TalkMobile Failure to Call Off Ballifs!!

Michael_Jones

OK the story...

I started a two year contract with TalkMobile through the CarPhone Warehouse in April 2011. In October 2013 I went into the CPW and rung TalkMobile to give 30 days notice and cancelled the direct debit in December.

In April 2014, I received a letter from Buchanan Clark and Wells a debt collection agency saying that I owed £150. So I rang TalkMobile and they apologised and said they had made an error and it would take 30 days to fix.:)

However, I received another letter from the debt collection agency threatening to take me into court. So I rang TalkMobile on 29th of April and they initially claimed that I owed them £120 and that I needed to pay immediately. I asked when I gave notice and when my last direct debit was and they said 14th October and 18th November. :mad::mad:

I told them this is over 30 days and they were like: oh sorry there must have been a mistake. I asked them to talk to the debt collection agency and send me an email confirming this. I got this:

"Hi Mr XXXX


I have contacted the debt collection agency, your reference number is XXXXXXX .
I will notify you with feedback as soon as the debt collection agency get back to me.
I do apologise for any inconvenience talkmobile has caused you."


However, they never emailed me back and I received a letter this week threatening to send a debt collector to my parents house.

****************************
The whole thing is beyond a joke. I've received an email from an official TalkMobile account apologising which is implicitly accepting some form of guilt. I don't want to contact the debt collection agency as this will open up a new can of worms.

(i) What should I do to force TalkMobile to do something?
(ii) What form of redress is open to me? They are wasting my time and more importantly they could well be effecting my credit rating.

MataNui

Firstly you need to make sure you know the difference between a bailiff and a debt collector. You have a problem with debt collectors. They have NO powers to do anything other than send you letters or visit you. They cannot take your stuff.

You have a letter from TalkMobile which should be enough but obviously also recording conversations etc would be even better. Send a copy of the letter to the debt collectors disputing the debt. Tell them if they continue to harass you that you will be taking legal action against them. If you do a google search you should find template letters (In fact there are probably some on this forum somewhere). Once you send the letter to these people disputing the debt and providing the evidence they have to stop bothering you.

You have nothing to fear from these people so dont let it worry you. It is an inconvenience and a bother but thats all. As for your credit rating, they cant do anything about that either. BUT - TalkMobile may have already put a mark on it so you should get a copy and take it up with TalkMobile again if they have.

mobilejunkie

1) Make a formal complaint and if they won't agree to your demands (or ignore it for 8 weeks) complain to CISAS.

2) Complaint - CISAS. Not "could", but HAVE - severely and for the next 6 years. Part of your demand should be for them to clear any and all negative entries on all your internal and external credit files and to confirm that they have done so. Also demand compensation to cover your costs of subsequently obtaining your credit files for the external agencies and for inconvenience, time, phone calls and stress (say, £50).

cifpower

When did the bailiffs come into the story?

System

They haven't
The OP is confusing debt collectors with bailiffs...

cifpower wrote: »

When did the bailiffs come into the story?

Nodding_Donkey

And stop ringing them, do everything in writing so you have proof.

Write to the debt collectors telling them that the debt is 'disputed and denied' and if they persist in harassing you a complaint will be made to the Credit Services Association http://www.csa-uk.com/page/codes-and-standards/code-of-practice