Received a letter - Pre-Litigation Department :(

od0s

Well it was an Egg card I got when I was a student that had a £500 credit limit. The debt now is £749.11

I am interested to know how what sort of debt it is makes a difference? Thanks for your kind help!

Jesthar

od0s wrote: »

everyone agreed that I must contact Lowell? If so it appears I need to do this by letter, rather than phone. The only thing that worries me is I have read that people have responded to Lowell and just got the same sort of standard letter sent back to them. As if they only want a full payment and they want it NOW. Some say they are very unwilling to cut deals or bargain and offer lower monthly payments.


I'm so unsure with how to handle this it is scary!

Yes, you probably will, but do it on your terms, not theirs. Yes, you weill get standard letters, and yest they will be scary, but you can always come back here and ask for help and 'translations' if you need them. Most of their letters are worded with the purpose of trying to frightn you into phoning them, where they can intimidate you directly.

They will indeed try and demand full payment, but that is standard tactics, and they cannot force you to pay money you don't have. Incidentally, it is against the law for them to suggest you take out a loan or another form of credit to pay them off, but they may well try that tactic anyway.

Oh, and NEVER give them any credit or debit card details, or any piece of documentation with a signature on (just type or print your name on any letter you sent them), as some of these companies will take more money than you said they could, and have even tried document forgery in the name of extortion. :mad:

Incidentally, if this is a card, do people think a CCA request is worth a try?

~Jes

RAS

if this was a credit card, then the Consumer Credit Act applies. If it was a debit card attached to a bank account, it does not.

od0s

It was a credit card. I obtained it after they randomly sent me a letter offering me one when I was 18.

Does it being a credit card mean something different...?

RAS

yes, the Consumer Credit Act applies. Without the correct legal documentation, they cannot enforce the debt.

We know that CCas from 2003 issuesd by cap 1 are often unenforceable. Lowell tend to buy this sort of debt and hope the punters do not know the law. The reason for pushing for full payment is that it reduces the time you jhave to learn about the law.

od0s

Sorry to be requiring spoon-feeding - but in this case - what would you recommend I do next?

RAS

Send this letter regsitered post with a £1 postal order or cheque. Do not sign, print your name.

They have 12 working days plus 2 days to allow for postage before the debt becomes unenforceable. If the CCa turns up later, they can enforce the debt but until they do, whether and what you pay is your decision not theirs.

oops - original CCA request letter:

Quote:
Dear Sir/Madam

Re:− Account/Reference Number 4563210025897412

I do not acknowledge any debt to your company.

With reference to the above, we would be grateful if you would send us a copy of this credit agreement, statement of account and notice of assignment.

We understand that under the Consumer Credit Act 1974 (Sections 77−79), we are entitled to receive a copy of our credit agreement on request. We enclose a payment of £1.00 which represents the fee payable under the Consumer Credit Act.

We understand a copy of our credit agreement should be supplied within 12 working days.

We understand that under the Consumer Credit Act creditors are unable to enforce an agreement if they fail to comply with a request for a copy of the agreement under these sections of the Act.

We look forward to hearing from you.

Yours faithfully

od0s

Thank you so much.

Does it make a difference that I actually do know I owe EGG some money? Is what I am doing just morally wrong, but not legally? Is it basically my way of saying I have never heard of your company and you need to prove to me why I now owe you?

Your help is much appreciated!

Jesthar

od0s wrote: »

Thank you so much.

Does it make a difference that I actually do know I owe EGG some money? Is what I am doing just morally wrong, but not legally? Is it basically my way of saying I have never heard of your company and you need to prove to me why I now owe you?

Your help is much appreciated!

No, a CCA request is just a way of clarifying whether they are legally entitled to make you pay the money back.

What happened is that in the height of the lending frenzy a lot of finance entities handed out credit accounts to all and sundry without actually making sure that the documents they were getting the customers to sign were legally correct. As a result, there are a lot of supposed 'Credit Agreements' out there which, effectively, are not legally binding documents, so the person provided with the credit is not actually under any legal obligation to pay the money back.

If the CCA they produce (if they manage to find one) does not meet the legal requirements, then whether or not you actually do choose to pay the money back out of the goodness of your heart is completely up to you! I think it might also have some other side effects, such as meaning they debt cannot be passed on to another debt collector as it is disputed. It might stop them charging interest, too, but I'm not sure on that...

Oh, and when you write that letter DO NOT SIGN YOUR NAME - just type or print it. Dome companies have been known to try forging documentation...

~Jes

RAS

Hi

The law was made over 30 years ago and any company that cannot get its paperwork sorrted out deserves what it gets. That the legal side. Morally, you have to do what suits you.

However, Lowell have bought this debt for a pittance and now think you are going to pay them back the full balance? How moral do you think that is?

If the debt is unenforceable, you might not pay, you might pay what you can afford monthly, or do a full and final settlement that acknowledges the real cost of the debt to Lowell.

If you do not do the CCa, they will make your life hell. So you might at least know what the legal situation is.