Newbie F&F Advice Pls

Floating_2

Hi Everyone,

Just wanted to ask advice in regards to the below letter: -

Account: xxxx xxxx xxxx xxxx

We confirm your payment of xxx hs been received towards the Partial Settlement of your account. The following payments if received will conclude our arrangement.

£xxx by 28 Feb
£xxx by 31 March

Upon receipt and clearence of these payments, we confirm no further action will be taken to recover the remaining balance and the account will be registered as a Partial Settlement with the Credit Reference Bureau for six years.

Please note any payments made in Partial Settlement are non-returnable.

Further use of your card will void this agreement; therefore, if you have not done so already, please return the card and any unused creditcard cheques.

Should you have any further queries please contact our Partial Settlements Dept on xxxxxxxx

Yours sincerely

xxxxxx

I really just want to know if this is acceptable for settlement before a relative makes the payment, does it really make a difference that it's marked as a Partial Settlement for six years, considereing my Credit Rating is shot to bits anyway?! I destroyed the card and cheques in 2006!!

Thanks in advance xx

Floating_2

Just bumping, any advice much appreciated.

Floating xx

PixiePie

I wanted to reply to this as whilst I am not an expert, if I reply and bump it someone who does know more than me might be able to help

My two pence worth is do not agree to it - firstly MBNA are snakes that say one thing on the phone and another in writing (if you can get anything in writing at all from them - currently we are in the situation that we are trying to sort out our debt with them, but every letter we send to them they just say 'thank you for your letter, please call us to discuss it' which we have already told them we will not do and will only deal with them in writing - we are about to report them to the OFT if they refuse to deal with us in writing once more..sigh), so we are very wary of *anything* they say, but also a partial settlement afaik means just that - partial, and they still pursue you for the rest for the rest of time, and it's marked as such on your credit ref which continues to muck it up.

I know it's not my situation, but if it were me I would be holding out for a FULL AND FINAL settlement only and writing back to them to state as much. If someone comes along and tells me I'm wrong, I apologise, but I wouldn't put it past MBNA to take your money, then be harassing you next week for the rest, which from reading about your situation doesn't sound like it would help any at all. Good luck, let us know what happens...

Floating_2

Hi PixiePie,

Many thanks for your information, I think I will write to them again asking for written confirmation that it will be a F&F settlement.

but also a partial settlement afaik means just that - partial, and they still pursue you for the rest for the rest of time,

Is this still the case when it states in the letter -

Upon receipt and clearence of these payments, we confirm no further action will be taken to recover the remaining balance and the account will be registered as a Partial Settlement with the Credit Reference Bureau for six years.

So far what MBNA have told me on the phone, I have had in writing with regards to this account, but I have not paid them anything in regards to my other account with them as I haven't received it in writing yet.

Sorry I just don't want to get it wrong, and get stung further down the line.

fatbelly

Floating wrote: »

Upon receipt and clearence of these payments, we confirm no further action will be taken to recover the remaining balance and the account will be registered as a Partial Settlement with the Credit Reference Bureau for six years.

It is badly worded but that is the important paragraph. Make sure you keep the letter safe.

It is OK for them to mark the account 'partially settled' at the CRAs - Fermi has good info on this and has posted elsewhere.

MyLastFiver

I'm prepared to be proved wrong here, but by the look of it, MBNA are leaving the door open to sell the remaining balance on to a DCA. MBNA say they will not pursue the remaining bal, but they don't say anything about anyone else doing it.

If there is value, someone will be along to pick over the bones. That's capitalism for you.

Personally I'd want to pay in full and have done with it.

very_silly_and_scared

Dear Floating

I am in the same sort of position with MBNA who are being a bit slippery. Your letter is worded VERY problematically.

I have got advice on all this from Debtline, CCCS and the CAB and basically the 'short settlement' and 'partial settlement' thing (instead of a full and final settlement') is less of an issue than them ALSO saying that they will reduce the remaining balance to £0 and that neither THEY or ANYONE ELSE in the future will come after you for the rest.

I posted about this a couple of weeks ago but don't know how to link to my previous post, sorry. Perhaps if you do a search of my recent posts, or let me see if I can find it and cut and paste.

Don't pay ANYTHING at the moment. The non refundable thing sounds worrying and they're not guaranteeing to wipe the rest of your balance or that no-one else will come after you for the rest.

very_silly_and_scared

Here you go, I have pasted my message from a couple of weeks ago. Check out the link. It's guidelines for creditors and says that accounts CAN be marked as partial. You just need the £0 balance and fact that NOBODY will come after you for the rest.

You say earlier that you had an email from them. Rather than you phoning to tell them this, put it in writing (in the post) AND email it to them on an attachment telling them exactly what you want in writing. Did you use the National Debtline template letter initially?

Floating_2

Hi very silly and scared,

Many thanks for the info, I will write to them and email them, yes it was the National Debtline template I used.

Thanks again xx

Floating_2

Sorry, is there any template letters about that I could send to them saying that I want to know that the balance will show as zero and that neither they or anyone else can come looking for the balance at a later date?