Lowell and npower letter

[ajd01]

Hi,

 

Not sure where to start and need some advice if anybody can help.

 

Recently received a letter from lowell about an outstanding debt gas from an old address.

 

We last lived there in 2015 and moved abroad .

we returned this year in February and this letter was sent to my parents address,

not heard anything of this since we left the country this is the 1st letter.

 

they say there is an outstanding debt owed for gas supply from 1998-2015.

small amount but I'm confused as we were on a gas meter paid by top card when we lived there.

There is nothing registered on my clearscore file.

 

So I need to know do I contact them or is this acknowledgement.

 

I want to tell them my new address and also want proof there is an outstanding debt.

I have no issue in paying the debt if they can show there is one.

 

Do they have to provide proof in the form of a statement??

Also I don't want this on my credit file

so any advice would be welcome on the best approach for this.

 

Just to add the date started to is the end of September 2015, we lived at the address till end of May 2015

 

Thanks in advance

[BankFodder]

Start off by sending them an SAR immediately. Do this separately – in a separate envelope apart from anything else you are going to send them.

You should certainly inform them of your new address so that you can keep control of any correspondence which comes. You do not want to have some backdoor ccJ against you.

Make sure you do everything in writing although if you do start getting on the phone then make sure you have read our customer services guide first.

Of course they will have to provide evidence that you owe them money. They can't just go around demanding it with no justification.

How much are they asking you for? How come they have your parents address?

 

[ajd01]

Thanks for the quick reply.

 

The debt is just shy of £300

 

Should I at least call them to change the contact address  and tell them I will asking for proof via register post

 

They have my parents address  as when we moved overseas I used this for UK bank contact as I had payments going in there and needed to still have UK contact address

 

Thanks

[BankFodder]

Well you can certainly call them to change address – but you are best off recording the call. In any event, confirm in writing. We haven't had complaints about Npower for a while so maybe they have upped their game – but reputationally they are catastrophic and when things go wrong, they never seem to be able to pull things back.

[ajd01]

Thanks bankfodder,

 

Should contact npowwr or just go straight to lowell.

I'm guessing this debt they are trying to charge for,although well above what it would be is for the period of may-september but as I said we had moved away in May.

The gas was prepayment meter so impossible  to be outstanding while we were living there.

[London1971]

Send confirmation of your address to Lowell in writing.Then SAR to Npower, that will tell you what you need to know.

 

Once Lowell have your current address it’s safe to ignore anything else from them. Short of a Pre action protocol letter of course. Although it’s highly unlikely they will ever attempt this.

[unclebulgaria67]

" I'm confused as we were on a gas meter paid by top card when we lived there"

 

Sounds like the address where the alleged debt occurred was a rented address and at some point someone has moved into the address without registering the supply correctly. This could be before or after you were at the address.  The landlord has provided details of tenants to NPower, who have noted an alleged debt and this has years later been passed to Lowells. 

 

Hopefully the data request to NPower will reveal the information as to when any debt was created.

[dx100uk]

there is a small portion of the supposed debt that might not yet be 6yrs statute barred.

however, lowells are flying a kite here as they know full well that the back billing rules will apply here and that will wipe the debt out anyway.

 

they also believe that a utils billl gives them some kind of magical powers to be able to do anything about it. it doesn't.

the only people that would if they could have done anything about it are Npower and they themselves would have issued a court claim long ago were they able too. they didn't so its obv that the back billing rules apply, so they sold it on for pennies to a powerless debt buyer.

the debt has long fallen off your credit and can never return.

 

simply send Lowell  a simple letter 

 

ref number (from their letter)

 

thank you for your letter dated xxxx , it's contents are duly noted.

please note my correct address above.

 

Although a small portion of the alleged debt to Npower regarding an old Gas Supply which has been sold to you is not outside the limitations act, Npower failed to abide by their industry Back Billing Rules at the time. 

no debt now exists nor can be valid.

 

i thank you for you time

 

.....

 

dont ever ring a DCA

no need for an SAR.

 

dx

 

 

 

 

 

[Smoothy]

Just as FYI, I too received a letter from Lowell this morning about an alleged debt from a rented address owed to Npower from 2015 for almost the same amount.....coincidence?

[dx100uk]

its also worthy to note this is right within the period of npower having their rubbish computer billing system they had to dump.

they charges 10'000 of customers for energy they never owed nor used.

 

sadly it's just what lowells do, fly kites. hoping to snare mugs to give them free money for the xmas staff party.

[ajd01]

Brilliant, 

thanks for all the replies really did think it was a strange one

I'll just send a letter of to them

 

Appreciated 

[ajd01]

OK quick up date on this and more advice needed.

 

So I sent a letter to as advised by dx100uk to lovell and they  have replied,I did also call them and recorded the call as advised.

I'll breakdown what they have said and then what I think.

 

So they claim  a default was issued in August 2016.

They say the debt is enforceable for 6 years from then 

I check equifax,experian and also clearscore...I have no defaults at all

They claim the prepayment meter was last used January 2014

Again impossible as this would mean we never used the gas fire for 15 months,we moved out in May 2015.

They are asking for proof of when we moved away from the property

 

My thoughts are that I do not need to supply them anything.They have bought a supposed  debt so surely they can provide what I asked for..the exact time the debt occurred as they must know or why would you by it?

 

Do I just ignore?

I'm guessing they can't just add a default now?

Also if there was default would it be on any of them CRAs I have always checked.

They say they've put the account on hold for 30 days 

 

 

Any advice 

 

Thanks in advance 

[London1971]

Ignore Lowell. Did you send an SAR to Npower? This will undoubtedly uncover what went wrong.

[ajd01]

Not yet as lowell said they would send for all breakdowns and forward on..ill send this week.

The bit that confuses me the most is saying there is a default registered.surely I would see it if there was on one the CRASH I mentioned above.Somid there is no default surely it isn't even enforceable...or am I wrong there??

 

Apart from the fact I have no knowledge of any debt until this letter last month 

[dx100uk]

well now you know why we say never call a dca

they LIE.. just to scam money out of people,

 

utils debt are not covered by the cca so a default notice issuance doesn't reset or dictate the sb date.

 

there is no debt owed least of all to npower who even if you paid would not see one penny of the money

lowells will simply use it for their drinks down the pub that night

or their xmas party fund.

 

please dont give a dca free money.

 

they are not bailiffs and have zero legal powers.

 

stop appearing to them to be a mug

 

dx

[London1971]

I’m not sure if all utility companies even report to Credit Reference agencies, 

[ajd01]

Cheers to both of you on this.

 

dx100uk..if you had heard the phone call you would laugh..i told him I don't wear a red nose so don't treat me like a clown.Also told them they wouldn't get a penny as they can't show or explain to me where this debt has appeared from...dates.

 

So I'm guessing what you are saying is place them letters in the bin

 

Again thanks for the replies london1971 & dx100uk

[dx100uk]

until or unless you get a letter of claim

 

dx