What happens if....

needuradvice

thank u george. My only concern is that i need a definate confirmation that they have closed my account...so if i add ur data section, will that mean they won't write to me that they have closed my account on their file?

GeorgeUK

I rejigged the letter slightly.
First the complaint and you stating what guidelines they are in breach of;
You aware of the OFT enforcing the guidelines against MH;
You require them to stop processing your information;
And what you require for the complaint not to be sent to the regulators.

I write in response to your letter dated xxxxxxxx and I would like to make a formal complaint against your company. The details are set out below.

On xxxxxxxx I wrote to 1st Credit Limited regarding a debt that was alleged to be owed by myself. That letter was received and signed for on xxxxxxxx as confirmed by Royal Mail tracking.

In this letter I pointed out the following items:

1) Under the Limitation Act 1980 Section 5 "an action founded on simple contract shall not be brought after the expiration of six years from the date on which the cause of action accrued".

2) The OFT say under their Debt Collection Guidance on statute barred debt that "it is unfair to pursue the debt if the debtor has heard nothing from the creditor during the relevant limitation period".

3) The last correspondence/payment/acknowledgement or payment of this debt was made over six years ago and no further acknowledgement or payment has been made since that time. Unless you can provide evidence of payment or written contact from me in the relevant period under Section 5 of the Limitation Act, I suggest that you are no longer able to take any court action against me to recover the alleged amount claimed.

4) The OFT Debt Collection Guidance states further that "continuing to press for payment after a debtor has stated that they will not be paying a debt because it is statute barred could amount to harassment contrary to section 40 (1) of the Administration of Justice Act 1970".

Therefore it is clear that your original contact regarding this debt may well have been in breach of the Office of Fair Trading Guideline referred to in item (2).

Furthermore, your second letter is in breach of Office of Fair Trading Guideline referred to in item (4) as you have not supplied any evidence that the debt is not statute barred and directly constitutes harassment.

As you are no doubt aware, breaches of the OFT's Guidance on Debt Collection are treated seriously by the OFT when considering your fitness to hold a Consumer Credit License.

In particular the OFT has recently stated that:
The Consumer Credit Act 1974 (the Act) requires debt collectors, businesses that offer goods or services on credit and/or are involved in activities relating to credit or hire to be licensed by the OFT. Following implementation of the OFT's new powers under the Consumer Credit Act 2006 on 6 April 2008, the companies could also have specific 'requirements' imposed on them by the OFT. If such a requirement was not complied with, the business concerned could be subject to a financial penalty of up to £50,000. The OFT can also refuse or revoke a licence if it decides that a trader is not fit to hold one. The OFT can take into account any circumstances which appear to be relevant when considering the fitness of an applicant or licensee, including evidence that the company has contravened the Data Protection Act 1988.

The OFT has recently enforced their guidelines by placing a legal requirement on Mackenzie Hall Ltd to cease pursuing statute barred or disputed debts. Therefore I wish to formally notify you that unless I received written confirmation that this matter is now closed, I will not hesitate to make a formal complaint to the 'Office of Fair Trading' and also to 'Trading Standards'.

As a result of the above, you should now also consider this letter a statutory notice under Section 10 of the Data Protection Act to cease processing any personal data stored on your systems/records and data relating to this account with immediate effect. This means you must remove all information regarding this account from your own internal records and from my records with any credit reference agencies.

Should you refuse to comply, you must within 21 days provide me with a detailed breakdown of your reasoning behind continuing to process my data. It is not sufficient to simply state that you have a ‘legal right’; You must outline your reasoning in this matter and state upon which legislation this reasoning depends.

I understand that you must send a written acknowledgement of my complaint within 5 business days of its receipt. If you are unable to resolve my complaint within 4 weeks you must send a holding response, explaining the reasons why and indicating when you will make further contact.

Failure to resolve my complaint within 8 weeks by writing to confirm that the debt is statute barred, that you will cease pursuing me for payment and that my data will be removed from your systems, will escalate my complaint to the Financial Ombudsman Service and the Information Commissioner’s Office. This could result in you being ordered to pay compensation if my complaint is upheld.

I look forward to your reply.

Yours sincerely

needuradvice

hiya george...thanks for that! i've sent u a PM