HELP Lowell Portfolio CCJ

MuddyFunster

The bottom has just fallen out of my world...






I've just got home to a County Court Business Centre Claim Form - I assume this is a pre cursor to a CCJ?


I have, for the last 2 years been trying to put my affairs in order, but this will wreck me.


The claim is for an agreement originally with Welcome Finance, neither Lowell or Welcome appear on my Noddle file - from memory this is a loan I took out in 2008, but stopped paying in 2009 when I was hospitalised for 9 months - is this now 'barred'?


Any ideas anyone? It's for £4k and I don't have more than a few hundred in savings, if I get a CCJ it will destroy my plans for the future and really hurt my wife and kids.

rizla_king

You need to acknowledge the service saying you will defend to give yourself 28 days to sort out a defence or decide to admit and make an offer.

You really need to ask on a specific legal advice forum like http://www.legalbeagles.info/forums/forumdisplay.php?105-Received-a-Court-Claim or http://www.consumeractiongroup.co.uk/forum/forumdisplay.php?170-Legal-Issues

Firstly, don't panic.

Secondly, many of these Consumer Credit debt based Court Claims are issued through the County Court Business Centre and are rather lacking in detail and information. The are often claims bought by debt purchasers who don't have the paperwork to back them up to hand and who wing it on the hope that they obtain a default judgment.

So, first steps (within 14 days of receiving the claim)

1: ACKNOWLEDGE THE CLAIM - you can do this online usually at www.moneyclaim.gov.uk
You'll need your claim reference and password from the front of the claim form - this will extend the time you have to respond to the claim to 28 days from when you received it

2: Send A CCA REQUEST to the CLAIMANT ( see here )
This applies to all credit cards / loans / hire purchase / store cards type debt. It doesn't apply to Mobile Phones / Utilities or Overdrafts.

3: Send a CPR request to the CLAIMANT'S SOLICITORS ( see here )
This applies to everything unless they happen to have supplied you with a bunch of paperwork to back up their claim (v. unlikely)

If you are unsure of any of those steps then please make a new thread on the forum (you must be registered to do this)

Once those letters have been sent off you should make a new thread on the forum (you must be registered to do this) and make a post titled the claimants name v your username, and containing the date of issue from your claim form, date of service (ie when you received the claim form), type out the Particulars of Claim (exclude account numbers) and tell us the approx amount of the claim. Also tell us any specific disputes or background to the claim you may have. If you know please also tell us the last time you made a payment towards the debt or acknowledged the debt in writing, and confirm you have acknowledged the claim, and what letters you have sent off.
OR
If you received a court claim and want to start a new thread in this forum please complete this form . Thank you.


And people here will help guide you through the next steps.

NOTE: The defence date is 28 days from service (ie when you received the claim) or 33 days (which allows 5 days for service) from the issue date printed on the front of the claim form.

http://www.timeanddate.com/date/dateadd.html

MuddyFunster

Thanks for the help,


I spoke with Nationaldebt line last night - they're pretty sure that Lowell are 'fishing' hoping I won't reply and that they'll get the judgement by default. It's 90% likely that my debt is Statute Barred, and if it's not, there's a 90% change they won't be able to prove it.


Unfortunely is sounds like a game of bluff - if it does go to a hearing, whoever loses will be inline for £1000 of court fees at least. That sucks.


I'm off now to legal beagles for template letters and such.

Marktheshark

It is not template letters you need.
You must now only deal directly with the court or you will receive a CCJ.
You need a Defence of Statute barred and file it quickly as possible to cut down their time to dig up fictitious payments.

With such claims hitting a defence in very quickly actually helps as they might be awaiting document searches .

rizla_king

MuddyFunster wrote: »

I'm off now to legal beagles for template letters and such.

Good.

Acknowledge service to give yourself 28 days.

CPR goes to the solicitors. CCA goes to Lowells.

Its VERY important to send BOTH of those just in case this isnt statute barred so you keep your option open.

starM

Hi, My sister received small court claim from Lowell Portfolio for an old Lloyds Current account. She is not sure if over 6 years has passed and debt is Statute barred. We have already acknowledge the debt so she has 28 days to reply rather than 14 days.

We can defense the claim under Statute barred but worried in case if it isn't and Lowell manage provide evidence.

She cannot put in CCA request because its an overdraft.

Any suggestions?

Thanks
MS

aymz1983

I don't know if it helps, but I had a Welcome loan and I actually rang them up to get copies of statements to prove the last time a payment was made was over 6 years ago. They did actually have them (I had to ring a central office as they were archived) and arrived quickly.
Of course it helps that the DCA asking me for the money admitted they knew it was SB and said it was no problem when I said I wouldn't be paying it.

rizla_king

Same advice, just minus the CCA request part. See previous links and ask on beagles.

Robo-787

If the debt is over 6 years old then it's Statute Barred and you don't have to pay it.

We had a letter from them a couple of weeks ago for a debt over 15 years old, straight in the bin.

They are just trying their luck to get money from you.

fermi

Robo-787 wrote: »

If the debt is over 6 years old then it's Statute Barred and you don't have to pay it.

We had a letter from them a couple of weeks ago for a debt over 15 years old, straight in the bin.

They are just trying their luck to get money from you.

May be, but throwing actual court papers in the bin just lands you with a CCJ by default for filing to defend, so pretty useless for the OP here.

They need to actively dispute/defend this.

fatbelly

Robo-787 wrote: »

If the debt is over 6 years old then it's Statute Barred and you don't have to pay it.

A debt could be over six years old but not have had a period of six years when it was not acknowledged by payment or in writing. Ultimately only a court can decide what is and isn't statute barred, so you must respond to a claim form.