Dealing with debts and debt disputes

CAB_Swansea_Bay_representative · 20 August 2012 at 6:48PM

Hi Pippin12, thank you for your query regarding DROs
Firstly I would say that a Debt Relief Order is a specialist area of insolvency law and cannot be completed without the help of an Approved Intermediary who is usually a specialist debt adviser. You can find your local Citizens Advice Bureau at https://www.citizensadvice.org.uk. Regarding your budget, Disability Living Allowance can be used for expenditure for care costs and therefore disregarded but not usually a disability premium but I would really urge you to seek advice from a specialist debt adviser and discuss your budget with them.

Regarding the assets issue, essential household items such as a cooker, microwave or fridge would not be regarding as an asset and other items can have a value of up to £300 as a second hand value so unless you have a brand new or top of the range laptop and TV it will be unlikely to effect your eligibility for a DRO. To prepare for your debt appointment I would suggest you complete a detailed budget, all your creditor paperwork including original credit agreements if you have it, a credit report and medical evidence-again if you have it. It it worth noting that other options may be available including possibly asking for write off of your debt on medical grounds and all this will be discussed with you at a debt appointment.
Hope this is of assistance.

CAB_Swansea_Bay_representative · 20 August 2012 at 7:12PM

Hi nowinfromworking, thank you for your query regarding warrant for arrest.
Unfortunately at this stage it is very unlikely you can stop the arrest warrant as you have admitted you have ignored the debt and have not made any payments. A magistrates court fine has to be the top priority in your expenditure as if you do not pay you can loose your liberty. I would suggest you contact a specialist debt adviser as a matter of urgency. You can find your local Citizens Advice Bureau at https://www.citizensadvice.org.uk. You could also consider asking the court to set up an attachment of earnings
from your wages that would be deducted at a set rate -probably around £25 per week in your circumstances.
Hope this is of assistance.

Pippin12 · 20 August 2012 at 7:35PM

CAB_Swansea_Bay_representative wrote: »

Hi Pippin12, thank you for your query regarding DROs
Firstly I would say that a Debt Relief Order is a specialist area of insolvency law and cannot be completed without the help of an Approved Intermediary who is usually a specialist debt adviser. You can find your local Citizens Advice Bureau at www.citizensadvice.org.uk. Regarding your budget, Disability Living Allowance can be used for expenditure for care costs and therefore disregarded but not usually a disability premium but I would really urge you to seek advice from a specialist debt adviser and discuss your budget with them.

Regarding the assets issue, essential household items such as a cooker, microwave or fridge would not be regarding as an asset and other items can have a value of up to £300 as a second hand value so unless you have a brand new or top of the range laptop and TV it will be unlikely to effect your eligibility for a DRO. To prepare for your debt appointment I would suggest you complete a detailed budget, all your creditor paperwork including original credit agreements if you have it, a credit report and medical evidence-again if you have it. It it worth noting that other options may be available including possibly asking for write off of your debt on medical grounds and all this will be discussed with you at a debt appointment.
Hope this is of assistance.

Thankyou so much, I'll make an appointment with my local CAB to discuss it further.

garymcl · 26 August 2012 at 2:11PM

Hi, I recently lost my construction business which was liquidated in May.

It's been a tough year to say the least.

Out of all my creditors, 3 of them are pursuing me for personal guarantees. Their defence is strengthened by the fact that when we applied for a credit account with them, I as managing director had to sign the account application.

Following the liquidation of my company, they have approached me via solicitors stating that within the dreaded small print of the application form, it stated that should the company be liquidated, I as MD would become personally liable for the debt.

To date one company has successfully got a court to approve their claim and subsequently I am now trying to repay that one.

There is another that I only hope I may have a slight get out. At the time of liquidation, the account application form I signed requested an opening credit balance of £3000.

At time of liquidation they had let us over trade to the balance of £8000.

They are pursuing me personally for the full 8k but I have been defiant against a lot of pressure from their solicitor and remained firm by offering 3k only which is what the account application was requested for.

They are stating that as my buyer requested more supplies that took us over our 3k limit then I am liable. My defence is my buyer is not or was not the MD of the company and as I never requested the additional supplies then they cannot hold me liable for anything over the agreed account limit of 3k.

They are piling the pressure on and even though I was MD of a sizeable construction company, I didn't walk away cash rich on a personal basis. I haven't had a wage since January and even took out a personal loan to help the company cash flow which I now have to repay.

I can pay the 3k and have offered this in writing on numerous occasions but only if the supplier accepts it as full and final settlement. They have a few weeks ago offered a reduced settlement of 6k from 8k but I do not see why I should agree to this.

They've been bullying me with threatening letters of debt collectors coming to my house so I sent a response 3 weeks ago telling them that I won't be threatened by their bully tactics and that I'd take my chances in court should they pursue this as an option. I haven't had a response yet which is starting to worry me.

I'd be grateful for some independent advice please as to whether or not I may have a case for not paying over 3k and also whether or not they can send debt collectors without going through the courts first?

Many thanks

Gary

CAB_Swansea_Bay_representative · 28 August 2012 at 9:10AM

Hi garymcl, thank you for your query regarding personal guarantees.
Unfortunately we are unable to assist with queries relating to business debts from a limited company. I would suggest however that you contact business debtline for free, impartial telephone advice. You can find information on their website which is www.bdl.org.uk or phone on 0800 1976026. Hope this is of assistance.

chunkey_monkee · 30 August 2012 at 3:35PM

I have 4 credit cards, 3 of them (Barclaycard, MBNA and Nationwide) are on 0% balance transfers and run out between August 2012 and October 2012. The 4th card is a Co Op visa card that I use as an emergency back up. I also bank with the Co Op as well.
I have had no missed payments with these credit cards and I usually pay more than the minimum per month.
In April this year I noticed the Barclaycard statement had not arrived so I rang them up to find out when the payment is due. Barclaycard told me I had missed the payment date by 2 days and so I would receive a late charge. I apologised and explained that I had not received the statement and knew that the payment was due on or around the time I rang them.

At this point I must make it clear that I have complained to the Royal Mail in the past about post not being delivered and the Royal Mail have acknowledged this.

I paid the late payment over the phone there and then and paid the following month's pay as well. Total was around £350. I asked if Barclaycard would put a mark on my personal credit file and they said no. The following month after I had remortgaged and with the spare cash I paid off around £5300 off my Barclaycard. I also paid £1580 off my MBNA card and around £4600 off my Co Op card.
I checked my credit file and Barclaycard did put a late payment on my file for a missed payment in April.
I complained to Barclaycard about the missed payment showing on my file and they looked into it but said they would not take it off my file even though, a) it was a genuine error that I admit to, b) I paid 2 months payments as a gesture of goodwill, c) their operator said it would not appear on my file, d) I paid over £5300 for June's payment. Barclaycard even admitted I had been a good customer and said if I need take it any further I should complain to the Financial Ombudsman Service.
It wasn't long after this that I received 2 letters, one from MBNA and one from the Co Op. The one from MBNA said it was upping my APR from 16.9% APR to 25.9% APR for no reason. The letter from the Co Op said that they would NOT be reneweing my Visa credit card which expires in August 2012 even though, a) I have NEVER been late paying them, b) I bank with the CO Op and so they have access to my bank account, c) I had just paid them over £4600 to CLEAR my account so I can start using it again for the odd purchase or two and emergencies.
In numerous calls to the Co Op they said they just needed my employer's name and address as is usual when renewing a card and that the letter was sent because they did not have my details. I gave them my details and they said the card will be sent out with no changes to the credit limit or APR.
Today I rang the Co Op to find out where my card was as it runs out in 2 days and they said they will now NOT be renewing my card due to my credit file which, suprise suprise all comes back down to the Barclaycard issue.
I asked the Co OP if they can then refund me the £4600 and I'll just pay them monthly at the agreed APR as without a credit card to fall back on I will need this money.
They gave me an address to write to ask for the refund.

Where do I stand regarding the Barclaycard issue ? Can get the late payment taken off the credit flie as there were mitigating circumstances ?

If I had known that the Co Op were not going to reissue my card then I certainly would not have paid off my account with them to the tune of £4600. Am I within my rights to ask for the £4600 back and pay them monthly on their standard APR ?

I did not pay off the Co Op card until early July. Would they have known before then that they were not going to reissue ?

Please advise me onmy rights and what I can do to a) get my late payment taken off, b) reclaim the £4600 I paid to the Co Op as if I had known the card was not going to be reissued I certainly would not have paid that huge amount.

Many thanks.

CAB_Swansea_Bay_representative · 30 August 2012 at 4:34PM

Hi Chunkey Monkey, thank you for your query regarding credit card disputes
Your first question about the late payment on your credit file- I would suggest you make a complaint to the Financial Ombusdmans Service as you remedied the breach as soon as you discovered it and they said would not effect your credit file and clearly it has. I would also suggest you explain that as a result you 0% credit card has been withdrawn and interest rate on another credit card has increased so you have had a financial loss as a result. You can find out more information about complaining to the Financial Ombusdman Service at www.adviceguide.org.uk.
Regarding the second issue about getting the lump sum you paid off the credit card back. Whilst there is nothing preventing you from asking for the refund I think it is highly unlikely they will agree to this as it was money they lent to you and it is likely that they have a clause in the credit card agreement which says they can review the account and withdraw at any time. I would suggest that if you get the late payment note taken off your credit file you could re-apply to Co-op or to another credit card company with a similar deal.
Hope this is of assistance.

chunkey_monkee · 31 August 2012 at 10:00AM

Hi, many thanks for the prompt reply. I shall contact the Financial Ombudsman Service today.
Chunkey.

Rudess · 3 September 2012 at 8:36PM

Hi

I'm a customer of one of the big mobile companies in the country. Few months ago my mobile was stolen unfortunately and I had to go and get replacement for which I paid as I was asked.

Two months ago I was astonished to find out that £200 disappeared from my bank account because that company decided that 'Phone was found' and 'I didn't return it', therefore have to pay this astonishing amount of money.

I recovered the money by calling my bank but the company started sending threatening letters and even a threatening phone call from their 'debt collection' department. I made many calls to their customer services, they never phoned me back although promised on many occassions. They are not willing to remove this charge, although I explained them there is no sense in what they are doing, and I'm really desperate and don't know now what to do.

I was never advised that in theory if a mobile is found, that I should return it to them (logically I paid in addition to the monthly contract another sum of money for a replacement). Secondly, if I had the phone as they claimed, why wouldn't I return it? Their story doesn't make any sense, it's just another case of a cowboy company using its power over a poor citizen.

I would really appreciate your help with this matter.

CAB_Swansea_Bay_representative · 4 September 2012 at 2:16PM

Hi Rudess, thank you for your query regarding mobile phone contract.
I am not sure from your post if you have found the lost phone or not but if you have not I would suggest you write to the company stating you dispute the debt and starting the reason why and asking them to respond in writing within a set timeframe (21 or 28 days) and ask them to hold any collection activity until they respond. I would suggest you send the letter by recorded delivery and keep a copy and if they do not respond or you are unhappy with the response I would suggest you complain to the Ombudsman Service- Communications. You can find more information at www.adviceguide.org.uk.
Hope this is of assistance.

Dealing with debts and debt disputes

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