Help - Intrum Justicia letter for Europcar "debt"

rinkydinkpanther

Hi, I hope one of you kind people can help me.

At the beginning of the year we went on holiday abroad for a week, and rented a car online through Europcar UK online. The car was stolen on the last day of our holiday. We paid extra admin fees when we returned the key to Europcar at the airport along with all the police documentation. This fee showed up on our online Europcar account, and we received a receipt by e-mail the next day. We were told we would receive a further invoice.

Six weeks later, we had heard nothing, and nothing was on our Europcar account, so we contacted Europcar and asked what was happening. We received an e-mail back from customer services telling us that the vehicle had been recovered, the rental included theft protection and that there were no further charges to pay. :beer:

Except then a month later, a letter came from the country where we were on holiday, saying that their previously sent invoice of 2700 euro was overdue and they would be taking legal action. I contacted Europcar straight away, with a copy of their e-mail telling me I owed nothing, plus a scan of the letter. After three weeks they send an e-mail addressed to a different customer saying they were looking into it. Then a week later, another e-mail saying that they had made a mistake and that yes, I did owe 2700 euro.

I sent a formal complaint with copies of all the documentation. I pointed out that at no time had I received any invoice, that my Europcar online account was still clear, that I had been categorically told in writing that I didn't owe any money. To resolve my complaint I asked that they honour the assurance they had given that I didn't owe any money and asked for confirmation that they would ensure any legal action already started would be cancelled. I asked for resolution of my complaint within 10 working days, or acknowledgement and a timeframe if it wasn't possible to respond in full in that time. I also asked for full details of all stages of the complaint process.

Today marks the 10 working days. I haven't had so much as an acknowledgement e-mail from Europcar. However, I have today received a letter dated 07/07/15 from an Irish company called Intrum Justica with a demand for 2739 euro. I assume this means Europcar have already sold the debt on? But why to an Irish company?( I am in the UK) Is it to get around Uk legislation?

What on earth do I do now? Do I contact the debt company and say I am not acknowledging the debt? I will obviously be contacting Europcar again, but am terrified of the potential consequences of this letter:(

Sorry it's so long, hope someone can advise.

sourcrates

Hi,

Surely you would of been insured for theft ? I can't see why you would have to pay anything extra.
To keep the DCA at bay, write and tell them the debt is in dispute, and to back off.

We're is Europcar based ?

If you hired the car in Europe you can take your complaint to The European Car Rental Conciliation Service (ECRCS). This is an organisation which helps customers with unresolved complaints about car hire within Europe.

There's some good info here, including what to do if your complaint is ignored :

https://www.citizensadvice.org.uk/consumer/travel-leisure-and-food/holidays/problems-with-holiday-services/extra-charges-have-been-added-to-your-car-hire-bill/