passed passed on and on and on

Hello there,

If the loan was taken out before the 6th April 2007, if the debt collection agency cannot produce a copy of the the original agreement which clearly sets out certain terms and is signed by you - it may be legally unenforceable. What this means is that if they were to try and take you to court, you may be able to defend the claim. There has been a large amount of legal action surrounding the unenforceability of debts and it can be a difficult path to tread - We would suggest seeking legal action.

If an agreement is unenforceable it doesn't make the debt void. A creditor could still ask for payment, process information on your credit file and even bring legal action against you. That said, we have come across many examples where a creditor will stop chasing for payment if it cannot be proven that there is such an agreement available.

You can request a copy of the agreement from the current debt collection agency by sending a payment of £1 along with this letter. It's important to know that you could be sent a copy of what the agreement may have looked like - which doesn't need to show your signature. This would satisfy the information request requirements. In addition, there have been instances of creditors winning at court by convincing a judge that an agreement was signed at the time it was taken out - but is subsequently no longer available.

As you can see, it can be a bit of a minefield - but for the sake of £1, do consider making a request to see what you get back. You can then make an informed decision on what further steps to take.

Best wishes,

David @ National Debtline.