OFT imposes requirements on Mackenzie Hall to improve handling of disputed debts

10past6

Any of the vultures that believe there immune to the OFT, only have themselves to blame when the curtain finally comes down on them

RAS

i have some sympathy with original creditors who have full legal documentation, but most of the major problems we hear about here are DCAs that have bought debt that has already been written off by the OC for less book value and are chasing for immediate payment because they hope the Op will not discover the debt is not legally enforceable.

pania

Robinson Way!!!!! horrible nasty barstools. nearly as bad as mackenzies in my experience!!

So good to hear that these companies are being bought to heel. they have acted like bolshy schoolground bullies ofr far to long. The people i feel sorry for are the ones that havent yet discovered tis site, are vulnerable, scared and believe the DCA's are legally allowed to act as they do.

OFT WE LOVE YOU!!!!

bathgatebuyer

I'll unashamedly give this another bump up the board as so many people get affected by McKenzie Hall that it really deserves to be at the top of the board for the next few days so everyone can see it.

And I would absolutely agree that Blair Oliver Scott and the Halifax should be next. The amount of letters I received from them, not to mention 20 calls a day while I was out of work almost pushed me to breaking point. They ignore requests for contact to be in writing, don't comply with CCA requests, pursue debts that are in dispute and in my case, served a default notice and info about it to credit reference agencies long after THEY repaid me £4,000 after a court action against them.

And the lip I got from one of their members of staff one night was a complete joke (he accused me of being a liar when i told him my case was beign dealt with by their Customer Relations team and they had agreed a settlement). I'm a firm believer that everyone has a job to do, nice or not and that everyone deserves some respect, but when you call someone a liar, you've crossed a line and can take whatever they have to throw at you. I got my £4,000, they were unsuccessful in a court case and the member of staff in question had a complaint put in about him and his conduct towards me.

You can accuse me of being in debt, or of being silly with money in the past, but accuse me of lying over my Dad's death and I will do whatever I need to make your life hell.

Mr Gobby Halifax employee found that out, and I sincerely hope that they are next to be called to account for the gratuitous breach of the guidelines that they have been getting away with for years.

Broken_hearted

Sorry you have had such an awful time with Halifax when Halifax phone the hospital DH was in and demanded to speak to him I was furious. I have spent years dealing with many form of these vultures since DH was first ill and the lies they tell are beyond belief. The number of times they have demanded money off me or lost permision to speak to me is insane. Most try to get DH on the phone as they know he will agree to anything. I have had companies telling me as I am his partner I must have spent the money and I have to pay it back.
Shut up and obey the rules and I will get around to paying you, bombard me with threats and lies and you can !!!!!! off.

debt_doctor

....and this from 1st credit............................

1st Credit

In January we were invited to visit 1st Credit’s offices in Reigate to meet their new compliance team and discuss the changes they are making to the way they collect debts. This meeting was very helpful and 1st Credit was keen to emphasise that there has been a significant change in attitude within the company recently. This has resulted in a number of key changes which we hope will benefit advisers and clients, including:

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The "sensitive cases" team

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This is a new team within 1st Credit that will deal with customers who have mental or physical health problems. Cases dealt with by this team will be removed from the usual collections operations. We are assured that this team will treat vulnerable people sensitively and sympathetically. If advisers want cases to be referred to this team, they should provide supporting medical evidence whenever possible. If such evidence is not available, please make sure you explain why.

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Tighter restrictions on the use of statutory demands

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In the past, a number of 1st Credit staff had the ability to issue statutory demands relatively easily. As a result, some statutory demands were issued in error. To stop this happening in the future, 1st Credit has restricted the ability to issue statutory demands to just a few senior members of staff. Connaught Collections have also been instructed to only issue bankruptcy proceedings when they absolutely intend to make the debtor bankrupt.

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Changes to the script used for outbound calls

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In order to allow their collections staff to have a more productive conversation with debtors, one that takes account of the debtor’s whole situation and rather than demanding full payment, 1st Credit have changed the script they use when making outbound calls. The new script is more sympathetic to the debtor’s situation and even suggests that they seek free impartial advice about their debt problem.

These are all very positive changes and we hope that advisers will notice them taking effect over the next few weeks. However, if advisers or clients have any problems with 1st Credit or Connaught Collections they should report these to xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx We would also urge advisers to complete eBEFs and, where appropriate, report the matter to the OFT.

....and about time too. Whatever next ? Will FOS wake up ??

DD

rog2

debt_doctor wrote: »

[FONT=Arial,Arial][FONT=Arial,Arial]Tighter restrictions on the use of statutory demands [/FONT][/FONT]
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[/FONT]Connaught Collections have also been instructed to only issue bankruptcy proceedings when they absolutely intend to make the debtor bankrupt.

That will 'save' Connaught Collections an absolute fortune in postage - they don't have any other 'letters' do they?

fermi

debt_doctor wrote: »

....and about time too. Whatever next ? Will FOS wake up ??

They were still fast asleep and 'snoring' loudly last time I looked. :rolleyes:

fermi

rog2 wrote: »

That will 'save' Connaught Collections an absolute fortune in postage - they don't have any other 'letters' do they?
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Certainly didn't seem like it for a while. :rolleyes:

They seem to have lost favour with Lowells as well now.

rog2

I have answered at least one poster, today, who is being pursued by MH for a debt that is so 'Statute Barred' that it could appear on the 'Antiques Roadshow'. :mad: :mad:

It would appear that MH are not treating the OFT warning as serious, and they would appear to be behaving no differently than before.

I have urged the poster concerned to report them to the OFT, but I thought it a good idea to 'bump' the thread as a reminder to everyone. :beer: