Paper shop debt

eddddy

Hi Crazylurcher

This definitely sounds like harassment. The CAB say:

What counts as harassment by a creditor

If the creditor tries to do any of the following things to try and get you to pay back the money you owe, this could be considered harassment. They include:
...
- trying to embarrass you in public
...

See: https://www.adviceguide.org.uk/wales/debt_w/debt_action_your_creditor_can_take_e/harassment_by_creditors.htm

The CAB suggests that you collect evidence and then write to the creditor to complain.

The CAB goes on to say that you should contact the CAB:

If you want to complain about a local firm, you can contact the Citizens Advice Consumer Service. They can put you in touch with your local Trading Standards Office, who can investigate whether an offence had been committed.

Gordon_Hose

I'd tell her to whistle for her money after sticking signs to your house.

rochja

It does not seem the least ridiculous to me. In fact as my parents were sole traders I am very concerned about the number of corner shops we are losing and feel they need the maximum protection. After weeks of seeking payment for goods and services received she finally found a way to grab your attention, didn't she? She also found a way of letting other traders know you are a bad debt. Whilst I cannot condone her action I can fully sympathise with it. I hope relations have not broken down so far that you cannot arrange payment terms, perhaps by her resorting, as she should have, to the small claims procedures?

National_Debtline

rochja wrote: »

It does not seem the least ridiculous to me. In fact as my parents were sole traders I am very concerned about the number of corner shops we are losing and feel they need the maximum protection. After weeks of seeking payment for goods and services received she finally found a way to grab your attention, didn't she? She also found a way of letting other traders know you are a bad debt. Whilst I cannot condone her action I can fully sympathise with it. I hope relations have not broken down so far that you cannot arrange payment terms, perhaps by her resorting, as she should have, to the small claims procedures?

There are incredibly strict rules about debt collection, many of which are underpinned by legislation. Given the information written by the original poster it is quite possible that the newsagent may be breach of these laws.

Our harassment fact sheet touches on the basics: https://www.nationaldebtline.org/EW/factsheets/Pages/03%20EW%20Harassment%20by%20creditors%20and%20debt%20collectors/Default.aspx

In addition, s40 of the Administration of Justice Act 1970 is pretty clear:

40 Punishment for unlawful harassment of debtors.E+W

(1)A person commits an offence if, with the object of coercing another person to pay money claimed from the other as a debt due under a contract, he—

(a)harasses the other with demands for payment which, in respect of their frequency or the manner or occasion of making any such demand, or of any threat or publicity by which any demand is accompanied, are calculated to subject him or members of his family or household to alarm, distress or humiliation;

(b)falsely represents, in relation to the money claimed, that criminal proceedings lie for failure to pay it;

(c)falsely represents himself to be authorised in some official capacity to claim or enforce payment; or

(d)utters a document falsely represented by him to have some official character or purporting to have some official character which he knows it has not.

(2)A person may be guilty of an offence by virtue of subsection (1)(a) above if he concerts with others in the taking of such action as is described in that paragraph, notwithstanding that his own course of conduct does not by itself amount to harassment.

(3)Subsection (1)(a) above does not apply to anything done by a person which is reasonable (and otherwise permissible in law) for the purpose—

(a)of securing the discharge of an obligation due, or believed by him to be due, to himself or to persons for whom he acts, or protecting himself or them from future loss; or

(b)of the enforcement of any liability by legal process.

Very best wishes,

David @ National Debtline.

Mojisola

Crazylurcher wrote: »

For months and months we received the evening paper each thinking the other was paying the bill. We were shocked when a bill came through the door for £106.

rochja wrote: »

It does not seem the least ridiculous to me. In fact as my parents were sole traders I am very concerned about the number of corner shops we are losing and feel they need the maximum protection.

After weeks of seeking payment for goods and services received she finally found a way to grab your attention, didn't she? She also found a way of letting other traders know you are a bad debt.

In order to protect her own business, she shouldn't have allowed a debt to run up to this extent. It's very easy to just stop delivering a paper if the bill isn't being paid.

She has continued delivering the goods and allowed the bill to go unpaid - that doesn't give her the right to harass the debtors.

DCFC79

OP I know its not the reason you posted but I notic e you say "full time wages don't cover the mortgage and bills and we have children to feed and cloth"

if thats the case then have you looked at your outgoings and cut back.

MrJester

Sounds like an awful village to live in.

Queen81

redpete wrote: »

The reaction is over the top but I don't understand why you continued having the paper delivered regardless of who you thought was paying the bill - you are in such desperate circumstances an evening paper would be very low in the priorities.

It doesn't really matter what you do or don't understand - the issue is the embarrassment the debt is causing & what they can do about it.

Tixy

DCFC79 wrote: »

OP I know its not the reason you posted but I notic e you say "full time wages don't cover the mortgage and bills and we have children to feed and cloth"

if thats the case then have you looked at your outgoings and cut back.

Agree with this. Crazylurcher if you are struggling with your finances so much then you may want to post on the Debt-Free Wannabe section of the forum for some help and advice on how to best deal with your debts and manage your finances and what options may be available to you, you do need to put priority costs like ensuring you can afford food for the whole family above paying off any debts.

redpete

Queen81 wrote: »

It doesn't really matter what you do or don't understand - the issue is the embarrassment the debt is causing & what they can do about it.

If every thread was controlled and restricted to only discussing the question asked or issue raised these forums would be much smaller and less useful.

Sometimes (and I wouldn't necessarily include my earlier response in this) a poster needs to be faced up with an underlying issue that they have not and/or do not want to address.

In this case it maybe helps the OP to realise that "I thought someone else was paying" does not sound a convincing excuse in their circumstances.