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Letter received from Debt Collection Agency.........looking for my neighbour ??

shaneym
Posts: 175 Forumite



Yesterday I received a mysterious letter in the post from FCM (First Credit Management Limited) with instructions to phone a number and quote a reference code. This was a real shock to me as I was'nt aware of any debts I had, and had certainly not received any previous letters from anyone saying I owed them anything. I did'nt want to ignore it as I worried that they might come knocking on the door looking for money, so, after a sleepless night of anxiety, this morning I rang them and asked them what it was all about.
Well, Imagine my suprise when I was told that they did'nt want me personally, but they were looking for my neighbour down the road who owed them money, and as they had'nt been able to find him, they thought they would contact all his neigbours to see if they could help. After my initial relief that it was'nt me who owed anything, my mood turned to anger at what this company had done. I asked them how they could justify sending out these cryptic letters to innocent people who have nothing to do with the "client" they are chasing for money, especially as Im sure Im not the only one of my neighbours who was worried when they received this. Imagine the distress an elderly person getting one of these would have when its nothing to do with them. They simply said they had tried to find him and thought this might help. They said sorry for contacting me and would'nt bother me again, but is that enough ?
Anyway, my question is, can I complain to anyone about this ? Im outraged that a debt collection company can send letters to ramdom people who have nothing to do with the debt, especially as the letter does'nt say WHY they have contacted you, which means you have to go through the worry that I have just been though.
Sorry to waffle on, any help or advise would be greatly appreciated.
Well, Imagine my suprise when I was told that they did'nt want me personally, but they were looking for my neighbour down the road who owed them money, and as they had'nt been able to find him, they thought they would contact all his neigbours to see if they could help. After my initial relief that it was'nt me who owed anything, my mood turned to anger at what this company had done. I asked them how they could justify sending out these cryptic letters to innocent people who have nothing to do with the "client" they are chasing for money, especially as Im sure Im not the only one of my neighbours who was worried when they received this. Imagine the distress an elderly person getting one of these would have when its nothing to do with them. They simply said they had tried to find him and thought this might help. They said sorry for contacting me and would'nt bother me again, but is that enough ?
Anyway, my question is, can I complain to anyone about this ? Im outraged that a debt collection company can send letters to ramdom people who have nothing to do with the debt, especially as the letter does'nt say WHY they have contacted you, which means you have to go through the worry that I have just been though.
Sorry to waffle on, any help or advise would be greatly appreciated.
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Comments
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That is appalling, I can't believe they did that, I feel really sorry for your neighbour who now has his whole street knowing his business - thanks to the company breaking the data protection act.
I'd complain to the financial ombudsman and trading standards.Unless I say otherwise 'you' means the general you not you specifically.0 -
Im outraged that a debt collection company can send letters to random people who have nothing to do with the debt, especially as the letter does'nt say WHY they have contacted you, which means you have to go through the worry that I have just been though.
You're not really a random person, you are a neighbour to this person which they said was their reason for contacting you.
I wouldn't worry about, just ignore the letter and forget about it. Or write back saying that you have nothing to do with this person......0 -
Didn't this company break the Data Protection Act? What if their information about the neighbour was wrong? There's no way that they should legally be allowed to do this." The greatest wealth is to live content with little."
Plato0 -
davetrousers wrote: »You're not really a random person, you are a neighbour to this person which they said was their reason for contacting you.
I wouldn't worry about, just ignore the letter and forget about it. Or write back saying that you have nothing to do with this person.
Sorry, but as I said in the above post, the reason I am angry is that they DID'NT say in the letter why they were contacting me. It was me who had the night of worry being contacted by these people, and me who had to spend money ringing them up to sort it out when it was nothing to do with me. They know I have nothing to do with the person and the matter is now closed, but thats not the point.0 -
I would complain. They have brokenthe data protection act by disussing your neighbours private affairs. It could happen to one of us, not just for debts but for anything.Tallyhoh! Stopped Smoking October 2000. Saved £29382.50 so far!0
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That is appalling, I can't believe they did that, I feel really sorry for your neighbour who now has his whole street knowing his business - thanks to the company breaking the data protection act.
I'd complain to the financial ombudsman and trading standards.
Well, he has obviously ignored all previous letters from them chasing up the money he owes so I dont think you should feel realy sorry for him. Debts never go away by magic, so ignoring the letters means that us neighbours now know his business.0 -
Just as a matter of interest, was it an 0870 number that you had to call?0
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I suppose I'm looking at it from the other side, as someone who buried their head in the sand for a long time before facing up to things. It's not as straightforward as it seems from the outside.Unless I say otherwise 'you' means the general you not you specifically.0
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Well, he has obviously ignored all previous letters from them chasing up the money he owes so I dont think you should feel realy sorry for him. Debts never go away by magic, so ignoring the letters means that us neighbours now know his business.Debt Free since 2012Current Savings £1,400Current Mortgage £143,398.270
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