Need some advice please nerds :)

laurajayne

Hi guys,

I hope you can help me.

I have a debt, which started with o2 at £900 (one months phone bill. Don't ask - yet again their so called credit limit failed, and my XDA racked up the data costs).

This got passed to Bucannon Clark and Wells who immediatly racked it up to £1,300. I called when I recieved the first letter to try to make a repayment plan, and they told me I had to pay the whole amount off in one go. I told them I didn't earn that much in one go to which they responded that I shouldn't have run up the debt. NSS! Through the course of my correspondance I was offered payment plans of the following:

2 x £650, 3 x £435 and 4 x £325. None of which I can afford. I was told to get a loan!

It's now been passed to Fredrickson International (who have whacked it up to a staggaring £1800), who have a site, where you can set up a repayment plan without speaking to a person.

I've offered £100 a month; as this is the most I can afford.

It's declined it.

What I wanted to know was, does anyone know where I stand with this...I am trying to pay the debt, but they are not being reasonable!

Any help will be greatfully recieved

Laura xxx

Willsnarf1983

do u not have any come back if u asked for a credit limit to be put on it?

Will

laurajayne

I didn't ask for a credit limit - they told me there was a credit limit of £75.

fatbelly

Have Frederickson actually bought the debt or are they just collecting? If the latter, you may get more sense from O2. I'm concerned at how the debt suddenly increased nearly 50%. Your offer is more than reasonable but why should you pay £1300 if you don't owe that much? Until you get clarification, I'd be inclined to save the £100 per month and maybe offer them a full and final deal in 4-5 months.

laurajayne

Sorry - edited orginial post.

They bought the debt, and have now made it £1800 - and its a LBA, £2000 if it gets to court.

fatbelly

Sorry - they can't just keep adding ridiculous amounts to your debt.

And debt collector letters always threaten court action (but rarely take it) - do you think they could justify this debt to the court?

lba = letter before action, if I understand your TLA

laurajayne

I'm trying to get to my local citizens advice, but it's proving a little difficult (being a homeworker and all lol).

It'd be nice to know where I stand with:

1) o2 not slamming the breaks on...£75 credit limit - £900 bill. The maths don't make sense to me!

2) My offers being refused - I want to pay the money, but you won't let me! They keep telling me ridiculous amounts for installments. Don't you think if I had that kind of money, I'd have paid it off when it was £900?

3) Them keep whacking charges on the debt. It's now double what it was...:eek:....are they allowed to do this...its effectively 140% APR, I think lol

Sorry; yes, LBA, letter before action

Thanks for everyones input by the way

laurajayne

This is a shameless bump

stellagypsy

Call their bluff - let them try it in Court. Write to them recorded delivery with your offer and say if that is not acceptable they will have to take it to Court. If it goes that far, I think the Judge would be firmly on your side. You are not disputing that you must pay the £900 (although it seems unfair) so they will get the judgement for that amount but the Judge has the authority to knock off thise ridiculous charges and if you pay it off in full within 28 days of the judgement it does not show up on your credit report. (If you decide to take this course of action, keep really good records of every interaction with them and also copies of all correspondence).

HTH, Stella xx

rog2

I have been there, with O2, about a year ago, but my amount was only £400. I received letters, and phone calls, from BCW (isn't it amazing how these people assume that, even though you could not pay the original bill, you have the means to make an immediate debit card payment for the full amount).
Eventually I rang O2, to ask them to get BCW off of my back. I had been with O2, for several years, which counts for absolutely nothing, and I was getting nowhere. After about one month, I got to speak with a Customer Service Manager, and agreed a course of payment (I think it was over 3 months).
Also, as I really needed to keep the same number, I asked if I could change it to a PAYG. I was put on to another department, and got a really good result: To keep me on contract (12 months) they gave me a new contract, with six months 'rent-free', credit of £75.00 for not upgrading, plus a loyalty bonus of 50% per month. Result being that I have had the phone, with 200 free minutes pm, same number for a year and last month was the first time that I have had to pay them (£1.90). I now revert to my previous contract, but keep the loyalty bonus - so future bills should be around £15.00 pm.
It may, therefore, be worth your while to persist with O2.