Mackenzie Hall / CCJ

rog2

Hi Tavira,
I came accross your thread as I was also searching for information on Mackenzie Hall, having received a letter from them which relates to a debt which is still in dispute with the original creditor. As this is against the OFT guidelines, I thought I would look to see if anyone else had had similar dealings with this 'company'.
Sadly, it would seem that many people have, and I have not yet found any complimentary comments (other than comments posted by people who also work in that particular sector) about them. They also trade as J2 Solutions, or similar.
I am sorry to see that you have received some very unhelpful posts, in your thread, although I hope that the positive posts will serve to put it all into perspective.
From all of the threads, relating to Mackezie Hall, that I have read on this and other forums, it would appear that they are a particularly nasty bunch of individuals. This is confirmed by the Kilmarnock Trading Standards Office, who, according to a letter posted on the consumeraction forum (sorry can't do links) have received several complaints about the way that MH conduct their 'business?'
All I would advise is that you are extremely cautious in any dealings you have with these people. You are right to follow the advice given by FW.
Good luck

Tootsie_Roll

rog2 wrote:

Hi Tavira,
I came accross your thread as I was also searching for information on Mackenzie Hall, having received a letter from them which relates to a debt which is still in dispute with the original creditor. As this is against the OFT guidelines, I thought I would look to see if anyone else had had similar dealings with this 'company'.

Once again you need to get your facts straight - there is nothing wrong or against OFT guidlines about writing to you about a debt unless they continue to do so after you have supplied them with enough information to verify the dispute - in other words simply stating to them in writing or over the phone that you dispute the debt is not enough - you need to give them more detail.

rog2 wrote:

I am sorry to see that you have received some very unhelpful posts, in your thread, although I hope that the positive posts will serve to put it all into perspective.

Please point to the unhelpful responses to Tavira as I you are obviously referring to me - I appear to be your latest crusade !

barnaby51

Please now explain the above section, in the context of enforcing payment of CCJ's after six years from the date of judgment:

Time limits for actions to enforce judgments - Limitations Act 1980 - Section 24

(1) An action shall not be brought upon any judgment after the expiration of six years from the date on which the judgment became enforceable.
(2) No arrears of interest in respect of any judgment debt shall be recovered after the expirations of six years form the date on which the interest became due.


I think there is a little bit more you boyz want to explain here - any takers?

JCR1987

As a friend of a friend of a friend, etc. of someone who works for a Citizens Advice Bureau, as far as I know, the process of dealing with Debt Collection Agencies such as McKenzie Hall is as such:

1. Write to DCA requesting details of the debt such as current balance, rate of interest, charges, original creditor and most importantly, A TRUE COPY OF THE ORIGINAL SIGNED CREDIT AGREEMENT.

2. If, after 1 calender month the DCA have not responded or have not provided all details requested (they usually just send a balance), a request is made to provide A TRUE COPY OF THE ORIGINAL SIGNED CREDIT AGREEMENT WITHIN 28 DAY AS REQUIRED BY THE CONSUMER CREDIT ACT 1974. Included with this request is a £1.00 cheque to cover 'administration' costs which is not to be used as payment towards the debt.

3. If the DCA do not respond with a copy of the signed credit agreement within 28 days then a letter is sent to the DCA stating that the debt is no longer enforceable through the courts (i.e. via a CCJ) or bailiffs, as per the Consumer Credit Act 1974. However, it is understood that the client is still liable for the debt.

There may be some inaccuracies in there as I'm sure some of the more experienced moneysavers will point out, but the main point I'm trying to get across is the issue regarding the Consumer Credit Act 1974. If they don't provide a copy of the signed agreement then they can only pursue you for the debt by way of threatening letters.

nmckay15

Looks like Mackenzie Hall are now sending text messages as well as letters. I was surprised to received the following text message today: "A settlement figure is available on your account. Contact Mackenzie Hall on 015..... quoting Ref M...." Having no clue what this was about, I rang them, but when giving the reference number they realised I wasn't an asian man (I'm a young white female) and told me they would take my number off their database. I hope that's the end I hear of them after reading these posts!

plumduff-2

file_wizzard wrote:

TAG, without wishing to add fuel to the fire so to speak you are indeed correct and TR (Troll) is an Ex DCA, and although some of his post are indeed factually correct and well meaning he does have a tendency to incite argument and hence (under various screen names) he has been removed and banned from various other boards for what some consider to be inappropriate conduct.

Nonetheless, he is correct in a lot of his statements, especially that some people tend to use these boards as a route to debt avoidance rather than debt resolution.

Anyway, with regards to the OP’s original question Mackenzie Hall do specialise in time expired, or hard to recover debt, they are also (allegedly) known to write to people on a purely spurious basis in regards to debt related to other people with the same or very similar names, and they are also known to “aggressively pursue” these cases.

The best bet for the O.P is to send a letter something similar to that which I have attached below, and wait for the deafening silence in response!

If they do continue to pursue after non-compliance to the attached they should be reported to your local trading standards and the OFT as appropriate.

---

Courtesy of the “Debt help uk Board”;

I do not acknowledge ANY debt to your company. I require you to supply the following documentation before I will correspond further on this matter.

1. You must supply me with a true copy of the alleged agreement you refer to. This is my right under your obligation to supply a copy of the agreement under the legislation contained within s.78 (1) Consumer Credit Act 1974 (s.77 (1) for fixed sum credit) - your obligation also extends to providing a statement of account. I enclose a £1 postal order in payment of the statutory fee, PO Serial Number xxxxx.

2. A signed true copy of the deed of assignment of the above referenced agreement that you allege exists.

3. You are notified that you are obliged to supply these documents, whether you are the original creditor or not.

Non-compliance with my request is a criminal offence under the above Act and will result in a report being submitted to the relevant statutory authorities.

---

This letter can be used for ther DCA if the debt is purchased, or the original creditor if the DCA is acting as a recovery agent on their behalf, if / when they have confirmed that they have the right to recover then you can evaluate your options.

Number of points...

1. file_wizzard is spot on with his advice... OP - if the creditor has not YET got a ccj then send the above letter with £1 fee and send recorded delivery to ensure they get it.. they then have to provide proof of the debt within 12 days... If they havnt by 30 days then THEY are comitting an offence...

And you should then report them to Trading Standrads and the OFT...

Make sure they provide proof that the debt they are collecting is legally owed by YOU... DCA's do chase the wrong people for debts and it is your legal right to request this info.. If they CANNOT provide the signed agreement then LEGALLY you do not have to pay them - there is nothing LEGALLY they can do to you... These are your rights as a consumer.. so dont be intimidated by MH or any other DCA...

---

And yes tootsie roll is an ex DCA - he was a membe of DHUK (of which I am a m0oderator) and was banned from there for being a humourless nuisance (generally)... did have one laugh regarding the tart test...

JCR1987

MH also have a 'habit/strategy' of ringing clients and leaving a message stating "there is a message for you awaiting collection, please ring 01.....". They don't say who they are, what the message relates to, etc.

My view is this; if they really want the money they allege you owe, then they'll chase you up properly in an upfront manner by explaining who they are, what you owe, why you owe it, how much and how you can repay it. If they can't manage to perform this simple task by putting it down on paper then as far as I would be concerned, they can go whistle for it as it can't be that important to them. Don't answer them unless they write to you evidencing who they are and who they represent, at least when they eventually get round to doing this you have some form of evidence should it go to the next stage and they pursue you legally. If they threaten to take out a CCJ, counter that with a request for the original signed credit agreement pursuant to the Consumer Credit Act 1974. This request is time-barred so if they don't comply with your request within this timeframe (12 working days I think) then they can't take out a CCJ, instruct bailiffs or any other legal form of recovery. You still owe the money but if you're not bothered about your credit rating andever getting credit again then you don't have to pay it. If you do care about your credit rating and want to maintain/improve it, pay the money at your leisure, even negotiate a lesser figure to get rid of it quicker.

Don't take the above info as gospel, it's just details i've gleaned from various dealings with the credit/DCA industry. Apologies to any experienced/knowledgable moneysavers who see fit to correct any errors/misinformation.

Lloydy_2

I`ve received a letter from these people too. This one says I`m about to be taken to court. I`d like to see them try and take me to court because I don`t know what they`re talking about. This is allegedly concerning a Student loan company debt I had about 15 years ago, well firstly, I never had a loan and even if I did, they can`t enforce it. Letter has gone in the bin with the other rubbish.

cakey2k7

I am having a slightly different problem with MH... I got my credit file today and found they have made 6 credit searches on me in the last year... 3 in December alone (1 on the 13th Dec, then 2 on the 18th Dec) I am led to beleive that too many credit searches on your file can lower your credit score... seeing as I already have a poor credit record which I am trying to put right what should I / can I do?

kevione

Hi Everyone

Im new to this so please excuse if this post seems a little pants. My partner just received a letter from this Mackenzie Hall company and i have been reading all the threads, could some one advise if its best to contact this company to find out what the debt is for or is it really better to just ignore the letters and leave well enough alone??? My other question is, has anyone here been taken to court by Mackenzie Hall or has any one had bailifs in to remove their household possessions? If someone could help with some good advice it would be much appreciated.

Thanks Everyone!