Very difficult

[shoe_junkie]

Hi there,

 

Me and a friend have had an ongoing problem, basically when we lived together we got a joint account, but when she moved out and I lost my job I ran up £700 worth of charges on the account and both that an my other account which was £1,700 overdrawn were closed with defaults etc.

 

Anyway the problem is the debt for the joint account has gone to Wescot just in my ex flatmates name and my debt including the joint account has gone to another agency but when I called them they told me its now gone to Wescot also.

 

So I called Wescot to say that I won't pay both mine and my ex flat mates debt as then I will be paying the joint account twice. Now 2 problems they don't have any records for me and the joint debt is only in her name!!

 

I've spoken to NatWest who the origional debt was with, but they were unhelpful and my ex flatmate is getting very upset! I don't know whats happened to my debt and I'm reluctant to pay this debt off in her name as when my debt re-appears, which I'm sure it will they will ask me to pay it again!

 

Any advice appreciated!!

[kellyplanet]

OOhh the lovely Wescot again. There are many threads regarding Wescot and I advise you have a look.

 

The first piece of advice I can give you is stop communicating with the DCA (debt collection agency) by telephone. Communicate to them via letter. The reason for this is if you have to go to court you can prove to a judge what has been communicated as it is written down.

 

Has Westcot bought the debt or are they just acting as Natwests representatives?

 

Were you sent notification of the defaults?

 

You say that you aren't going to pay your X flatmates debt but you must remember that you are both jointly liable for the joint account. It sounds to me as if Westcot have been doing a fishing exercise and seeing who would respond first.

 

My bank account went to Westcot you can read the posts. Westcot

 

What I did was send Bank of Scotland a subject access request with a postal order for £10. They then sent back all my bank statements so I could count up how much I had been charged for the past 6 years.

 

You must do this unless you have all the bank statements so you can see exactly how much you owe and work this out with your friend if she owes anything and to see if the dCA has added any charges. (and I have just read some of your other posts so it seems your on the right track!!!!)

 

I sent Westcot this letter

 

Re: − Account/Reference Number xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

 

 

 

 

I DO NOT ACKNOWLEDGE ANY DEBT TO YOUR COMPANY. I require you to supply the following documentation before I will correspond further on this matter.

 

1. You must supply me with a true copy of the alleged agreement you refer to. This is my right under your obligation to supply a copy of the agreement under the legislation contained within s.78 (1) Consumer Credit Act 1974 (s.77 (1) for fixed sum credit) - your obligation also extends to providing a statement of account. I enclose a £1 postal order in payment of the statutory fee, PO Serial Number ……………………..

 

2. A signed true copy of the deed of assignment of the above referenced agreement that you allege exists.

 

3. You are notified that you are obliged to supply these documents, whether you are the original creditor or not under S189 of the CCA 1974.

 

Non-compliance with my request is a criminal offence under the above Act and will result in a report being submitted to the relevant statutory authorities.

 

As you are aware, a credit agreement that is not properly documented and signed by the customer is totally unenforceable under the CCA and therefore is a complete defence to any court claim that is issued.

 

Take note at this stage, that any legal action you may contemplate will be both vigorously defended and contested.

 

This will get them off your back for a while and they can't demand money because the account is in dispute. They must provide the documents within 14days or they have defaulted and the debt becomes unenforceable they then have a further 30 days to provide the documents. If they don't provide them within this timeframe they have committed a criminal act and you can report them to trading standards.(hope this is right!!)

 

I have decided in my case to claim back all the bank charges for the account and then write to Bank of Scotland asking them for a reduced settlement figure. I can only hope!!!

 

You will need to discuss this with your friend and work out how much you owe each. Bearing in mind you can claim back the charges that have been administered to the account over the past 6 years. I strongly advise you to do a lot of reading in the FAQS on the site.

 

It is not a quick process but stick to it.

[shoe_junkie]

Hi Kellyplanet, Thanks for the reply.

 

I don't remember the bank sending me a letter informing me of a default, but It does say Default notice on my last statements, but at the time I was burrying my head in the sand and pretending I didn't have any debt.

 

I am already in the process of claiming back £1,700 in bank charges and like you i think after this I will ask for a reduced settlement.

 

I'm not sure if it would be worth sending the CCA, and what happens after, I'm really confused about this, I'm not sure if the debt was sold or if they are representatives either.

 

I ran up the debt myself and my ex flatmate wasn't involved and now it onlt seems to be in her name, and I just KNOW as soon as I pay it back in HER name my debt will re-appear and they'll hassle me to pay it too!!

[kellyplanet]

The reason I said send the letter to Westcot it will give you time to get things sorted with your bank charges without the stress of telephone calls and demand letters, and possibly contact NatWest for a reduced settlement figure. It will (should) also give you the original credit agreement with both your names on.

 

They shouldn't hassle you to pay another debt once it has been paid.The reason I say this is the account will be paid off. If you look at the Wescot letter the ref number should be the same as the account that is in debt.

 

I think Wescot are acting as representatives and they have just used the name that was first on the account. Once it is paid they shouldn't hassle you for it as you will have proof that it is paid (if they know whats good for em)

[djweeble]

Once it is paid they won't hassle you for it as you will have proof that it is paid.

 

Did I just see a pig fly past my window

[kellyplanet]

Did I just see a pig fly past my window

 

 

No a debt collector cos they are getting booted up the rear from us lot!!