Cabot

Mallowmarshmallow

Hello all,

I think I've seen Cabot mentioned on here before, and am looking for peoples' experiences of them.

We found that they owned a debt upon applying for the credit cheques, so wrote to them asking them for details of the debt. They did not reply to the letter, but passed the devt onto another agency. They have now taken the debt back, and are requesting (demanding!) that we pay over the phone.

I have asked them repeatedly for a letter stating the amount of the debt and then we will pay it. They are very reluctant to send us a letter - any ideas why this would be?

They have just offered me a £40 reduction, but I explained to them that I am happy to pay the full amount but want a letter from them.

They are now saying (reluctantly) that they will send a letter, but that the bank details will not be on the letter.

Where do I go from here? We want to pay the debt, and have money to do so, but I want to make sure I am paying it to the right people. Any tips?

Hannah_10

If they can't send it in writing then they know there's something wrong with it.

Can you tell us a bit more about it please? It would be interesting to know: when was the debt run up, are you sure it's yours and how much is it for?

Mallowmarshmallow

I can't really tell you much! We found it on the credit report - for £400 odd and apparently comes from an old Argos something or other.

Unfortunately my OH's ex girlfriend was pretty handy with his money which has left us with lots of nasty suprises including a CCJ we are currrently applying to get set aside and about £20000 debt that we have paid off in the last year.

I find the whole situation very stressful (having never had any debt of my own) so we have saved up and paid off one by one...

Hannah_10

Have a look at the credit report again, it should say what year it dates from. This makes a difference to how to best get rid of this debt for the least money (or even for no money).

If it's fraudulent then you're not liable, it can take some contesting, but if it's not his signature on the original paperwork (because she did it not him) then you may have the evidence you need.

EDIT: Oh and Argos do different financial products, the credit file should hopefully say what kind this was.

Mallowmarshmallow

It says....

Started 2004, defaulted 2007

Deatails say Credit card / store card, and I think we were told it was to do with Argos when we phoned someone or other.

Hannah_10

Right well that's what's wrong with it then. 70% or more of Consumer Credit Agreements (CCA's) from before April 2007 aren't right (lenders left important bits out in an effort to cheat consumers), which means they're unenforcible (UE). I suggest you check out UE and I think there's a good chance this debt is UE, which means you can either ignore it safely (worst that can happen is a default- and since it's got one then that's already happened) or you can make a ridiculously low settlement offer like 10% and they'll take it because they know they're stuffed otherwise. You can also set conditions on this like "mark it as settled on the credit file".

To start looking into UE have a read of this... https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/2532927 be aware though that the original author Never-In-Doubt has now said these templates are out of date. On the last page of the thread are his new contact details, at his new forum. https://www.all-about-debt.co.uk

saltnvinegar

Hannah_10 wrote: »

To start looking into UE have a read of this... https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/2532927 be aware though that the original author Never-In-Doubt has now said these templates are out of date. On the last page of the thread are his new contact details, at his new forum. www.all-about-debt.co.uk

Hannah that link is invaluable, thanks for posting it.