Studio/Ace Card & Gifts - HELP!

[demon_x_slash]

Hello guys,

I have been threatened with 1.bailiffs, 2.contact of my employer to recover funds, 3.property blacklisting and 4.court attendance.

 

None of those can be applied unless you have a CCJ.

 

1. Any 'bailiffs' that call round will be debt collectors, not bailiffs, and they have no powers of entry whatsoever. See the Debt Action Group section on the main forum page for more about the differences between Court Bailiffs and lowly slime-wyrm debt collectors.

 

2. Employer contact would be a breach of the Data Protection Act without a court order; with a court order (CCJ) they can apply for an Attachment of Earnings order, so that a small amount will be deducted from each paycheque. This would be set by the court to an affordable level for your financial situation.

 

3. Property blacklisting - again, needs a CCJ and an application to put a charge on the house. There is no way that a judge would consider a Charging Order for such a small amount.

 

4. Court attendance - not as scary as you might think, as it would be the Small Claims Court, or the 'everyman' court; you would get as much of a chance to explain your situation to the judge as the catalogue company would.

 

Have you actually contacted the company about the missing goods? You need to write them a letter, sent Special, outlining the situation and making an offer to pay what you actually owe, whilst disputing the rest. Make it clear that you're more than willing to pay what you do owe, but refuse to be charged over the odds for a mistake of their making. Post it up here before you send it and someone'll have a read through.

 

You can also make a request for your original agreement with the company; a lot of companies don't store them with the care that they're supposed to, and without an original signed credit agreement, the debt becomes unenforceable in court. Again, you need to go to the Debt section and read up on Consumer Credit Agreements; the criteria may apply in your case.

 

Hope that helps.

[demon_x_slash]

No, don't call back - in one of your CCA/harrassment letters I'm sure it states that you will only deal with them in writing. If you're that worried about it, write them a short line in the morning saying something along the lines of: "Your representative attempted to contact me; I have previously stated only in writing; I stand by that; all further communication not in writing will be ignored..." Personally, I'd just wait and let the deadline for the CCA run out.

[demon_x_slash]

AFAIK, but you'll get a much more assured answer in the Debt forum, upon receipt it's 12 working days before they're in breach, and a further 30 days before they're in criminal breach and the debt becomes unenforceable. Bear in mind, though, that the company can (although unlikely) apply to the courts to get the debt 're-activated'; they will also find this very difficult to do if they can't produce the paperwork. As I said, this is better asked on the Debt forum, as this isn't my speciality