!!!!!! letters: response received.

fenners81

I see your point. I'm just not sure how to approach it if I don't send back the form. Do I send a letter saying I'm not willing to disclose that information and that my original offer stands? These guys are so sneaky, it's hard to read them.

fenners81

Wow, that seems like an aggressive approach. But I guess they don't need to see my i&e. I think they're being tactical rather than trying to help me out. I do owe these guys money though!

harveybobbles

Not really aggressive. Just playing them at their own games.

I sent a letter to a pretent solicitor (CK Headache in Bradford) to ask that they send me pre paid envelopes and they kindly sent me one! so I used it to write a thank you letter to them.

not heard off them for 3 years..

fenners81

I'd quite like to get it sorted though. I want them to accept an offer. Just want to use the best approach to get it paid off at a figure I can afford.

National_Debtline

stevemLS wrote: »

Harvey is right in that only a court can order you to disclose I/E details.

However, you are asking them to consider settling a debt for less than you owe. They want to see that it is a fair and reasonable offer.

I think this is sound advice. If a creditor can see that the alternative is a very small payment over a very long period of time (or forever in some cases) they could be far more receptive to the idea of a low full and final settlement offer.

That said, sending a financial statement isn't mandatory - don't let a creditor imply that it is although it is absolutely recognised practice to send one. I've seen a fair number of cases where people have tried to negotiate reduced monthly payments and/or full & final settlements without sending an I&E form and they've not got very far.

Best wishes,

David @ National Debtline.

BillJones

fenners81 wrote: »

Wow, that seems like an aggressive approach. But I guess they don't need to see my i&e. I think they're being tactical rather than trying to help me out. I do owe these guys money though!

It's aggressive, and not in your best interests.

Harveybobbles has a bee in his bonnet about debt collectors, and all of his advice is based around angering them.

Plenty of other people on here will give you genuine advice, so please, don't shoot yourself in the foot by indulging in his vendetta.

sourcrates

They have no legal rights to your personal information.


That said however, if you provide it, it shows that you are willing to cooperate with the creditor, and you are much more likely to get a positive outcome.


The information you give them, does not need to be "gospel",


the figures/amounts you provide them with is entirely up to you .

harveybobbles

I've not really got a bee in my bonet about DCA's. I just dislike how they bully people who have no understanding how they work.

Play them at their own games and they go away.

DCA's have NO more power than my neighbours cat to do anything.

Every letter these DCA's send will contain words like if, may, could, instruct, consider, intend etc.. They will never do anything apart from hiss, spit, make empty threats and throw their toys out of their pram.

sourcrates

fenners81 wrote: »

Hi

I sent !!!!!! letters to 3 DCAs and have had 3 swift responses. One has sent me a financial questionnaire to fill in with my income/expenditure. The other 2 have said that I should call them. I'm unsure what the next course of action should be in each case as I know calling is often not recommended.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated,

Thanks

Fenners81, you do realise that unless the DCA actually owns the debt, then they can do nothing at all to you, except register a default ?.


If the debt has just been assigned to the DCA then all they do is "refer to there client".


Only the owner of the debt can instigate any kind of court action, you could, should you wish, ignore the DCA completely.

fermi

If the collector has been given full legal assignment of the debt then they can take legal action in their own name just in the same way as the original creditor could have done.

Seeing the numerous threads and court cases on CAG, legalbeagles and other forums shows without doubt that many many debt collectors are taking legal action.

Each has to be taken on it's own circumstances.

Making blanket statements of the type that DCAs cannot or never do anything is misleading in the extreme.

As said, each case has to be assessed on it's own merits, and the legal status re assignment checked. In some cases legal action may be unlikely, but with some litigious dcas it it a reasonable possibility that can't be dismissed.