DCA letter from BCW

antony85

i have recieve a dca letter from buchananclark and wells regarding a recent t-mobile debt the letter reads :

pursuers - t-mobile
princible sum - £142.53
administration costs £16.39
debt balance £158.92
bcw ref xxxxx
cliuent ref xxxxx

dear mr smith

we have been instructed by t-mobile uk to recover an overdue account in the sum of £142.53 the oustanding debt value £158.92 includes an administration charge of 11.5% to compensate or clients for the cost inccured recovering the debt

our client informs us that they are unaware of any legitimate reason for non-payment of their account and although they would prefer an amicable settlement, will not hesistate to commence legal proceedings if necessary

then it goes on to say how to pay, and if full payment isnt recieved withing 28 days then then charges relating to the rest of the contract will be added to the account, (theres 3 months left on the phone, and 5 months left on the mobile broadband) but i just cant afford them its £50 a month


i notice they say they know of no reason why i havnt paid, this is untrue as i have rung them and told them its due to a loss of hours at work, i lost over a quater of my wage back in january, i spoke to t-mobile offered to pay £10 a month but the woman said she cant take the payment and i would only be able to make an agreement to pay when it goes to the dca.


can anyone help me here? do i ring BCW and explain to then why i cant pay and offer to pay £10 a month, but obviously not by phone or via their website using my card, im aware that i should never give my card details to a dca.

Tixy

Don't ring BCW (they will bully you and might go back on whatever you agree verbally).
Instead you need to write to them, explain your situation and make an offer to repay £10 (or whatever you can afford) monthly. In the same letter ask them for the bank details of the account you should pay to so that you can set up a standing order.
They might write back asking for a higher repayment, so it might help if you can demonstrate that £10 really is all you can afford (and that you are not spending on luxuries etc) - be aware that they might ask you for an income & expenditure statement.

antony85

i have an SOA that they can quite hapily have, but is there not a way i can deal with it with t-mobile directly, ? and i definatley shouldnt ring them? even if i ring let them not im not ignoring it and i am sorting in, and send letter along with soa aswell? and if possible could you point me in the direction of a template letter?

Tixy

People who ring debt collectors usually regret it.
Quite a few template letters here - http://www.nationaldebtline.co.uk/england_wales/debt_advice.php#6 - you probably want the second one on that list (may need to amend slightly)

From the wording T-mobile may have instructed BCW rather than sold the debt on, if that is the case you may be able to deal with it via t-mobile, but again you'd need to do that in writing as clearly the last phone call you made was ignnored.

elfen

I rang my DCA's and arranged payments, you just need to be VERY strict and know what you can afford, and have a SOA to hand so you can give them income and expenditure details. Mine were all fine with me setting up standing orders on the accounts.

I told them how much I could pay, and gave them details off my SOA as regards to what goes in and comes out....and they were all OK. Just keep your cool and don't let them flummox you - go straight in with an offer and see what they say to it.