on the account which you could reclaim.

[fletch70]

When you write to them please make sure you do not acknowledge the debt. Cap 1 do seem to struggle to provide compliant s78 documentation.

 

Get that cca request off and let us know what they send.

How much are they claiming ?

[trickyricky]

When you write to them please make sure you do not acknowledge the debt. Cap 1 do seem to struggle to provide compliant s78 documentation.

 

Get that cca request off and let us know what they send.

How much are they claiming ?

 

Hi thank you very much I will get the cca request off asap the alleged debt is £2411

[BRIGADIER2JCS]

Hi thank you very much I will get the cca request off asap the alleged debt is £2411

You need to be very careful with Lowell considering the size of the debt, especially if you are a property owner.

Lowell issue Statutory Demands quite often on sizeable debts.

[fletch70]

Hi

Yes Lowell are known for issuing statutory Demands so that is why, IMHO it is important to keep the dialogue open with them. Get the CCA request off, if what they send back is good you may have to set up a repayment plan, if not good or a recon then ask them if they have the original .

 

If you have no assets then they are less likely to take action

[BRIGADIER2JCS]

Address All correspondence to Ms Sara de Tute, Director of Legal & Compliance at The Lowell Group.

[trickyricky]

Thank you all for your support - Just to let you know I am disabled I do not work and I am on disability living allowance. I do not own any property or have any assets whatsoever, my car is a motobility vehicle so that cannot be touched. I think the worst they can do is bankrupt me for the sheer hell of it, but what good that would do beats me. I am 60 years old I wont ever work again and I have no interest in getting loans etc so my credit file being screwed up would have little to no affect.

[BRIGADIER2JCS]

Thank you all for your support - Just to let you know I am disabled I do not work and I am on disability living allowance. I do not own any property or have any assets whatsoever, my car is a motobility vehicle so that cannot be touched. I think the worst they can do is bankrupt me for the sheer hell of it, but what good that would do beats me. I am 60 years old I wont ever work again and I have no interest in getting loans etc so my credit file being screwed up would have little to no affect.

 

 

Hi, BR in your case would be pointless and costly so it is I think very unlikely that any such action will be taken.

 

 

Personally I would inform Ms de Tute Lowells Director of Legal and Compliance

of your circumstances along the lines of:

 

 

Dear Ms de Tute,

 

 

Ref: use theirs.

 

 

I refer to recent correspondence from Lowell reading an alleged debt for £ xxxx. xx allegedly arising from an account with Capital One Bank. I do not acknowledge any such debt.

 

 

For information and the avoidance of misunderstanding please note the following.

I am a 60 year old person disabled and will never return to work.

I do not own any property and have no realisable assets.

My income is from benefits only.

 

I do not have the means to satisfy the alleged debt and this situation will not change.

 

 

I suggest that Lowell takes a "commercial" view on the alleged debt and closes the file as any action Lowell make take will not achieve the result I seeks.

[trickyricky]

Hi, BR in your case would be pointless and costly so it is I think very unlikely that any such action will be taken.

 

 

Personally I would inform Ms de Tute Lowells Director of Legal and Compliance

of your circumstances along the lines of:

 

 

Dear Ms de Tute,

 

 

Ref: use theirs.

 

 

I refer to recent correspondence from Lowell reading an alleged debt for £ xxxx. xx allegedly arising from an account with Capital One Bank. I do not acknowledge any such debt.

 

 

For information and the avoidance of misunderstanding please note the following.

I am a 60 year old person disabled and will never return to work.

I do not own any property and have no realisable assets.

My income is from benefits only.

 

I do not have the means to satisfy the alleged debt and this situation will not change.

 

 

I suggest that Lowell takes a "commercial" view on the alleged debt and closes the file as any action Lowell make take will not achieve the result I seeks.

 

Thank you for that encouragement I will draft a letter and get it off on Monday.

[Happyhippy1959]

Had the same with this bunch, Fletch is right, Cap One could not supply even an application form just a set of terms and conditions no name on it or nothing, told them they had not complied they then sold to Lowells who said they are waiting for a CCA from Cap One who are searching there very very deep archives hmmmmmmmmmmmmmm Told them best of luck as Cap One had been searching for it for 18 months prior to selling Lowells a lemon. I took mine out about the same time, at some Airport if I remember !!!!!!! The only good thing I can say about Lowells is they have an e-mail address and are happy to correspond that way. A friend of mine at work has had his Cap One written off by Lowells due to No CCA forthcoming, they say it made business sense to close it and that they would not be selling it on either, !!!!!!!!! And it's in writing I was amazed. ( there may be hope )

[BRIGADIER2JCS]

Had the same with this bunch, Fletch is right, Cap One could not supply even an application form just a set of terms and conditions no name on it or nothing, told them they had not complied they then sold to Lowells who said they are waiting for a CCA from Cap One who are searching there very very deep archives hmmmmmmmmmmmmmm Told them best of luck as Cap One had been searching for it for 18 months prior to selling Lowells a lemon. I took mine out about the same time, at some Airport if I remember !!!!!!! The only good thing I can say about Lowells is they have an e-mail address and are happy to correspond that way. A friend of mine at work has had his Cap One written off by Lowells due to No CCA forthcoming, they say it made business sense to close it and that they would not be selling it on either, !!!!!!!!! And it's in writing I was amazed. ( there may be hope )

 

 

Hi Hippy, How's life?

[trickyricky]

Hi all

 

Out of the blue Cap One cancelled the alleged outstanding debt, no reason given. Thanks for everything guys

[BRIGADIER2JCS]

Hi all

 

Out of the blue Cap One cancelled the alleged outstanding debt, no reason given. Thanks for everything guys

 

 

Sounds good Hippy!!

[Mister Fixit]

Address All correspondence to Ms Sara de Tute, Director of Legal & Compliance at The Lowell Group.

 

This may help some people - http://uk.linkedin.com/pub/sara-de-tute/18/697/471

 

http://www.bcllegal.com/the-brief/a-day-in-the-life-of/the-brief-a-day-in-the-life-of-sara-de-tute-%E2%80%93-legal-compliance-director-at-lowell-group

 

Or just sort them out for yourselves - https://www.google.com/search?q=sara+de+Tute