Will PPI claim drag up unwanted history?

DamienP

Hello all,

About 10 years ago I got myself into a ton of debt. I paid most of it off, and what remains is now statute barred. Needless to say, my credit rating was trashed but I have now enjoyed 4 years of excellent credit, close to maximum in fact. There are no blemishes on my file whatsoever, and I have been very careful to keep it that way. This is especially important now as I'm a business owner, and a good credit rating is a critical component to that.

I am considering doing a PPI claim using a third party provider. I don't mind paying 30% in return for their time.

My concern is that PPI claims may 'restart' and remove the limitations I benefit from with the remaining debt being statute barred. Are creditors likely to view this new contact with them as an acknowledgement of the debt, trashing my credit rating all over again?

Any insight or advice would be greatly appreciated. Thank you.

Bogalot

It will not restart the debts, they will not be able to enforce them through court action. However they will be able to offset any payments against your outstanding debt, being statute barred does not mean the debt disappears.

Also the claims company would want 30% of the whole amount awarded, including that going against old debt. Depending on the amounts involved you could end up paying out more than you receive.

dunstonh

I am considering doing a PPI claim using a third party provider. I don't mind paying 30% in return for their time.

Really bad idea for anyone but even more in your case. If your complaint succeeded, the lender could offset the redress against the debt you failed to repay. You then get nothing in your hands. However, the claims company can bill you against the amount the lender paid against your debt. So, you get a bill despite having not personally received the money.

Statute barring means they cannot use the courts. However, the debt still exists and the redress is allowed to be offset against unpaid debts even where statute barred.

DamienP

Thank you for taking the time to reply.

I'm aware that they cannot enforce the debts. I'm more concerned about whether my claim would class as an acknowledgement of the debts, meaning I could have a bunch of defaults on my credit file again? Does acknowledging the debts after 6 years have passed still restart the clock, or not?

I'm aware of the risk of using a third party, thanks for your comments. Will think on that one. I'm fairly sure that most of my debts were repaid, but I'll definitely consider doing this myself now.

Nasqueron

DamienP wrote: »

Thank you for taking the time to reply.

I'm aware that they cannot enforce the debts. I'm more concerned about whether my claim would class as an acknowledgement of the debts, meaning I could have a bunch of defaults on my credit file again? Does acknowledging the debts after 6 years have passed still restart the clock, or not?

I'm aware of the risk of using a third party, thanks for your comments. Will think on that one. I'm fairly sure that most of my debts were repaid, but I'll definitely consider doing this myself now.

Statute barred means what it says, if it's more than 6 years, that's it. As above, it does not mean the debt does not exist. It is quite common in these cases for the bank to autopay on any PPI claim as they can use it against your unpaid debts

Just to reiterate comments above, do not use a claims firm, they will demand you pay 30% + of any refund (bad reason to use them anyway as they only post a letter for you, they don't have any skills or abilities) but if the money is offset (remember unpaid interest, written off money etc all counts) they will still demand the money even though you'd not see a penny

societys_child

I'll definitely consider doing this myself now

Even if you use a CMC, you still have to do it yourself, as you have to provide the details to them anyway, which they then post on your behalf!

You'd pay 30% (+VAT) for sticking a stamp on an envelope and posting it?
You also stand a better chance on an upheld complaint, if you DIY.

-taff

Nasqueron wrote: »

Just to reiterate comments above, do not use a claims firm, they will demand you pay 30% + of any refund... but if the money is offset (remember unpaid interest, written off money etc all counts) they will still demand the money even though you'd not see a penny

Just because I like to repeat important things.....