Where is my debt? Has it been refered to court?

hatethinkingofusernames

I have a debt with a collection agency , and ever since they've had it, I was getting letters literally every single week about the debt, and they kept this up for ever such a long time....I buried my head in the sand for a long time as the letters just kept coming through and through, week by week.

I finally decided to tell them the truth (via a typed up letter) about my financial situation and that I just simply cannot afford to pay this debt off right now or at any time in the foreseeable future. I asked them, begged them (in a mature way) if they would please consider writing the debt off, as there was/is no way I can make even small repayments. I also told them that my mental health is not in good shape, and the stress from all this was also taking it's toll.

The response from them were letters asking me to provide proof from a healthcare professional that I had mental problems (including a signature from a doctor or mental health professional) and suggesting someone else act on my behalf.

I just ignored these letters (many were sent after the first one) as I cannot provide such proof....and then the letters went back to the ones they were sending before this, demanding I contact them immediately to arrange payment. It seemed they were no way going to agree to write the debt off, and instead keep on persisting.

Well, having had this debt collection agency chase me for such an extremely long time, bombarding me and worrying me sick with letters every week, I have for the past 2 months heard nothing from them. I initially wondered whether they'd decided to agree to my plead to them to write it off, but now I am convinced it's probably because they've passed it on to the county court and it's just taking it's time there to go through some process before the court contacts me (after all, if they agreed to write it off they would've sent me a letter saying so, but I have heard not a thing) ....why after regular letters for at least a year , have they stopped sending them....and not even heard nothing at all from them for a while now? Am I probably correct in thinking it's been passed to the court who will contact me at some point? Does anyone have any ideas???

P.S. The total debt is £1,700 and I am very afraid it's gone to court. I know to many people, that is ever such a small sum, but to someone in my financial situation....it's a hell of a lot of money, believe me. In fact, it's a frighteningly large amount of money. I just don't know now what to do....I feel like contacting the collection agency asking them what is going on now...but am afraid to do so....why the silence from them.....what has happened? Please if someone can tell me.....

sourcrates

Hi,

First off, what is the debt for, is the debt still owned by the original creditor, or has the DCA bought the debt ?

Do they refer to 'our client" at all ?

It's not uncommon for DCA's to go quiet for months, even years at a time.

There's no sure way of knowing there plans, but with It been a small amount, i doubt a claim form is on its way to you, but that said, it's not impossible either.
They have probebley put your case to the bottom of the pile, and now started hassling someone else, or they may be in the process of selling the debt on, or passing it to another agency, could be any one of those things.

Which DCA is it ?

I think perhaps you should maybe talk to some one at either Stepchange, or National Debtline about your situation, it can be hit and miss with debt collectors, sometimes they go quiet, and never bother you again, other times your pursued over and over for the debt.

It's not really wise to ignore them.

National_Debtline

Hi there and welcome to MSE,


If the debt collector was taking the matter to court you would get claim forms, so try not to worry about this being processed without your knowledge. They clearly have your correct address so if it does go to court, you should get the documents telling you that. You rarely have to attend county court proceedings, so try not to worry about that either.

As far as the debt itself is concerned, you can request a write off again, but a letter from a medical professional is a fair request, if you say it is affecting your health. Or you may be able to look at a Debt Relief Order (DRO) to get the debt written off, but Sourcrates is right, it would help if you could post the details of what the debt was originally as some debts can't be written off or included in a DRO.


Laura
@natdebtline

StepChange_Rachael

Hi

I’m sorry to hear you’re struggling with this debt, it's clearly a very stressful situation for you.

As the previous replies to your post mention, the creditor could be lying dormant for a while and may start sending the letters again, possibly years later. They could have passed the debt on or may be looking to take further action through the court to set it as a County Court Judgement (CCJ).

Either way not knowing where you stand with a debt can cause more stress than the actual debt itself.

I’d suggest getting some professional debt advice so you can look at your options to deal with the debt.

There are many debt solutions available for people struggling with problem debt and it’s important you find the best way forward for you.

Our advice is free and impartial, if you’d like to contact us to discuss your options with an advisor you can find our contact details here.

Take care,
Rachael

hatethinkingofusernames wrote: »

I have a debt with a collection agency , and ever since they've had it, I was getting letters literally every single week about the debt, and they kept this up for ever such a long time....I buried my head in the sand for a long time as the letters just kept coming through and through, week by week.

I finally decided to tell them the truth (via a typed up letter) about my financial situation and that I just simply cannot afford to pay this debt off right now or at any time in the foreseeable future. I asked them, begged them (in a mature way) if they would please consider writing the debt off, as there was/is no way I can make even small repayments. I also told them that my mental health is not in good shape, and the stress from all this was also taking it's toll.

The response from them were letters asking me to provide proof from a healthcare professional that I had mental problems (including a signature from a doctor or mental health professional) and suggesting someone else act on my behalf.

I just ignored these letters (many were sent after the first one) as I cannot provide such proof....and then the letters went back to the ones they were sending before this, demanding I contact them immediately to arrange payment. It seemed they were no way going to agree to write the debt off, and instead keep on persisting.

Well, having had this debt collection agency chase me for such an extremely long time, bombarding me and worrying me sick with letters every week, I have for the past 2 months heard nothing from them. I initially wondered whether they'd decided to agree to my plead to them to write it off, but now I am convinced it's probably because they've passed it on to the county court and it's just taking it's time there to go through some process before the court contacts me (after all, if they agreed to write it off they would've sent me a letter saying so, but I have heard not a thing) ....why after regular letters for at least a year , have they stopped sending them....and not even heard nothing at all from them for a while now? Am I probably correct in thinking it's been passed to the court who will contact me at some point? Does anyone have any ideas???

P.S. The total debt is £1,700 and I am very afraid it's gone to court. I know to many people, that is ever such a small sum, but to someone in my financial situation....it's a hell of a lot of money, believe me. In fact, it's a frighteningly large amount of money. I just don't know now what to do....I feel like contacting the collection agency asking them what is going on now...but am afraid to do so....why the silence from them.....what has happened? Please if someone can tell me.....