Hi There, Help Please

mm268

Hi there

I cancelled my car insurance with elephant.co.uk on 27th september 2009 as no longer use the car. I was paying £100.18 per month via direct debit. Upon cancelling it, I was told that I had a £49 cancelletaion charge which they would take in 7 working days, no problem i thought as money was availabe etc. I sent my covernote back to them all ok.

I was then contacted 2 weeks later saying that the card details they had for me are incorrect(even though they had no problem with the Direct Debit before) and i had 7 days to respond. This was the morning before i went away on holiday for 2 weeks. This was the last i heard from them.

In todays post, i got a rater rude letter from C.A.R.S debt collection agency saying that an amount of £309.09 has been passed to them from EUI ltd, (elephant.co.uk) and they have added a £20 admin charge, meaning i now owe them £329.09. I have been told i have 7 days to respond otherwise they will take further action, either sending a debt collector to my house,issuing a default notice or take me to court?

I phoned Elepahant.co.uk and basically said what the hell is going on, to which i was answered with "its in the debt collection agencies hands, deal with them"

I have no signed paperwork from Elepant.co.uk agreeing to the Direct Debit or the insurance, it was only agreed over the phone and then in the infomation pack i have my copy of an agreement but with no signitures?

I dont earn a great deal, and although i may have been neglegant in not responding to elephants letter when i went away, surely this is unfair as i dont undestand how i owe £330!!!

Any help wuld be greatly appreciated.

Thanks
MM:beer:

mm268

Oh and forgot to say the Debt collection agency have phoned me twice today, i didnt answer either call because i heard the company are'nt very nice to deal with

trigger1976_2

Hi,
I used to work for Admiral which owns the Elephant insurance and when I worked for them (some years before) they used to handle their own debt but under an alternative name so that people thought they were an official debt agency.
The only advice I can give you is to make a complaint -official - with Elephant - speak to a manager and demand that they pull the call from when you cancelled (they will have this facility) which confirms the date from which you cancelled and get them to forward this to the debt agency that day also get them to confirm this has been done.
Have you sold the car? If so then it is not legal for you to still have insurance on it and if you can prove this they will have to cancel from the day you sold it.
I would be v polite when you call about this but firstly speak to a manager at Elephant and just refuse to get off the phone until they have resolved this for you.
Good luck.
x

Tixy

Just to add - if they threaten you with door stop collections (or even if they do turn up - which is unlikely) these people have absolutely no rights at all (less than the paperboy) so tell them to leave, do not pay money over at your door and if they refuse to go call the police.

LandyAndy

You might try asking this on the motoring or insurance boards.

BUT be aware that the motoring board (I don't know about the insurance board) can be a fairly robust and you may have to filter the information from the abuse;). Don't let that put you off.

mm268

Thanks, i have lodged a complaint with Elephant, spent two hours on the phone and eventually got them to listen without the "its not in our hands anymore"

However the debt collection agencey are being a nightmare, does anybody know of a letter i could send to get them off my back? Am i also correct in thinking because i havent a documant Signed by both parties in regards to the car insurance, that the Debt collection agency cannot pursue me? ive had 3 calls today, each leaving messages!

Thanks people

josephine33960

Inform the debt collection agency that you are currently disputing the amount you owe with the insurance company, legally they should then stop persuing you at leats until the amount owed has been sorted out. Here is a template letter . . .

Initial Debt Collection Dispute Letter

Today's Date

Your Name
Your Address
Collector's Name
Collector's Address
Dear {insert name of collector or company},
I am writing in response to your (letter or phone call) dated {insert date}, (copy enclosed) because I do not believe I owe what you say I owe.
This is the first I've heard from you, or any other company on this matter therefore, in accordance with the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, Section 809(b): Validating Debts:

(b) If the consumer notifies the debt collector in writing within the thirty-day period described in subsection (a) that the debt, or any portion thereof, is disputed, or that the consumer requests the name and address of the original creditor, the debt collector shall cease collection of the debt, or any disputed portion thereof, until the debt collector obtains verification of the debt or any copy of a judgment, or the name and address of the original creditor, and a copy of such verification or judgment, or name and address of the original creditor, is mailed to the consumer by the debt collector.

I respectfully request that you provide me with the following information:

• (1) the amount of the debt;
• (2) the name of the creditor to whom the debt is owed;
• (3) Provide a verification or copy of any judgment (if applicable);
• (4) Proof that you are licensed to collect debts in (insert name of your state)

Be advised that I am fully aware of my rights under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act and the Fair Credit Reporting Act. For instance, I know that:

• because I have disputed this debt in writing within 30 days of receipt of your dunning notice, you must obtain verification of the debt or a copy of the judgment against me and mail these items to me at your expense;
• you cannot add interest or fees except those allowed by the original contract or state law.
• you do not have to respond to this dispute but if you do, any attempt to collect this debt without validating it, violates the FDCPA;

Also be advised that I am keeping very accurate records of all correspondence from you and your company including recording all phone calls and I will not hesitate to report violations of the law to my State Attorney General, the Federal Trade Commission and the Better Business Bureau.
I have disputed this debt; therefore, until validated you know your information concerning this debt is inaccurate. Thus, if you have already reported this debt to any credit-reporting agency (CRA) or Credit Bureau (CB) then, you must immediately inform them of my dispute with this debt. Reporting information that you know to be inaccurate or failing to report information correctly violates the Fair Credit Reporting Act § 1681s-2. Should you pursue a judgment without validating this debt, I will inform the judge and request the case be dismissed based on your failure to comply with the FDCPA.
Finally, if you do not own this debt, I demand that you immediately send a copy of this dispute letter to the original creditor so they are also aware of my dispute with this debt.

Signature here
Your Printed Name

magpiecottage

Elephant should deal with this as a regulated complaint under the Financial Services & Markets Act 2000.

A bit late for you but for anybody else, say "I am an eligible complainant and I am making a complaint now. If you do not know what that means give my name and policy number to your compliance officer because they have eight weeks to sort this out to my satisfaction and it starts today."

"Eligible complainant" is jargon - all it means is somebody who is making a complaint that they can take to the Financial Ombudsman Service.

If the DCA is aware that the debt is in dispute then it should back off. Look at this thread for information about how to complain to a DCA

Butti

If you need to prove you were paying by direct debit you can get a printout from your bank proving it and a printout from all necessary statements proving it. It was very useful when I was doing bank charge reclaiming as you could just print it out and highlight the necessary line.

B