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MSE News: Crackdown after firms caught hounding sick patients in hospital for debts
Former_MSE_Helen
Posts: 2,382 Forumite
This is the discussion thread for the following MSE News Story:
"New guidance on debt collecting has today been published by the OFT, in a bid to protect consumers ..."
"New guidance on debt collecting has today been published by the OFT, in a bid to protect consumers ..."
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thanks
We had at least one poster who had bailiff turn up at his bed-side whilst recovering from major surgery.If you've have not made a mistake, you've made nothing0 -
Does anybody else think that the type of debt collector who would even consider visiting somebody in hospital is probably the sort of person who would ignore this type of advice?0
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And in the DFW sticky.Free/impartial debt advice: National Debtline | StepChange Debt Charity | Find your local CAB
IVA & fee charging DMP companies: Profits from misery, motivated ONLY by greed0 -
Well, on a first reading of the finished guidance, it does appear improved but it's taken a lot of extra pages to get there!0
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Well, on a first reading of the finished guidance, it does appear improved but it's taken a lot of extra pages to get there!
It is much much longer. :undecided
The OFT also seems to have gone a bit mad with excessive use of footnotes, text boxes and rather rambling explanations.
Makes it rather confusing and difficult to read and take in.Free/impartial debt advice: National Debtline | StepChange Debt Charity | Find your local CAB
IVA & fee charging DMP companies: Profits from misery, motivated ONLY by greed0 -
Yeah, I found this a bit confusing:h. failing to confirm, formally and unequivocally, that an offer to settle a debt, accompanied by the relevant payment, has been accepted as full and final settlement of that debt (when this is
the case)
OK, that sounds good, except that the offer precedes the relevant payment, if the debtor has any sense. But it's good to see that the OFT uses the phrase 'full and final settlement ' when creditors are reluctant to do so.
But then:i. failing to make the debtor fully aware of the status of the debt where:
a. the debtor has offered a settlement payment lower than the total amount owing and/or
b. the creditor decides to no longer pursue the debt, and informs the debtor that this is the case
and then a text box:The debtor should be made aware that the debt still exists (where this is the case) and could be pursued at a later date and that even if the creditor itself commits not to further pursue the debt, the debt could still subsequently be purchased from the creditor by another business that may decide to pursue the debt.
So they're saying that it's OK to accept a sum in settlement (or even full & final settlement) and then sell it on for someone else to pursue???
Edit: The account would probably command a better sell-on price at this point as it would count as recently acknowledged!0 -
So they're saying that it's OK to accept a sum in settlement (or even full & final settlement) and then sell it on for someone else to pursue???
I had the same concern/confusion about that bit?
I was considering emailing the OFT for clarification, as that would be an quite outrageous thing for the OFT to consider acceptable. dcguidance-review@oft.gsi.gov.ukFree/impartial debt advice: National Debtline | StepChange Debt Charity | Find your local CAB
IVA & fee charging DMP companies: Profits from misery, motivated ONLY by greed0 -
Dom Littlewood on The One Show last night mentioned a debt not being able to be enforced until a dispute is resolved.
I know very little about this topic so I may have interpreted what he said incorrectly but here's a link to the clip for those more in the know:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/i/b016959g/?t=7m22s
(clip should start at 7:20 ish)0 -
If the OFT say it then that'll make everything OK won't it? After all how many complaints have been made about DCA's and how many have had their licences withdrawn? Most of the DCA's put on a public face of compliance and press agents to behave differently. We still have scumbag companies like Lowells and Capquest who issue false Statutory Demands.The man without a signature.0
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