DLC are sending me letters saying I owe them money

londonCarlos

Good morning

Not sure if this is the right place to post this, but hopefully someone can help.

DLC (AKA Hillesden Securties) have been sending me letters saying I opened an account with a bank (HFC, I hadn't even heard about them) and that I owed them money (£4300). I've been receiving letters from them but ignored cause I thought it was a scam and they didn't even had my name correctly (just my first name), but I got one couple of days ago with my name written properly, and my address, so I called them and they had my details and said they'd proceed to collect the money cause everything seemed correct.

I am completely sure I don't owe that amount of money (All I have is couple of credit cards I always pay in full), and when I asked them, they told me I had opened the account in August 2004 (I wasn't even living in the UK back then!). DLC people told me to get a crime reference number and the police officer name/badge number if I was so sure it was identity theft.

I called the police asking for advise and to try and report identity theft, but they told me that because no money has been taken from my accounts they cannot provide with a crime reference number.

I'm very concerned that these people are going to come to my place and just take stuff from me or my housemate. This is all very upsetting cause I'm always very careful with money (family members have debt issues so I've learnt my lesson well)

Any advice? what can I do, considering the police cannot do anything?

thanks a lot for your help

Carlos

McKneff

Stop worrying unnecessarily, no one can come and take anything until a debt has been to court. So Stop it.

Send them a 'prove it' letter, someone will be along soom with a template letter for you.

They are probably just fishing to see if you are the person they are looking for, they will have sent out lots of these letters hoping to hit on the right one. Especially so since they did not have your name correct in the first place.

I honestly dont think it would be identity theft, there would have been a lot more activity than just this once.

Wait for a prove it link and take it from there.
Dont speak to them on the phone, do everythign in writing so that you have a paper trail.

Regards
Annie

Tixy

Don't call DLC again. Send them a prove it letter - http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showpost.html?p=11570893&postcount=2

Is there a specific reason you think it was identity theft? Usually in these cases its a case of mistaken identity, another person with the same or similar name as you owes the debt and some debt collector incorrectly connects it to you and chases you for the money.

I would wait for them to respond to the prove it letter first, if they send something that they consider to be proof then you may need to look into it further. Eg often when it comes down to it the date of birth is completely different and the original account is an address you never lived at.
By the way I wouldn't volunteer your date of birth to them or any info about you at all at this stage.

Oh and nobody could turn up and take anything belonging to you or anyone. They are just debt collectors they have no legal powers.

londonCarlos

Thanks so much for the quick replies, I will prepare the letter and send it tomorrow. I'm afraid I gave them my date of birth, and now I obviously regret it, cause I was thinking I had nothing to hide.

The only reason I had to think it is identity theft is that I got a phone on contract 3 or 4 years ago and I never got a bill statement. I got charged (and paid) the amount (which was correct, I always check online), but never got a paper statement (I contacted the phone company and told them about it but they told me not to worry), so now I got all paranoid thinking someone got those bills and used my name somehow.

again, thanks a lot, hopefully this will be resolved soon
Carlos

PARIS_5000

londonCarlos wrote: »

Good morning

Not sure if this is the right place to post this, but hopefully someone can help.

DLC (AKA Hillesden Securties) have been sending me letters saying I opened an account with a bank (HFC, I hadn't even heard about them) and that I owed them money (£4300). I've been receiving letters from them but ignored cause I thought it was a scam and they didn't even had my name correctly (just my first name), but I got one couple of days ago with my name written properly, and my address, so I called them and they had my details and said they'd proceed to collect the money cause everything seemed correct.

I am completely sure I don't owe that amount of money (All I have is couple of credit cards I always pay in full), and when I asked them, they told me I had opened the account in August 2004 (I wasn't even living in the UK back then!). DLC people told me to get a crime reference number and the police officer name/badge number if I was so sure it was identity theft.

I called the police asking for advise and to try and report identity theft, but they told me that because no money has been taken from my accounts they cannot provide with a crime reference number.

I'm very concerned that these people are going to come to my place and just take stuff from me or my housemate. This is all very upsetting cause I'm always very careful with money (family members have debt issues so I've learnt my lesson well)

Any advice? what can I do, considering the police cannot do anything?

thanks a lot for your help

Carlos

DLC are very doggy and all you need to do is to request the CCA for the alleged debt and it highly unlikely that they will have any proof of the alleged debt.

As the debt is more than six years old and you have never made any payments then it is stature barred. I would send the stature barred letter ASAP.

I would never call them because you will have no proof of what is said and they will be nasty to you on the phone.

Tixy

Sounds like a bank account which if it was wouldn't have a CCA.
This account may well not be statute barred. Whoever opened the account in August 2004 could have been using it for a few months or a few years before they ceased paying anything. I wouldn't send a SB letter for an account that was not yours as it could arguably be seen as admitting the debt is yours and you don't know that it is SB.

PARIS_5000

Tixy wrote: »

Sounds like a bank account which if it was wouldn't have a CCA.
This account may well not be statute barred. Whoever opened the account in August 2004 could have been using it for a few months or a few years before they ceased paying anything. I wouldn't send a SB letter for an account that was not yours.

I think that you are thinking of HSBC bank accounts with overdrafts which would not be covered by a consumer credit agreement.

However the Op is talking about HFC not HSBC who provide loans for buy now pay later which are covered by consumer credit agreements.

londonCarlos

So, in order to request the CCA I have to send the "prove it" letter Tixy provided, right?

I've read the stature barred template and it sounds to me I'm admitting the debt, which I don't want to do (cause it's not mine!), so I'd rather not send that one

Thanks a lot for your help

Tixy

I would always send the prove it letter first. Some might go straight for the CCA but if you don't know anything of the debt I'd always suggest the prove it should be the first step.

Only if they could prove that the debt existed and was yours would you need to consider looking into a CCA request and sending the fee with it. I did read of a case where a DCA attached a debt and its old default to a person's credit file after they had done a CCA request, which obviously you want to avoid. Although at some point I would suggest checking your credit file anyway to check they haven't already incorrectly done this.

PARIS_5000

londonCarlos wrote: »

So, in order to request the CCA I have to send the "prove it" letter Tixy provided, right?

I've read the stature barred template and it sounds to me I'm admitting the debt, which I don't want to do (cause it's not mine!), so I'd rather not send that one

Thanks a lot for your help

I agree if the debt is not yours then I would not send the stature barred letter just send the prove it letter by recorded deilvery.

McKneff

Hope all the positive replies have set your mind at rest now.

Come back and let us know how you get on or for any more help if you need it.

Regards