debt collection

sidny

had a letter from debt collector saying i owe a bank £8000,I dont know what or when they are talking about.there could be a possibility my ex husband did something in my name when he left me 12 years ago,but this is the first i have heard anything,do I contact them to explain would this effect my rights of Statute Barred if i had to go down that route.i dont know where he is or if he he still alive.I am 73

WRINKLES

Please do not contact them ignore them they will probably go away .

WRINKLES

sidny wrote: »

had a letter from debt collector saying i owe a bank £8000,I dont know what or when they are talking about.there could be a possibility my ex husband did something in my name when he left me 12 years ago,but this is the first i have heard anything,do I contact them to explain would this effect my rights of Statute Barred if i had to go down that route.i dont know where he is or if he he still alive.I am 73

Hi Sidny some DCA s send letters to anyone with a simillar name to the person they are after , do not ever phone them , just ignore them , if you get any more trouble post back here you will begiven all the help you need to deal with them try not to worry , you have no need to.

Fang_3

Don't contact them at all. Definitely don't phone them or talk to them on the phone. It might be worth getting your credit report from the three agencies to see if there is anything on there, and then you can go from there.

bottleofred

Hi Sidny,

As wrinkles has said, ignore them and see what happens. If however, they persist contacting you put the details on the tread and you'll get extra help/advice

Hannah_10

WRINKLES wrote: »

Hi Sidny some DCA s send letters to anyone with a simillar name to the person they are after , do not ever phone them , just ignore them , if you get any more trouble post back here you will begiven all the help you need to deal with them try not to worry , you have no need to.

Wrinkles is right, they call it fishing.

There are companies that buy up unenforcible or statute barred debts. Those companies have the lowest moral standards of any company you could imagine and fishing is a favourite technique. So we have 2 layers to this.

Firstly as Wrinkles says your name is probably similar to someone elses and the Debt Collection Agency (or DCA) simply printed and sent a handfull of these letters hoping one of them gets a response.

Secondly the debts they tend to use this technique for are largely the ones they shouldn't be chasing in the first place!

Ignore the first letter, if they really think they have something on you they will be sure to send a second.

If you would find it reassuring to now could be a good time to see your credit file, which will have details of any enforcicble debt in your name (enforcible is the only kind you need be concearned with). You can find out more about that here: http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/loans/credit-rating-credit-score#files

It will cost you no more than £2 to each of Equifax, Experian and Call Credit to see your files. It is advisable to see all three. That said they can often be seen online for free and there is an article by Martin Lewis on the main site about how to earn a small amount of profit by checking them.

I know it's easy for me to say this but don't let it worry you and certainly do not ever telephone a DCA. They have no real power over you except for fear (no matter how much they lie and say otherwise) and you can chose not to allow them that.

FoneDoctor

WRINKLES wrote: »

Please do not contact them ignore them they will probably go away .

Very good advice.

stclair

12 years ago wouldnt the debt be statue barred twice over now

WRINKLES

stclair wrote: »

12 years ago wouldnt the debt be statue barred twice over now

The chance of sydny owing anyone any money are zero , the point is you must not contact a dca on a phishing trip, do not phone them they will pester the life out of you ,whether you owe them any monet or not.