Struggling with debt? Ask a debt adviser a question

Hi

Thanks for your post.

A notice of discontinuance isn’t something that comes up often for us as a charity. As you mentioned you had difficulties finding information on the internet it doesn’t sound common.

From my understanding it seems to hint at the creditors no longer chasing for the debt down the legal routes and through the county court.

I’d suggest contacting Lowell directly and checking what their intentions are with this debt. If they confirm this is the case and they aren’t perusing the debt through the court then it’s important to get this in writing and the reason why.

From what you’ve mentioned the possible reasons why they may not be able to take the debt through the court could be due to the debt being statute barred. The creditor wouldn't be able to chase for the debt through the court if you haven't acknowledged the debt or made a payment towards it in a six year period.

In this case the creditor can still ask for payment but can’t use court action to collect for it. Meaning they can’t set a County Court Judgement (CCJ) against the debt or take further action such as setting an attachment of earnings or use enforcement agents.

It’s another possibility that Lowell don’t have the original paperwork for the debt to be able to register a CCJ against the debt and are unable to collect the debt through the court.

Again to confirm this is what Lowell are saying then I’d suggest contacting them directly to make sure.

You can also check with the Trustonline to see if there is a (CCJ) registered against you for this debt.

I hope this is resolved quickly for you.

Take care.
Rachael

ameluvsmoney wrote: »

Hi, I have searched the web high and low and I can't find the answer to my worries.

Back in 2011 I had a contract with three. The phone couldn't get signal in my property, three tried giving me a booster to plug into the wifi but still that failed. So I tried to cancel my contact as I was only having half a service. But three carried on charging. So I cancelled the DD and wiped it from my brain.

Well because it was coming up to the 6 years of the default being there Lowell solicitors tried getting a ccj. I filled out the forms for the court explaining that I tried to cancel the contract etc. And that there is a default of £93 but Lowell want me to pay £745 and that I would be willing to pay the original default balance but not all the extra charges.

I didn't hear anything for quite a few weeks and now I've just had a letter from Lowell saying that there is a notice of discontinuance.. does this mean that just the ccj has stopped or the debt? As Lowell are still asking for the £745. It's so confusing I don't know what I'm meant to do?

Any help will be greatly appreciated

AH

Hi

Thanks for your post and welcome to the forum.

I’m sorry to hear that you’ve been through a difficult time financially.

Secured and unsecured loans are dealt with differently because a secured loan has higher priority. Not making a payment to a secured loan can risk the asset it’s secured to. However, as you’ve mentioned the property was repossessed then the debt even if it was secured, now no longer is.

If the debt was secured then when the property was repossessed any equity would have first gone towards the mortgage company and then any other secured debt. If there isn’t enough equity to pay back the secured debts then these will become unsecured debts.

If the debt was originally unsecured but then became secured as a charging order, the debt will have had to go through the court and be set as a county court judgement (CCJ) for it to become secured. This means the debt can’t become statute barred.

A debt that is statute barred means it can’t be sent through the court for further action. As this would have already happened for the debt to become a changing order and secured to the property it means the creditor has the right to collect for the debt using further enforcement action. For example: enforcement agents or attachment of earnings.

If the debt hasn’t gone through the court and there hasn’t been a CCJ set against it then it could be statute barred. This includes if the debt was taken out as a secured loan through the original creditor in the original agreement.

If you follow the link you'll be able to read more about how to deal with a debt you believe is stature barred.

To check to see if a debt has gone through the court and a CCJ has been issued against you or your partner you can do a search through the Trustonline.

I’m not sure why you’ve not been able to get a full record from the Land Registry. I’d check with them to see if you can get a specific record for the time you were in the property, although because the debt will no longer be secured to the property then you don’t really need to check the land registry you just need to check the county court judgement register.

If you’d like further advice regarding the debt and your options then you can find our contact details here.

Thanks
Rachael

She1312 wrote: »

Hello, this is my first post, looking for advice.

About 6-7 years ago we had a loan with Welcome finance. I honestly can't remeber if it was a secured loan or not.
Our home was repossessed as my husband was made redundant and we couldn't keep up with the mortgage payments.
Recently we have been getting letters from Robinson Way, as well as 3 cards through the door form one of their doorstep agents.

My question is, if it was a secured loan and the house was repossessed, can it still be treated as secure by a debt collection agency? As it's been more than 6 years since any payment or contact was made i was hoping it may have become statute barred. The debt is not on either of our credit files.
I have written a letter (not yet sent) stating that we don't acknowledge the debt and requesting the signed credit agreement.
I'd also like to know how I find land registry record for the time we lived at our previous address to see if there is a charge relating to WF.I bought a copy from the Land registry but it's only a partial record with the current owners details on.

Sorry for the long post & thanks in advance for any advice.

Hi

Thanks for getting in contact.

Setting up a token payment based on your income and expenditure is a good way to give you some breathing space while you concentrate on your priorities like household bills and general living costs. It’s an informal agreement to your creditors.

Having savings or setting up a savings account won’t impact this solution as such, as long as it's with a bank seperate from your creditors. As long as it's with someone seperate the creditors don’t have the right to take any assets to pay towards the debt.

The only way assets may be impacted is if a creditor felt that there were sufficient assets that they would be able to reclaim the debt through Bankruptcy.

A creditor is unlikely to take this route unless the creditor is aware there are sufficient assets.

Some people choose to save up over time extra income in the hope of being able to make a full and final settlement to the creditors on the future.

It’s also not unrealistic to have a small pot set aside for emergencies and unexpected costs. If you’re budget is particularly tight then it would make sense to have an emergency fund.

A token payment isn’t a long term solution as it won’t pay back the debt in a realistic time frame. If you’d like to explore your options further you can complete our self-help online Debt Remedy tool.

I hope this helps
Rachael

debtfreeonamission wrote: »

Hello,
I am making £1 token payments to my creditors after taking advice and giving my income and expenditure details etc. My creditors have all accepted this and I am making my payments each month. A relative keeps telling me to set up a savings account and says they will give me some money to put in it. And I have been selling bits and pieces of my belongings etc.
If I did have a savings account - could it be used or taken away from me etc by creditors who I owe money to?