Debt collection agency won't give us breakdown of debt

giwebb

My wife has been receiving letters from various debt collection agencies for £150 for the last four years. We never realised if the debt was disputed it would just be sold on to another company, each year we thought we had resolved the issue only to receive a letter from another company the following year.

We eventually worked out that the debt may be related to our house insurance when we moved house in 2006. My wife phoned and cancelled the house insurance policy that we were four months into, she was not told that there was a cancellation fee to pay - no admin fee or final months payment (it probably would have been cheaper to stay with them if we knew there were cancellation fees).

My wife gave the insurance company our new address and asked to have her name changed on their system as she was still under her maiden name (she had been trying to do this for ages with them but for some reason it never seemed to be changed). At the same time we cancelled our direct debit with them.

Now we find that we are being pursued for this £150 which they never asked for at the time or never sent us any letters about (we had our mail redirected for several months after moving, I'm guessing they never changed her name on the system and only mail sent to her married name was redirected).

We have tried to explain this to the debt agency as a possible cause but they won't listen and they refuse to give us a breakdown of the debt. We probably do owe an admin fee and possibly a months premium (can't find original T&Cs) but that's all I'd be willing to pay.

Where should we go from here? It's frustrating as the debt collection agency won't listen and just want their money and the original insurance company just say they sold the debt on and have no information.

darlyn

Hi there giwebb,

There will be more help along soon I'm sure, but I'd start by telling them to prove the debt is mine first! Or have you already 'admitted' to it?

Tixy

First thing to do is get them to prove the debt exists - so a prove it letter is required see template http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showpost.php?p=11570893&postcount=2.

Send recorded deliv, don't talk to them by phone.

FTW

If they couldn't break down or explain what I was paying, then I wouldn't be paying.

vax2002

I would perform a PAID FOR credit check at a reputed credit reference agency:
Come back with what it says:
Help will flow once the experts know what it is they are helping with.

I would hold on template letters until you have the results.
If it is stale debt sharks for a statute barred debt writing to them only increases harassment.

Tixy

vax2002 wrote: »

If it is stale debt sharks for a statute barred debt writing to them only increases harassment.

But they won't know if its statute barred unless they know what the debt relates to. And they cannot know if its statute barred simply from looking at their credit file.

If its a statute barred debt and they write to say they believe it is and don't intend to pay - then that won't increase the harrassment, it will stop any future letters.

chanz4

VAX2002 your wrong, the prove it letter asks them by not stating that the sender agrees to the debt but requires information to prove they owe it. Also credit files dont show all payments or even letters agreeing to the debt.

vax2002

A credit check will show date of default, this is all thats required if the OP knows they made no other payments, if the debt is statute barred and they have no CCJ then they can safely IGNORE the stale debt shark for they have an absolute defence to any action.
Stale debt sharks are just like private parking ticket companies, they KNOW the debt is statute barred, they dont care, they wont respond to "template letters" they will just treat it as a hooked fish and increase harassment.
They can legally ask for the debt to be paid as many times as they like, call your phone, knock on your door.
My advice is to explore the debt without contacting them if you have any doubt that this is a statute barred debt and if it turns out to be so, just IGNORE the shark.
They will move on.
But however, start playing the "game" and you will end up having to do two things, either pay or Ignore them.
So, investigate and Ignore if barred and save yourself months if not years of harassment.

Tixy

The OP doesn't even know what the debt is for - and if its for house insurance as they suspect may not even have ever appeared on their credit file. The sensible first thing to do is to ask them to provide proof of the debt so they can see what it in relation to. I would certainly suggest they check their credit files with all 3 agencies as well to see what is shown on there, but regardless would send the prove it template.

If the debt is statute barred and you ignore letters they will continue to write, maybe sell to another debt collector who will write and chase and this could go on for years.
If you work out it is SB then you can send the template letter and they have to stop writing at that point - therefore no more hassle. Its not correct to say they won't respond to template letters and increase harrasment. Nearly all cases I have seen sending the SB letter has stopped any further correspondance. A few have written again and the follow up letter and reporting them has done the trick to stop futher contact.

It is of course also possible that the file will show a default date of say 5years ago but that the debt is already statute barred - so checking the file alone wouldn't help them determine if its statute barred already.

vax2002 wrote: »

They can legally ask for the debt to be paid as many times as they like, call your phone, knock on your door

Not if the debt is statute barred and you have told them you know it is and that you do not intend to pay.

vax2002

The OP has already asked for a breakdown of this debt, they have ignored the request.
What you say they have to do and what they do are two different things in the real world.
If this is a SB debt, let them sell it, chase it, do what they want, they wont get any money and they will soon realise this.
A stale debt Shark is someone who buys old credit files, often for as low as a few pence, then they engage on a campaign of harassment and intimidation, anything they get is a bite and increases the pressure, they are not "normal" companies, they dont give a monkeys hoot what regulations say, they can be set up tomorrow with a new company.
If this is the case here, the OP will be better finding out ASAP

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nottoolate

vax2002 wrote: »

A stale debt Shark is someone who buys old credit files, often for as low as a few pence, then they engage on a campaign of harassment and intimidation, anything they get is a bite and increases the pressure, they are not "normal" companies, they dont give a monkeys hoot what regulations say, they can be set up tomorrow with a new company.

you really do post some utter ball hooks :rotfl: