Strange CCA Situation

Tinkles

Following advice gratefully received via this forum I requested my CCA back in February from a DCA who had bought my HP debt.
Despite two follow up letters when they failed to produce it I have still received nothing in writing from them but the phone calls stopped.
After a while the phone calls started again so I complained to the FO and OFT, both of whom have replied to me stating that they have written to the DCA involved. Included in the FO reply was a letter from the DCA's Solicitors with a copy of the CCA stating that they did have the required documentation but had not sent it to me as they had not been able to identify if I was the right person!
Am really not sure what to do next, the DCA have not officially responded directly to me with my CCA, I'm not sure if they know I have a copy of their Solicitors letter or not as it came via the FO, and the phone calls have started again! Why would they not have sent me the requested information and what should I do next?
Any help gratefully received!

pepe2008

So in that case they have broken the Data Protection Act by sending financial information to you that could have been about somebody else.
methinks they are lying to the FO! request the CCa again from them, copy th request to the FO witha covering letter and see what happens then,

Tinkles

Thanks pepe2008; sorry to sound stupid but who has broken the Data Protection Act - the Solicitors for sending it to the FO or the FO for sending it on to me?

pepe2008

The DCA for sending you details of adebt without being sure it was you.
What have the Solicitors sent to the FO? Just because they say iys a CCA doesnt mean its legally bonding, It MUST be sent to YOU, until it is they cannot take ANY enforcement action.

Tinkles

It was actually the Financial Ombudsman who passed the information to me. It was sent to them by the DCA's Solicitors.
I have just reread the copy of the Solicitors letter and it states that they have not sent me the documentation as I was traced through a third party and they have been unable to verify my identity. They also state that they have requested that I provide them with ID (a lie, they have not responded to my CCA request in ANY way) and that they will forward the documentation to me once I have provided them with this!
The DCA are now phoning me at least twice a day and I'm not sure of where to turn to next!

GeorgeUK

According to the OFT debt collection guidelines, they should not be trying to pursue a debt if they are not sure it belongs to that individual.

2.8 Examples of unfair practices are as follows:
a. sending demands for payment to an individual when it is uncertain that
they are the debtor in question, for example, threatening debt recovery
action to 'the occupier' or sending a payment demand to all people sharing
the same name/date of birth as a debtor in the hope that contact with the
correct debtor will be made.

Is the CCA that was provided yours?
Was it greed before 6th April 2007?
Did it have all the prescribed terms on it?

Tinkles

Hi George,

Yes, to all of your questions but what I don't understand is why they would not send me the requested info directly?
I made the CCA request to them in writing, using a template from here and enclosed the fee of £1.00.
Have they complied with this legal request or not? They have not sent this information directly to me and there is nothing in the letter to the FO to state that they want the FO to pass it on to me, so they can't actually prove that I have received it as they haven't sent it!

GeorgeUK

It had all the prescribed terms on it?
not so good.

When was the last time you made a payment towards this debt?

As they haven't provided a copy of the CCA to you, the account is still in dispute. Hopefully it'll stay that way until the debt becomes statute barred or they change their filing system and lose the document.

rog2

Tinkles wrote: »

Hi George,

Yes, to all of your questions but what I don't understand is why they would not send me the requested info directly?
I made the CCA request to them in writing, using a template from here and enclosed the fee of £1.00.
Have they complied with this legal request or not?

In a word, Tinkles, NO.

The DCA was under a legal obligation to provide you with a copy of the executed consumer credit agreement within 12 workin days of your request, and payment of the statutory £1 fee. They are, now, in default and, in order to enforce the agreement, they must seek permission from the Courts.

Their 'excuse' seems pretty limp-wristed to me - they were obviously sure of your identity when they started hassling you for payment - it seems, to me, that they suddenly came up with a cca because of the involvement of the FO, which, in itself, could cost them dearly.
It is not up to the FO, or his solicitors, to 'pass the cca on to you' - the obligation was firmly and fairly on the DCA, who has not honoured his legal obligations and is now trying to wriggle out of the hole that he has dug for himself.

In the unlikely event that the DCA does commence proceedings, then you should enter a defence stating clearly that the DCA was in default of his obligation to provide you with a true copy of the executed cca, under the terms of the Consumer Credit Act. Courts take a dim view of DCAs who do not comply with the Law and could, indeed should, declare this 'agreement' as irrideemably unenforceable. Even if the Court were to uphold the claim, and declare the agreement legally enforceable, you would have the opportunity to make an offer of payment at a rate that you can afford, rather than what the DCA wants. Any such resultant 'Order' by the Courts, would be just as binding on the DCA as it would be on you - the DCA would be committing a criminal offence if he hassled you for more than the Courts had ordered you to pay.

Tinkles

That's what I thought - thanks for putting my mind at rest!
I guess I'll just sit tight and see what happens next!