5 years since default...company chasing now!

boxxy_2

Hi,

I took a 12 months phone contract in early 2004, but unfortunatly I had to leave the country due to home office refusing to renew my visa, so I left the UK in January 2005. at the time i was under a lot of pressure from everywhere as you could imagine and the phone contract was not really my top priority. I didnt return to the UK until late 2005. so I am assuming by then the phone company must have made several attempts to collect the money owed to them. When i returned I lived in a different part of the country and never visited my old address. I totally forgot about it until i received a letter from a debt collection agency in November 2009, saying that i owed that particular company £354.77.

You have to bear in mind that the phone company has recorded an unsettled default on my credit file for £219.00 in 2005.

I would like to know what are my rights here, and is there anything I can do to stop them chasing me. These five years has been hell, as far as credit is concern. I have been refused credit on many occasions because of this.

Any help or ideas will be highly appreciated.

Thanks.

DarkConvict

They are allowed upto 6 years in England, 5 in Scotland you try and locate you and ask for payments. If you do not acknowledge or pay the debt for a period of 6 years (5 in scotland) it becomes statute barred, which is where they cannot enforce it via a court. http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showthread.html?p=11571227#post11571227

You could try with a prove it letter, but you are likely going to have to pay, although i believe you should only pay the amount owed not the collection charges as you didnt agree to them. Give national debtline a call for more info. http://www.nationaldebtline.co.uk/

woody01

I have been refused credit on many occasions because of this.

And rightly so!
You had credit and for whatever reason (it makes no difference), you didnt bother paying it.

boxxy_2

Thank you all.

Tixy

You could try making a reduced full & final settlement offer. You could even see if they will negotiate taking the default off when you settle (not common but it has been known) - http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showpost.html?p=26867873&postcount=10