Help Appreciated - BLS Collections

lauren1224

Hi guys,

Thanks for taking to the time to read this. To try and keep things short:

* In 2008 I had an overdraft with Halifax (student overdraft) got into trouble and couldn't pay, they added interest and I defaulted in 2011.

* The debt of £983 was passed onto Blair, Olvier & Scott. I agreed to pay them £10 a month which I have been since 2011.

* The debt was passed onto BLS Collections, I'm not sure when because the only correspondence I have with them is a letter saying to continue to pay in the same way.

* The balance is now at £474 and I would like to pay it off, so...

How do I go about doing this, it's hard to get in touch with them, and what is the deal with getting things wiped from my credit file ( I know it will disappear in 2017 as that's six years after) but if I pay it off will this improve my credit score?

I have no other debts, don't miss payments and would like to get it sorted because I want to apply for a mortgage in the near future.

One last thing, do you think I could get them to settle for less, or would it be worth paying it in full if and when I can?

That was a bit longer than I intended, sorry! Any help appreciated and please let me know if you need any other information.

sourcrates

Hi,


If it already shows a default on your credit file, then it wont make any difference, to your file, if its settled partially, or in full, it will still drop off in 2017.


Write to them, using the excellent template letter, available from the National Debtline website, and make your offer to settle :


https://www.nationaldebtline.org/EW/sampleletters/sole-letters/Pages/Full-and-final-settlement-offers-(sole-name).aspx


You should be looking to settle this for as little as possible, remember, its all a matter of negotiation, so could take a while, I would start proceedings at 30% of the debt owed, and see how they respond.


You can ask them to remove negative information from your file, but they will refuse, as they have to report an accurate record of how the account was run.

DandelionPatrol

sourcrates wrote: »

You should be looking to settle this for as little as possible,

For once, I could disagree.

OP wants a mortgage. If she wants it before 2017, the default will be on file as will the fact that it has been partially settled. Whereas there are lenders who will nod through fully settled debts from long ago, most are intolerant of partial settlements.

If OP's plans include a mortgage before the default drops off, it might be worth while paying the full £474 rather than having to wait to 2017

Marktheshark

CCA request them first, that means they have to produce the Credit agreement and they are often not sold with the actual debt file, if they dont have it and can not produce it, they can not enforce the debt they bought.

fatbelly

Ultimately, to get a 'settled' mark, and make your file look as good as possible for the mortgage lenders, you are probably going to have to pay this off in full.

We know that the 'correct' mark for a F&F settlement is 'partially settled'

But some firms have been known to come up with two percentages: a higher one for the 'settled' mark and a lower one for the 'partially settled' mark.

Maybe worth trying.

You need to make sure that you have a couple of credit agreements on the go that are being well managed, and that you are on the electoral roll.