Capital One Experience Sought...

[HappyMonday]

Hi there...

 

I've been planning to dispute a long standing debt with Capital One for some time, and I'm glad I've come across this extremely useful site.

I'm interested in any thoughts the forum might have on my particular circumstances however, as I'm unable to ascertain from the posts I've had time to wade through whether they will complicate the matter of pursuing reclamation of my charges.

I've held an account with C1 since 2002 and kept relatively on top of it until September 2003, in that I only incurred £56 worth of charges up to that point.

After this I found myself in the classic charges spiral after unwisely doing the disappearing act from an old address.

My account (and its charges) were suspended and I was handed over to a debt collection company who's name escapes me at this point, and found myself setting up the usual payment plan of X (small) amount per month. I happily serviced this for a couple of months, then discovered that the charges on my account had been reactivated without notice, and I was racking up further debt despite the payments being made.

Having been told this was "standard procedure" over the phone at the time, and had an offer of payment refused I simply gave up attempting to service the debt.

Sure enough from there on, a statement would pop through my door once a month from Cap 1 with an extra £40 + interest tacked on to the balance, though I was never handed to a debt collection company again.

Another disappearing act on my part and a year and a half later, and I find myself in the hands of another tracing/debt collection company regarding this account, and I calculate that the balance outstanding now construes between £700 and £800 in charges.

I have a few holes in the paperwork which I plan to fill asap, and I'm interested to know if my own frankly stupid behaviour regarding this account will have effected my ability to reclaim these utterly brutal charges. Alongside the multiple defaults and stints with debt collection agencies etc.

I have a number of claims I plan to make in the near future, but the dirty tricks employed by this particular company which have served to place me in an utterly impossible situation make it my priority.

 

Anything you know that might help would be appreciated.

 

Ta....

[sportbeth]

Well if you have a DC chasing you for a balance that is predominantly made up of charges you can get that cancelled out effectively. They will definitely have defaulted you and that might affect your chances of getting credit, so it's worth fighting it on that score alone.

 

It is your right to argue a disputed debt under the OFT debt collection guidance, so if you contact them and they start hassling you, just put it in writing to them (PM me if you want help with a letter nearer the time) that you are aware of the OFT regs and it is considered unfair for them to chase a debt that is in dispute.

[big aid]

send them a DPA subject access request, firstly

this will fill in any gaps in your figures and give you a solid foundation to work from.

 

i would proceed with this as a normal claim like any other,

[redcorvette]

hi, new to this but i too want to put a claim into cap one, is there a different letter to send to credit card companies or is it the same as the one for banks? and not sure where to find a template for this letter, any help appreciated:???:

[callumsgran]

you send a different letter to c/c companies, you should find it on the first page with all the others

[HappyMonday]

Thanks for the input all.

I was also wondering if anybody is presently dealing with the debt collection firm Bryan Carter and Co?

They have a straight forward bugger off letter in the post from me today, citing my forthcoming dispute of this debt.

I wonder if anyone has had dealings in the past?