CCCS a year on, 1 problem crediter

Tuscan

Hi guys

i first came on this site about a year ago, i was under a differant name then (suggs) but cant seem to log in so had to register again..anyway i was (i am ) in about £80.000 of debt, i got good advice from you and whent with the cccs they are superb and together we worked out a dmp and my finances have turned around for the first time in ages im NOT dangling over a cliff and always maxed out every month, dont get me wrong im not bathing in cash but am no longer over drawn and normaly have some money over to live on after paying all my main bills and cccs payment etc.

all my creditors seem happy with there payments apart from city card, after nearly a year of taking payment via cccs they out of the blue passed my debt off to a company called HFO the debt is approx £2800, since then i get a monthly letter from HFO along the lines of HOME OWNER call us now or else to avoid ccj's and baliefs etc, i call them and they try to get me to take out a sercured loan with them and they say they arnt prepered to except my cccs offer, or they want me to pay the debt off over a couple of months which i cant do and would also go againts my cccs aggreament, i tell them im not prepered to take out a loan and get in more debt especialy as they want it secured, i dont think they like people that dont buckle and give in to them.

tonight i got a very short and sweet call from HFO saying we are passing you details to out solicitor to take action a letter is in the post, so has anyone else had dealings with them and could you give me a run down of whats likly to happen with going to court etc as im under the cccs or is this another scare tatic, ive played everything by the book and never ignored anyones letters or calls, and never got behind with any payments upto the time i contacted the cccs, and i havent fallen behind with any payments since, the payment they are getting is £17.08 a month my total cccs payment is £460, are they being unresonable are they going to gain anthing by taking me to court, i could up my payment to them by a bit but i dont think there interested unless its in the hundreads and cccs have told me not to anyway..


cheers
Tuscan

fatbelly

This is going to be a bit of a non-answer but maybe better than no answer at all.

The ball is in their court. You're paying them but at a rate that won't clear the debt for 13 years or so. Unless they actually issue a court claim I think you should regard it as a threat designed to get more money from you (not their worry that you'd be breaking your contract with CCCS).

Of course, if they do issue a court claim form, get further advice - you'll have 14 days to respond. CCCS should help.

You haven't disputed that you are a home owner and so it sounds like they might be trying to get to a point where they could put a charge on your property. They would have to first get a CCJ and then you to default on it. So just regard it as an empty threat until events prove otherwise.

mm2000

If they do go down the road of a CCJ don't be to worried if the Court awards them more than you are currently paying, you can appeal against this although you do have to pay a fee to the courts for this. Did Citi card notify you that they were going to pass your debt on. If not make a complaint to them. If they will not help make a complaint to the Financial Ombudsman service.

gallygirl

Pass it to CCCS IMMEDIATELY - that's what they're there for!


Good to here that apart from this delightful company things are generally much better for you.

AGB863

I work for for a debt management company in the voluntary sector and from what you have posted this company have broken several sections of the debt collection guidance as issued by the Office of Fair Trading

"i call them and they try to get me to take out a sercured loan with them "

Physical/psychological harassment[/B]

2.5 Putting pressure on debtors or third parties is considered to be oppressive.

2.6 Examples of unfair practices are as follows:

a. contacting debtors at unreasonable times and at unreasonable intervals

b. pressurising debtors to sell property, to raise funds by further borrowing or to extend their borrowing

"or they want me to pay the debt off over a couple of months which i cant do"

f. pressurising debtors to pay in full, in unreasonably large instalments, or to increase payments when they are unable to do so


As a previous poster has stated ensure that CCCS are involved and insist that all dealings are with them directly and not with you as per the OFT Guidelines

2.8 Examples of unfair practices are as follows:

a. sending demands for payment to an individual when it is uncertain that they are the debtor in question, e.g. threatening debt recovery action to 'the occupier' or sending a payment demand to all people sharing the same name/date of birth as a debtor in the hope that contact with the correct debtor will be made.

b. disclosing debt details to an individual when it is uncertain that they are the debtor in question, e.g. disclosing details to 'the occupier' of an address.

c. refusing to deal with appointed or authorised third parties, such as Citizens Advice Bureaux, independent advice centres or money advisers

If they do go to court and try and get a CCJ - if they use the bulk handling centre in Northampton - request that it is transfered to your local county court and attend the hearing and use the inforamtion above to show the situation that they have put you in - especially as you had been paying the original creditor the agreed amount previously through CCCS.

Each Debt Collector has to have a licence to trade issued by the OFT and if they are seen to be breaking the guidelines they can have their licence to trade revoked.

The hole document can be found here

http://www.oft.gov.uk/NR/rdonlyres/50F06527-9FC5-4610-B385-999D6E2A8950/0/oft664.pdf

isgman

As per ali007.. tell CCCS Now, they will (with look) sort it out for you, Good Look

Tootsie_Roll

Tuscan

Unless they actually start legal proceedings you have nothing to worry about and I certainly wouldn't try and get another loan to clear them.

If as we suspect you are a home owner then even if you have no equity they can secure the debt against your home. This is becoming more and more popular and lenders try to secure their position generally. To do this they will need to go to court and have a CCJ awarded which most likely will be a forthwith judgement requiring the full balance immediately (please note they will not give you the option to pay by instalments at this stage), ultimately you will get the charge registered on your home and then they will come to an arrangement for payments against their charge. It is very often stated on here that the judge will look favourably on you not the lender and this is true; one caveat though, they also have to look at your total financial position including any equity you may have and unless there are exceptional circumstances they are obliged to award the charge if everything legally is in order. There will always be an exception to the rule though !!

The fact that CCCS are involved is also irrelevant, they are not necessarily after increased payments.

Wonder_Girl

I can't really add anything to Tootsie Rolls post.

It does indeed appear they want a Charging Order, and if they want it they will get it with a hybrid order

Also if you call us (CCCS) we would give you the same advice as above, there really isn't anything you can do to stop them

WG x

Tuscan

Thanks for the replys, yes i am a home owner this seems to put me at a disadvantage, i have kept in contact with cccs about HFO's letters and also spoke to them on the phone today, they did say the same as most of you but said it would be unusal to be taken to court for that amount givern the amount im paying back but not impossible so its a waiting game, personly i think they will judging by there attitude so far, they are very single minded they arnt asking to come to an arrangment they are basicly wanting me to take out a loan with them or pay the full amount back over a very short period both options arnt very realistic, i work for my self by way of a small LTD company, for the first time in years i am looking like being able to have a few Thousand pounds in the company account, but this is really only a start to saving some tax money or for a back up if work goes dead which the building trade is liable to do from time to time especialy over recent years, i could use this money to pay some of the HFO debt off if it saves me from ccj's and charges etc although this goes againt the cccs agreament..

its just a bit of a kick in the teeth just as i was thinking i had taken control of things and paying debts off rather than them getting bigger and bigger, and being in credit with the bank rather than 10 grand over drawn as i was most of the time, this company seem to want to stick the boot in, ive never been taken to court before over money and this is one of the smallest debts, i owe about 30k to my bank and they have been as good as gold..and even MBNA have accepted things without any of the hassles they have givern others.....

Tuscan

charapfan

Talk to your CCCS case worker - they will be able to help!

fatbelly

From what Wonder Girl says they're not going to be able to help much. This is what the CAB says about charging orders

A creditor can apply for a charging order once the client has defaulted on a court judgment. If the original court judgment was to pay the amount owed immediately (forthwith), the application for a charging order can be made immediately. But if the order was to pay by instalments, an application for a charging order can be made only once the client has defaulted on payments. Some creditors routinely request forthwith orders so that they can apply for a charging order straightaway. In this case, if the client wishes to avoid a charging order, s/he will need to follow the admissions procedure up to re-determination stage.

The last bit of this is the 'hybrid order' Wonder Girl referred to. They're nasty and routinely dished out by Northampton County Court. Fortunately they're not so well liked at regional courts so a request for re-determination by a district judge at your local court (if made within 14 days) might allow payment by instalments on the CCJ. Depends on the judge.