GGGRRRRR Morecroft THUGS - hear the wrath of Mike St Helens.... after a night shift !

Mike_St_Helens

Tootsie_Roll wrote:

I really have found this thread to be quite funny - rog2 you are now attacking someone who although works for a dca has plainly stated he agrees with you and asks a reasonable question.

I will answer your question though regarding service; you forget just who it is the dca's are serving -- certainly not the debtor (i'm not keen on the word). DCA's are there to serve their clients - the lenders. It always strikes me as odd that 'debtors' expect the same level of nicey, nicey customer service form a dca when they have in most cases avoided dealing with the problem. If they had contacted the lender at an earlier stage they probably would have received the sort of response/advice/customer service they were after. I have managed early and late collections departments as well as worked for 3dca's and I can guarantee that the approach was different at each stage, naturally getting harder the longer the debt was outstanding - do you really expect anything else ? Lenders do not employ dca's to provide nice customer service - they want their money back, the fact they have to get the dca involved already means they are losing money and profit on the account.

Most if not all dca's do comply with the debt collection guidlines as laid out by the OFT, what can happen though is that different parties interpret the guidlines in different ways which can lead to misunderstanding - I will also fully accept that some collectors get a bit carried away and will go over the line. Really it is your/our job to ensure that person is reported to their manager so they can be re-trained. I can honestly say that in the 3 dca's I worked for (one of whom in particular gets a lot of bad press) all of them were CCA members and all of them were absolutely committed to complying with all the relevant legislation at a senior level. These people are in business, they can't afford to have their CCL taken away from them.

Now there is one area of complete madness that you have already mentioned. 'Debtors' who are already on IVA's, DMP's etc etc. Why are they sent to dca's ? Really I have no idea assuming they are keeping to the repayment plan. Most lenders have collections strategies that simply mean that once an account reaches a certain level of arrears it automatically gets passed out. This should change.

I dont think anyone is after the nicey nice approach, simply by being treated as a human and not like something the DCA has trodden in would be nice from time to time.

You say that most DCA's stick to the rules laid out by the OFT - What a load of PAP, I and I probably think a lot of people who have rea this thread agree that they have at sometime been bullied, harrassed, intimidated by these firms. If they are there soley to do the collecting job, why o why was I treated the way I was the other day by Moorecroft, Indeed... I am due to be made bankrupt, indeed I have had many financial issues... They would not listen to reason, they simply grind you down and demand payment whan you simply dont have it, they do not listen to what you are trying to say to them.

They should be regulated. You say ask to speak to a manager when a collector oversteps the line, Obviously you have never had the 'customer' facing experience of these firms have you. Try and ask to speak to a manager, you will simply get laughed at... and then again asked when will you pay us more money.

You also state that most people have avoided the problem and that is why it ends up with a DCA I disagree completley. I have faced my issues, just like most people on this board.

Thank you for your post.

Miss_Penny_Pincher_2

Glad to hear it!
Will do - see you later!

Edit - I meant glad to hear this:

Im over their pathetic excuse of a conversation... Im stronger than that.

Ill be popping open a bottle of vino later as im at a wedding tomorrow night... Pop around !

Mike_St_Helens

Headdown wrote:

Out of interest, how do square this position with DCA's who buy accounts for a fraction of their face value and then seek to profit from the debtors misery by pursuing them for the whole amount - how is this helping original creditors who are "losing money and profit on the account" ? Surely the DCA is now profiting from the account (instead) and therefore the debtor is now their 'customer'...and de facto should expect an element of 'customer service' or courtesy - like actually acknowledging you HAVE paid them - for example - instead of issuing another set of automated letters?

"all of them were CCA members and all of them were absolutely committed to complying with all the relevant legislation at a senior level" - I'm sure they say this to all the right people, but in practice how many call centre staff under huge pressure from targets and heavily commissioned based and actually going to stick to it, or say anything that sounds threatening and plausable as long as they get paid and hit targets?

Thank you, This is kind of what I wanted to say, this is worded better !

We await the reply, no doubt in typical DCA form.

Mike_St_Helens

Eh - where has headdowns post gone ?

rog2

I am tempted to imagine the scenario that the DCA's have got together and said:

"Those bunch of no-good wasters, without whom we would have to do an honest days work for our pay, are getting far too clever for our good:mad: :mad:
Let's plant a few sleepers on their forum and stir the S**T once in a while to find out what tricks they're learning, then we can really give them hell."

I am, of course, letting my imagination run away with me, they wouldn't stoop to that, would they?:rolleyes: :rolleyes: :rolleyes: :rolleyes:

Mike_St_Helens

rog2 wrote:

I am tempted to imagine the scenario that the DCA's have got together and said:

"Those bunch of no-good wasters, without whom we would have to do an honest days work for our pay, are getting far too clever for our good:mad: :mad:
Let's plant a few sleepers on their forum and stir the S**T once in a while to find out what tricks they're learning, then we can really give them hell."

I am, of course, letting my imagination run away with me:rolleyes: :rolleyes: :rolleyes: :rolleyes:

Haha... And lets also see how bad we can make someone feel.

Headdown_2

Mike_St_Helens wrote:

Eh - where has headdowns post gone ?

I deleted it, I thought it had probably been said already..

nrsql

Haven't read the following posts but from tootsie_Roll
>> If they had contacted the lender at an earlier stage they probably would have received the sort of response/advice/customer service they were after.

Don't know which companies you have been associated with - probably small or tightly run one's from that response.

From my dealings with Sky and NTL, both of which owed me a refund for breach of contract, they were very difficult to deal with, wouldn't respond to letters, only really wanted to deal by phone, had to be told to look at notes on future calls, often didn't record calls, ...
Sent account to dca's when still corresponding (the dca's didn't care what the situation was of course - just wanted to threaten. They both said it took them about 3 months to process correspondence which is why they hadn't recorded it).
NTL took about a year to clear up, Sky about 3 years. In both cases it was when I agreed to forego the refund in return for them stopping sending accounts to DCA's.

The person at Sky said I wouldn't be able to contact anyone who could authorise a refund and to stop the DCA's I would have to agree to the account being flagged as settled.

Let_Robinson_Sing

rog2 wrote:

Isn't this a bit like the executioner asking how you would like the rope tied?

Firstly, you are calling your Industry a 'Service':mad: Service to whom? Even the word 'Service' implies a degree of professionalism which is certainly not reflected in the majority of comments in this forum.

As Mike says, your industry needs regulating - not self-regulation.

Even more important, in my opinion, there should be strict regulation as to when a debt is handed to your sector of the financial industry - how many threads tell of stories of harrassment by DCA's even though creditors had already accepted IVAs and DMP payment plans.

Equally, DCA's should be fully conversant with the facts of the 'debt'. It seems that, in many cases, it is simpler for creditors to hand over the debt to the vultures, rather than to address the problems and try to resolve them directly.

The basic assumption of the majority of DCA's (that I have had the displeasure of dealing with) that we are all 'debt avoiders' goes against basic human rights principles.

Most of us encounter debt through reasons beyond our control, so please don't treat us like a bunch of criminals. If you do, please do not be surprised at our reaction.

I am not at all suprised by your reaction and I do agree with your points. However someone else has answered your question.
A few things i need to point out though, If you feel that DCA'S are contravening your human rights then you need to report it to the appropriate bodies otherwise it will go on. I know a few people who work with me who have been in bad debt for reasons beyond their control and we all know that being in debt is not a rarity especially with the outrages things that banks do.

A few questions for you though
What DCA'S have you dealt with?
Have you ever reported them to the appropriate bodies?
If not why, otherwise nothing will change?

rog2

Let_Robinson_Sing wrote:

I am not at all suprised by your reaction and I do agree with your points. However someone else has answered your question.

A few questions for you though
What DCA'S have you dealt with?
Have you ever reported them to the appropriate bodies?
If not why, otherwise nothing will change?

I appreciate the fact that you replied, although I am not sure that I agree with what you say;
The 'answer' that you describe was hardly an answer - more of a rant by someone who, in my opinion, had not read the whole thread.
I would not like to discuss, with you, which DCA's I have dealt with as this not only compromises the anonimity that this board gives me, but also takes away from the original point of Mike St. Helens' thread, which was, after all, about one specific agency - Moorcroft.
As far as reporting to the appropriate bodies, yes, I personally have reported to Information Commissioner, when DPA rights not respected, and to OFT. I have not, yet, reported to CSA as I am watching other threads to see what, if any, teeth the CSA has.
This, however, is not the principal point - we, on this forum, are probably more aware of our rights than the average Joe Public, because we share experiences and information.
I simply can not imagine any DCA telephoning the average debtor in the street and saying 'Now before we start, let me explain your rights'
From personal, and shared experience, I would say that most DCA's rely on the debtor's ignorance of their rights, in order to push them to the limit.
As I say, I do respect the fact that you were open enough to reply, however, I have given you my views, which may or may not be shared by others on this forum. I do not wish to enter into a one on one discussion with you, so I would ask you to show equal respect to my wishes and leave it at that as far as I am concerned. Thank you.