The Ghost of Drive Assist, unrecoverable charges... 3 years after accident!(HCS, MTA)

Lafone

Hi,
have just received a similar letter to the one posted on Drive assist and unrecoverable charges being claimed by MTA solicitors. My story is very similar to this one posted previously. Someone went into my parked car in 2012 and as it was a simple no fault case. My insurers recommended I go with Drive Assist as they deal with their no fault claims and it would not affect my insurance. I'd never had an accident so just did what they advised. Drive Assist arranged the hire car and I was only offered one options. I never even knew there was a difference between Avis hire and a Credit hire. Still don't really understand it..

On the form I signed when the car was delivered I did actually write above my signature " I have been told verbally by Drive Assist that my insurers have paid for indemnity in case other party do not pay. I understand I am not personally liable therefore."

I wonder how I stand? I'm wondering if I should get legal advice but upset that this is all the result of someone driving into me and my insurers recommending I go to Drive Assist and arranging it all. Do they hold any responsibility therefore?

Part of me thinks I don't mind helping to recover the costs if it's straightforward and part of me thinks once I've signed the next forms I will be embroiled and then could be drawn in for months and possibly go to court. I can't imagine any form sent me to sign will be written in my favour.
Just wondered if anyone is further down the road on this one and can advise. Would really appreciate this. Thank you.

OnanTheBarbarian

Your"understanding" that you are not liable and the suggestion you do not have liability for the charges does potentially cause problems for them with their plans.

For them to make a recovery from the insurer of the fault party requires there to be a legally enforceable agreement between you and DA.

Essentially the wording you have written on the agreement is classed as an antecedent negotiation and a variation of the terms. This may render the agreement unenforceable as it suggests you never had any liability to pay the charges. So therefore you have no loss and there is nothing to recover.

In your situation it may well be worth holding out and seeing if they leave you alone. You will probably have to tell them the above points before they will leave you alone.

The other option is you tell them you will assist with any litigation, but that you won't be signing any further forms as they have your signature on the agreement already and you don't need to sign any further forms to reaffirm what you have already signed. This avoids you signing anything which tries to undo your get out of jail clause which you added to the original agreement.

I would say prospects of recovery don't look too great and this is probably why they haven't managed to recover the money in 4 years as the third party insurer is most likely resisting the claim if they have seen the rental agreement.

TonyBooth

Reading up on Insolvency Ventures. I would be careful of them as they seem to specialise in brokering the sale of bad debt from sellers of as they called it "distressed assets" to "specialist purchasers".


It looks like they have brokered the deal for outstanding Drive Assist claims that were being handled by Hamilton Claim Solutions (Run by ex head of claims at Drive Assist for 13 years) and the administrators to DRA Realisations Limited.


DRA have been in business 9 months and seem to have two directors who are linked to a number of other similar obscure enterprises. They seem to have bought the distressed debt and commissioned MTA solicitors, a specialist firm in chasing in debt to start sending out letters. It seems numerous old Drive Assist customers are receiving letters since November 15 when this operation started.

It was also published on the 8th January that a director of Drive Assist has been banned from having a directorship for 16 years. Other directors are being investigated at present by the government Insolvency Service. What impact could this have as it seems to prove how the business was run from the top down.


Has anyone who has posted above had any further developments since engaging with MTA or have they taken their own legal advice? With the above comments in mind, I have real doubt that MTA and DRA have any real interest in supporting customers other than to get them to pay the debt.


My feeling is that apart from the administrators, some of the pressure tactics people are receiving are from individuals who had some association with Drive Assist who reinvented themselves afterwards in new roles where they could focus on chasing earnings from the old Drive Assist portfolio. That and some chancers now who have bought bad debt and paid a solicitor to start sending out letters to people.

TonyBooth

Both of these companies have a linked address, a director of DRA and trading address for Insolvency Ventures.

Neddy7373

My partner has also received a letter do we reply or ignore ??
Has anyone followed the process through to the end?

David111

Please see below - I feel I have been conned!! I have now received a court date which is scheduled for July. HAs anyone got any advice for me as I am really concerned I will end up with further debt of £2.5k for car I was provided by DA.


Dear Mr David George,

I write further to your telephone conversation with my colleague Cameron Rodger earlier today.

I confirm our reasons for contacting you with a view to making a claim for the hire charges from Mr Todd’s insurers are as follows.

Following the accident on 13th November 2012 you used Drive Assist’s non-fault accident credit services. I understand that you were referred to Drive Assist after having reported the claim as being non-fault.

Drive Assist operated a credit hire vehicle service whereby they provide like for like vehicles to people who had suffered non-fault accidents. These vehicles are provided on a credit hire agreement which you would have signed. The cost of the vehicle would legally be in your name, however due the accident not being your fault, it is the standard practice of companies such as Drive Assist that these charges be recovered from the insurers of the at-fault party through a claim in negligence. Normally these claims would settle without the further need to litigate however I confirm that Drive Assist went into administration on 10th December 2012.

The administrators of Drive Assist have subsequently sold the debt owed to Drive Assist to a company called DRA Realisations Limited.

We have received instructions from DRA Realisations Ltd to contact you in order to obtain your permission to run a claim against the insurers of Mr Robert Todd in your name at no cost to yourself. DRA Realisations Ltd are funding a claim to recover hire charges from the insurers of Mr Robert Todd but unfortunately by law they are unable to make this claim directly. There is no contract between DRA Realisations Ltd and the insurers of Mr Robert Todd and they were not the victims of negligence. As such a claim to recover the hire charges needs to be made in your name as you were the victim of the accident. We will also be able to include a claim for any losses you have incurred and will do so at no cost to yourself.

Under the terms of your agreement with Drive Assist you agreed to assist them in the recovery of their charges including lending your name to the proceedings. By Law the proceedings must be brought in your name as it was you who signed the hire agreement but the costs associated with the proceedings will be met by DRA Realisations Ltd subject to the terms of your agreement with Drive Assist such as assisting DRA Realisations Ltd in their efforts to recover the charges.

You are not obliged to authorise us to act on your behalf, however if you do not then DRA Realisations Ltd will only be able to seek to recover the hire charges by seeking them from you directly. I am telling you this purely so that you can make a fully informed decision. You are of course at liberty to seek independent legal advice.

I attach copies of the hire documentation for your reference.

In order to proceed with this matter I do need you to provide your consent via the completed Summary of Instructions and refer you to the email you received earlier today. If you have any difficulties or questions please feel free to contact me. Should you decide you do not want a claim made to clear your name of the hire charges I will pass the file back to ?Hamilton Claims Solutions who act for DRA Realisations Limited and close our file as we will not have your authority to act in your best interests.

I look forward to hearing from you.

Kind regards,

Cheryl De Bie

Cheryl de-Bie
Operations Manager
MTA Solicitors LLP

OnanTheBarbarian

Essentially this letter is asking you to agree to assist with the recovery of the hire charges by allowing them to conduct court proceedings in your name against the third party. This is standard practice when it comes to the recovery of credit hire charges as it is your loss (debt) that you have with Drive Assist as a result of needing to hire a replacement car due to the negligence of the other motorist.

If you refuse to allow them to issue court proceedings in your name against the other party, then you are in breach of the terms of the rental agreement and they will just look to pursue you personally for the debt.

If you agree to assist, you may need to attend a court hearing, but so long as you assist in matters generally, the charges would not be sought from you. If the full amount was not recovered from the other side, the shortfall would not be pursued against you.

So in summary, if you assist you are unlikely to have anything to pay. if you refuse to assist or ignore, they will just pursue you as you would be preventing them from going after the other party.

David111

Thank you for the response. I find this whole thread stinks a little of scamming by the insurers of not-so diligent people into thinking they were to receive a courtesy car but instead have signed a hire agreement.

David111

One thing I wanted to ask you; why, in your opinion, are Esure (my insurer at the time) not chasing this this debt from the 3rd party insurer?

OnanTheBarbarian

David111 wrote: »

One thing I wanted to ask you; why, in your opinion, are Esure (my insurer at the time) not chasing this this debt from the 3rd party insurer?

Because it is not Esure's debt.

You called Esure after the prang, on identifying it was a non-fault collision, Esure have talked you into avoiding using your own policy and putting you into the hands of DA. This is because it is appealing to you not having to pay your excess etc and DA pay Esure a nice juicy kickback for referring you onto them.

You then have signed a consumer credit agreement for the hire of the car and responsibility for the charges that arise from the hiring of that car. So the charges are your liability. Usually the hire co just then sick the invoices under the nose of the insurers of the fault party and you hear no more about it.

But due to the demise of DA it has got a little drawn out and they are now needing to take proceedings against the other party for recovery of your losses (the hire charges you incurred)