Marston - Fine really big problem

steveb1471

Hi,

Am new to this site but was wondering if anybody could give me some urgent advice.

Yesterday a lady knocked on my propery and said that she purchased my old house, this is going back 2 years. She said that she wouldnt normally do this but a letter has come that i need to see.

So she hands me this letter and leaves. It is a letter from Marston Group. Saying that i have a fine of £900 and if its not paid within 7 days of this letter bailiffs will come and levy my goods.

So of course i have rang them and after conversations with both them and the DVLA. It seems i was charged in May of this year with failing to produce driver details for a speeding fine. I had no idea i even had a speeding fine. The orignal SP30 was also sent to my old address that i moved out of 2 years ago. Aparently the company that i was renting the car of at the time sent my old address as the person who was driving, so of course the letter never got responded to as i was not there!.

Marston have been very crafty. They told me that i had to pay the £900 up front all now. Or it will got to a enforcment officer. Me explaining that i have only known about this fine for 10 mins had no effect on them. The lady advised that if i give my new address as a gesture of goodwill she will look at a payment plan for me. So i gave her my address. Anyway the payment plan she set up is for £450 tomorrow and another £450 by the end of the week. Very simply i cannot afford this, and think its unreasonable to be asked to find that amound of money in such a short time. I really dont want the embarrasment of bailiffs coming round. Is there anything i can do??? or am i stuck with there demands???

Thanks for any help and sorry for such a long post

ste

neilmcl

I'm not sure the OP is looking to blame anyone else. They're merely looking for advice on how to proceed.

arcon5

Firstly, to ease your mind, Marston are a debt collection agency and have no powers to send baliffs round. You have nothing the worry about there.

Don't be pressured into making payment or making decisions you may regret.

How it usually works is they will send you a bunch of threatening letters carefully worded to make you think they have powers to sieze your goods, then they will send an 'enforcement officer' to your address -- the enforcement office has no powers also. You can ask them to leave and if they refuse call the police.

They can't send baliffs to your house without a court order.

For now, if I was you I would send them a letter by recorded post saying you dispute the debt and ask for proof.

For now though wealdrom's questions are very valid in anybody advising how to proceed..

steveb1471

Hi,

Thanks for the fast reply

I never owned the vehicle, it was rented. I updated the DVLA and my car rental company when i changed adress.

I am not blaming anybody for the debt. I am not even arguing the case. I am just asking if there is anything i can do to set up a more realistic plan or do they have the power to push me into a corner and have to pay when they say?

steveb1471

Thanks Arcon for the advise. On the letter it says "we are in possession of a magistrates court order as a qonsequence of a non payment of the above fine"

According to there letter the are high court enforcement officers & certified bailiffs.

I really doint know what to do with this.

arcon5

If you didn't receive the court summons I think you can apply for a statutory declaration to have it set aside. Ring the courts to find out first.

But agreeing to pay amounts by a certain date knowing its well beyond your means is going to cause you more problems. If you do agree payments then be realistic.

I personally would ring the courts first for their advice before Marston though. They are unlikely to send baliffs around without first exhausting negotiations to settle the amount so its probably not like your going to wake up tomorrow with baliffs ready to go.

sarahg1969

OP, go to http://forums.pepipoo.com/index.php?showforum=5 for some advice.