Warning and advice about LCS Utility Investigation Civil Enforcement Debt Recoveries
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I'm wondering what to do....
I moved from my old address a year ago, and have just had a voice mail message from LCS on behalf of Eon.
As far as I'm aware the account is settled so I'm not sure why they're after me?
Should I call them back and ask what they want? I'm worried that if I do, they'll hound me for money I don't owe.
Any advice, gratefully received!!0 -
bluesunriseangel wrote: »I'm wondering what to do....
I moved from my old address a year ago, and have just had a voice mail message from LCS on behalf of Eon.
As far as I'm aware the account is settled so I'm not sure why they're after me?
Should I call them back and ask what they want? I'm worried that if I do, they'll hound me for money I don't owe.
Any advice, gratefully received!!
If your 100% in what you say regarding payment of your previous debt...then instead of phoning LCS, why not phone E-On...0 -
I doubt that even they would be so utterly stupid.
However, he/she/it/they did write this:
Oh yes?
That would be a really clever trick, if they could do it.
Does anyone know how they'd make someone bankrupt for £138.73? :rotfl::rotfl::rotfl:
No minimum debt is £750.00 - they are trying to scare you !0 -
Thames Water have sold the so-called 'debt' to Fredericksons International.
Fredericksons have engaged some Solicitors called Bryan Carter & Co. They wrote to me a "Solicitor's Letter".
This was my response:Within a couple of days I get a letter from Fredericksons asking me to "Please confirm when the debt was paid off".Tuesday, 23 March 2010.NOTICE OF !!!!ISHNESS & CONSEQUENT FEE SCHEDULE
Dear Sirs,
I write in response to your letter of 18/03/2010.
Even the Bills of Exchange Act, 1882 says that - once a debt is paid - said debt is extinguished.
Thus when Fredericksons paid Thames Water for some so-called ‘debt’ … said so-called ‘debt’ was extinguished. (FACT)
Consequently your letter doesn’t make any sense at all, in point of fact it is total bollox. You have your head totally up your !!!! for the following reasons:
1. I recall NO CONTRACT with you.
2. I recall NO CONTRACT with Fredericksons.
3. I recall NO CONTRACT with Thames Water.
4. I will NOT GRANT Contract to any Court de facto, should anyone decide to go to litigation. And, anyway, you will be wasting your time because there is no dispute, as explained above. There is only the FACT that any so-called ‘debt’ was extinguished.
So you are, basically, stuffed. And, that being the case, you must be a complete !!!!!! to have even considered writing to me, because you should have checked all this out before putting electronic pen to paper.
Fredericksons have no right to pursue anyone for a non-existent so-called ‘debt’, and only a complete !!!! would conjoin with them in such a CRIMINAL activity of attempted:
FRAUD/BLACKMAIL/EXTORTION/RACKETEERING
(Call it what you will).
Perhaps you could redeem your blatant !!!!ishness by explaining it to them nicely?
Maybe you should take some LAWFUL advice? It is, after all, childishly simple. It goes like this. If you intend to pay off someone else’s debt, make sure – beforehand – that they have agreed, via BINDING CONTRACT, to pay you back. Otherwise it is rather stupid to go ahead and do it. (And even more stupid to conjoin with them). Unless, of course, you are all philanthropists … but you don’t sound like that.
This is so simple, and basic, that anyone who did not comprehend would need to be mentally !!!!!!. It is the basis of good faith and civilised behaviour, and forms a part of the bedrock of the Law-of-the-LAND (aka the Common Law). (So now you know).
[b]I hereby send you Notice that my fee for any further responses in this matter (which constitute unwarranted intrusions into my privacy, and attempts at trespass on my sovereignty) will be £1,000 per letter (irrespective of content), and that by sending me a communication, you accept said Fee Schedule.[/b]
So, make the most of this response, and the education contained herein, because it is all you and/or Fredericksons are likely to get from me.
Sincerely without frivolity,
Veronica: of the Chapman family, as commonly called (English Sovereign). Without any admission of any liability whatsoever, and with all Natural Indefeasible Rights reserved.
LMAO! THEY PAID IT OFF!
My reply to Frederiscksons:TO WHOEVER IT MAY CONCERN:
Notice to Bailiffs & Debt Collectors (etc)
Notice to Agent is notice to Principal; Notice to Principal is notice to Agent
It is a basic rule of Common Sense that – if you pay someone else’s so-called ‘debt’ - then you make sure – BEFOREHAND – that they are prepared to pay you back. If you had done that, your demands would have the force of LAW behind them.
Since you never checked anything with me BEFOREHAND, then you & your Company are either:
1. Philanthropists, acting non-philanthropic
OR
2. A collection of mentally !!!!!! !!!!!!s, devoid of basic Common Sense/comprehension of LAW.
Don’t bother knocking, because you’ll be unlikely to get an answer. If you do get an answer, then the only one you’ll get will be “!!!! off you pathetic little !!!!!!” … so you’ll be wasting your time.
If you put a letter through the door it will be immediately shredded. Yet another waste of your time & effort … but hey … you’re a complete !!!!!! … so you’ll do it anyway!
THE REASON IS VERY SIMPLE: DON’T BUY DEBTS BEFORE ESTABLISHING FIRST OF ALL, THAT YOU’LL GET PAID BACK … OTHERWISE YOU AREA STUPID !!!!ING !!!!!!.
(By all means take a copy of this Notice back to your office0 -
bluesunriseangel wrote: »I'm wondering what to do....
I moved from my old address a year ago, and have just had a voice mail message from LCS on behalf of Eon.
As far as I'm aware the account is settled so I'm not sure why they're after me?
Should I call them back and ask what they want? I'm worried that if I do, they'll hound me for money I don't owe.
Any advice, gratefully received!!
Ignore it till you get something in writing. Then send a prove-it letter0 -
I have also recently received a letter from LCS claiming i owe them £714.02 for a british gas bill of an address ive never lived at. I experienced the same as you regarding speaking to the company. I found them persistant and rude and started asking questions and providing proof of tenancy agreement and bank statements which i obviously dont feel comfortable giving them my bank statements. They said they investigated it and said the information i gave and what they have match and that i was living their and need proof otherwise. I contacted british gas several times and didnt really help me and all they said was they've sent the debt to a debt recovery company and when i asked which company he didnt want to tell me, and when i asked him can you not send them proof that my name is not registered with them on that billed address the guy said it has nothing to do with us and that i have to send them proof.
I think this company is scamming people have stolen details of customers. I help this helps and the company is LCS (Utility investigations civil enforcement debt recoveries)
1st floor west wing, town centre house, the merrion centre, woodhouse lane, leeds, LS2 8LY
Well you remember in my last post I told readers that I made a new complaint. This time to the head of complaints department at British Gas who sent me a compensation cheque for £50. And the man I spoke to at the head of complaints department at British Gas also told me. If for some reason I could not get a letter from my previous landlord,there are other things they would accept as proof I was not living at my old address.He told me it could be bank statements which would show my new address not the old one.Or the tenancy agreement from the address I am living at now,that would show when I first moved into my new address. Also even a letter from Housing Benefit,I am on benefits,and as you know you are NOT ALLOWED to have 2 homes or be living at 2 address.
And of course Housing Benefit would not pay rent for my old address and my new address. And even if LCS had have taken me to court the judge would have found out that I am on benefits,and so I could not be living in 2 homes. In fact as some one else said to me,LCS would be laughed out of court over this.
Obviously LCS would probably have liked to have taken me to court or to have got the money off of me. But realised that they got the wrong person. And as the debt was just £139,which I did not owe because I moved out of my old address long before those dates and so i no longer lived there. It would have cost them more money to take me to court,than the money they were asking for.
But who was it that put LCS onto you? was it British Gas or another energy supplier? If I was you I would go to see a lawyer or solicitor,or at least go to your Citizens Advice Bureau.Don't struggle though this alone.
And another thing-it seems that this LCS are deliberately harassing and bullying innocent people who do not owe money. And are getting away with it. So now it is time that some one should report LCS to a higher up authority. There must be a Trading Standards or a higher who regulates debt agencies who are abusing their power. And are possibly breaking the law in harassing people. Barbara.0 -
I just saw the title to this thread, and couldn't help but put my 2p worth of experience with these people.
I work in local government and from time to time we get these letters from LCS in relation to vacant properties which the Council own.
Often they are chasing alleged utility debts (usually NPower or EON)run up by previous tenants of these properties who have long since moved out several years ago. Often they are claiming huge theoretical amounts all based on estimated readings at some exorbitant tariff.
I explain to LCS that if the Council can be shown to be genuinely liable for a genuine debt, it will get paid in full without delay. We're not exactly a fly-by-night outfit. However, they talk to us on the phone like we are dubious chancers and they're unwilling to discuss anything about the debt or its legitimacy. They simply want to know if we will pay or not and demand a 'yes' or 'no' answer.
Of course we can't just pay unproven, unevidenced debts as we are dealing with public money. So we find ourselves at deadlock. They won't talk about the situation surrounding the alleged debt, and we can't pay spurious invoices, so rather than accept their constant pointless phone calls and their ludicrous claims that they will send a bailiffs to the Town Hall to remove items to the value of the debt, we refer them to our solicitors. Then LCS eventually decide they are willing to discuss the debt after all, but its all too little too late. If they will not deal with us in a vaguely reasonable and practical way, what do they expect in return?
In general I find a lot of the utility companies to be opportunistic when it comes to these type of issues. They seem content to supply energy to person or persons unknown at a property sometimes for years without payment. Then they wait another year or two and eventually decide they need to be paid and pursue whoever is easiest to find. They don't seem to think they've any accountability for controlling some of these accounts. Where else would a company continue to supply goods and services month after month, not get paid, and then pursue someone completely different for the debt years later?
Also, before I finish, my other rant about estimated bills. What other business can pursue customers to the point of court for a theoretical debt? I've known energy companies willing to prosecute over assumed consumption based on estimated readings. Its not for them to show any evidence that you've used the electricity, its for you to prove that you've not used it.
Talk about turning things on their head.0 -
Well henrik1971,
The problem is that if British Gas come to you 2 years,through a third party LCS.Who are falsely accusing you of a debt that you do not owe. And if you read my earlier posts in this thread and also the posts from Widelats. You will see that it was British Gas's error that cause the problem not me or any of the other people who posted here on this thread.
When I moved out of my old flat on 6th December 2009,I did everything that British Gas told me to do. I gave British Gas the final metre reading for both my gas and electric. They closed my account and sent me the final bill which showed I was in credit. And they told me the account at my old address was closed.
Then nearly 2 years later in April 2011 I get a letter from a debt agency,LCS. Saying I am responsible for the gas and electric at my old address from 6th December 2009 to July 2010 and they are asking for £130.
So I phone British Gas and find out from them. That customer services in British Gas did close my account at my old address, when I gave them the final meter readings and that it was closed by me. But the next day a customer service advisor opened the account in my name. And that the account at my old address has open for 18 months and British Gas never told me.instead they went behind my back to the debts people,LCS.
And the same thing happened to Widelats. So where is it our fault? It was not my fault or the fault of some of the other people who have posted here with the same problem. The error was with British Gas because someone in customer services or Home moves(they did not tell me who) did not close my account properly at my old address,like they should have done.
But it was not my fault as I did tell British Gas I was moving out and I did give them the final metre readings on the day I moved out. And they told me that my account at my old address was closed and they sent me the final bill.
If I had moved out and not told them I was moving then that would have been different. But I DID TELL THEM and I DID give them the final metre reading on the day I moved out,like they told me to do. And they did send me the final bill for my old address.Which said I was in credit.
But what British Gas did NOT TELL me when I moved into my new address was that. The account at my old address was closed by me when I gave the final metre reading. But was opened again in my name by some one in customer services in British Gas.
But British Gas should not have gone behind my back to the debts people.
If the account at my old address was still open due to their error not mine,they should have just told me then. 18 months ago when I first moved into my new address. And I would have got a letter from the council who are my landlords as proof that I moved out on 6th December 2009. And the council would have been more than happy to give me a letter saying I moved out of my old home when I said I did.
But British Gas never told me the account was open and instead went to the debts people without even telling me. The account at my old address was open,due to their mistake.
But thankfully as my tenancy is with the council I was able to go back to the council and get the letter from them as proof I am not living there. And so LCS had to let it go.
But what British Gas did to me,was absolutely wrong.And other innocent people are being bullied by LCS into paying money they do not owe. Due to British Gas's error.
Someone should report LCS to a higher up authority. I am surprised no one has made an official complaint about LCS. But the fault is with British Gas as well,for not doing their job properly. Barbara.0 -
I couldn't agree more Barbara, and I'm with you in your dissent. My experiences are different of course, but just serve to illustrate the unreasonableness of some of the utility companies and their debt collecting firms, practices and tactics
Whoever you are - even if you're the most diligent, trustworthy, innocent and honourable customer who clearly owes nothing, these people will write ultimatum-filled letters, hound you on the phone, talk to you with total disdain and pursue for debts that you don't owe (and might not even be real debts anyway!)
Something should definitely be done about it.0 -
henrik1971 wrote: »I couldn't agree more Barbara, and I'm with you in your dissent. My experiences are different of course, but just serve to illustrate the unreasonableness of some of the utility companies and their debt collecting firms, practices and tactics
Whoever you are - even if you're the most diligent, trustworthy, innocent and honourable customer who clearly owes nothing, these people will write ultimatum-filled letters, hound you on the phone, talk to you with total disdain and pursue for debts that you don't owe (and might not even be real debts anyway!)
Something should definitely be done about it.
Well said, henrik1971.
Some people do avoid paying their bill and do owe money but I and the people who have posted on this thread are not one of them.
And while LCS as a debt agency are doing their job,they are going after THE WRONG PEOPLE. And innocent people are getting hurt.
But it is also the fault of British Gas as one simple letter or phone call to me from them. Telling me that my account was still open at my old address. Would have avoided all of this hassle for me.
When I moved into my new address I was still with British Gas at the time for my electric. And they were in the process of transferring my gas over from Scottish Power,(who were supplying the property) to British Gas. So I was in contact with British Gas by telephone every 2 weeks. So they should have just told me or asked me if I was still living at the old address, as well as the new one. And told me that my account at the old address was still open.
I would have told then "no I was not." And if they asked me to,I would have gone to the council there and then and got a letter from them to prove I was not living there. And then LCS would never have been involved in my case.
But British Gas never told me my account was still open at my old address. Instead they went behind my back to LCS the debts people,without telling me. So I had NO IDEA that the account at my old address was still open,due to British Gas's mistake,not mine.
And when I made my complaint,I asked them why did they never tell me that my account was still open at my old address? And why did they go behind my back to the debts people without telling me? And giving me even a change to explain that British Gas made a mistake and that I am not living there anymore? And I can get proof of this from the council?
They told me that they sent the leters to my OLD ADDRESS. And I told them because I moved out of my old address on 6th December 2009. And of course I had to give back the keys to the council as you do when you move out. I could not get into my old flat and the council had let my old flat to a new tenant (I presume.)
British Gas then said the flat was empty after I moved out and had been for several months. But that still does not explain why British Gas customer services open my account at my old address. The next day after I had given the final metre reading and they had closed it.
It is THEIR error not mine and it was not my fault. And I don't think it is right that British Gas and LCS tried to do me up for money I did not owe. What British gas did to me is disgusting and it is not right that they can do this to innocent people and get away with it.
When I made a complaint about my treatment by British Gas to Consumer Focus.They would not even take up my complain. They said it was a debt matter but it was not. As I did not owe the money. So I had to complain to British Gas Complaints Department, and later on British Gas Head of Complaints Department.
And I am emotionally scarred by my experience. Barbara.0
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