Lowell Vodafone debt which I dont know about

nedian21

Hi guys,

Need some help as Lowell has recently contacted me for a Vodafone debt which they claim is own by myself. They started with a letter which is on my name and on my current address and claimed that I owe Vodafone almost £1400. I have NEVER been in debt and have maintained a very high credit rating. Anyway I responded them with a template letter that I dont have any knowledge of any debt owed to Vodafone and they should provide me with further information like original credit agreement, statement of account, Copy of the executed deed of assignment from Vodafone etc.
After a month or 2 they provided me with some bills from Vodafone with a mobile no and Vodafone account no. I have never had that mobile no and Vodafone account no. The bills are dated from Aug 2016 and the address on those bills are from my previous address. I moved from that address in Feb 2015 so there might be a case of identity fraud which I am not aware of. Since last 4 or 5 years I have been with three mobile and before moving to them around 2012) I was with Vodafone and completed my contract and paid them everything and plus I have always have 1 mobile no which I ported across from Vodafone to three and I found my old Vodafone account as well from 2012 which is different to the one quoted on the bills. So there is no chance that some small amount was due to Vodafone from my previous contract with them in 2012 as both mobile no and account no are different.

Now my question is should I have ignored them initially. After I received these so called bills I have again wrote them using the template letter that I DONT owe them anything and have no knowledge of this debt. Now they have sent another letter with the bills attached again providing agreement start date of 31st Dec 2015 (I moved to my current address Feb 2015) , mobile no (never used this no) , last payment date of July 2016 (never paid anything from my one and only bank account). Plus telling me that the balance requested is under service agreement and they are not required to send copy of credit agreement. Attaching my response and their recent response.

Should I ignore them or should I sent them a final letter explaining that I am not the person they are after as clearly I have got proofs that I wasnt living at that property, I didnt pay anything to Vodafone from Dec 2015 - July 2016 from my bank account etc. I still havent checked my credit rating but my remortgage went fine recently in Feb 2017.

Would appreciate any help in this regard. Can I contact Trading standards or Office of Fair trading of their action? I am not worried at all as I have never been in debt and 100% sure that I dont owe anything to Vodafone but the letters are now becoming a nuisance.

sourcrates

Hi,

If it is fraud, report it to action fraud, then tell Lowell you have done so.

You dont sign credit agreements for airtime contracts, so they wont be able to provide those.

fatbelly

There's a Vodafone rep on this board who might be able to help in this instance. Usually if you mention Vodafone Vodafone Vodafone he appears...

sourcrates

fatbelly wrote: »

There's a Vodafone rep on this board who might be able to help in this instance. Usually if you mention Vodafone Vodafone Vodafone he appears...

Don`t you have to twirl around 3 times whist saying it though ?

:rotfl::rotfl::rotfl:

nedian21

Thanks guys. I will report them to Action fraud as it is clearly not my debt and seems I have been a victim of ID fraud

sourcrates

nedian21 wrote: »

Thanks guys. I will report them to Action fraud as it is clearly not my debt and seems I have been a victim of ID fraud

Keep an eye on this thread as the Vodafone rep may pick up on it also..........

nedian21

sourcrates wrote: »

Keep an eye on this thread as the Vodafone rep may pick up on it also..........

Sourcrates, I have just checked my Experian report and it is showing poor credit rating because of this stupid unwarranted record on my report. As I mentioned earlier I had a higher credit rating till even last year. Whats the process to remove this?
How can Lowell mark someone's credit report without proving that the debt actually belong to that individual. Please suggest

National_Debtline

Hi nedian21


From what you've told us it does sound like it's possible someone fraudulently took out the debt using your old address. When you report this to Action Fraud you will usually be given a crime reference number. This needs to be sent to Lowell with a letter explaining you think the debt is fraudulent. They will investigate and if it is accepted as fraud any information relating to the debt will be removed from your credit file.


Susie
@natdebtline

nedian21

National_Debtline wrote: »

Hi nedian21


From what you've told us it does sound like it's possible someone fraudulently took out the debt using your old address. When you report this to Action Fraud you will usually be given a crime reference number. This needs to be sent to Lowell with a letter explaining you think the debt is fraudulent. They will investigate and if it is accepted as fraud any information relating to the debt will be removed from your credit file.


Susie
@natdebtline

Thanks Susie, I will report it to Action Fraud but I still baffled as how Lowell can just report me as defaulted account without proving that this debt actually belongs to me. They have ruined my credit history albeit temporarily but in case if I have to apply for a loan or any other credit agreement then chances are currently I wont get anything. Do you or experts here suggest me calling Lowell and ask them to remove their entry from credit file?

fatbelly

As the fraud happened on Vodafone's watch I would also ask what they can do

With the number of Vodafone topics and posts within specific threads (Vodafone complaints) we are providing the standard process for submitting feedback, questions, and complaints to the Vodafone WRT (Web Forum Team). After that there are some additional routes you can take to escalate and progress your case. We do not guarantee you will get your required outcome but from experience the below advice has been very productive for many users and Vodafone customers on this forum.

- To submit a question or complaint please use the 'Contact Us' form - http://www.vodafone.co.uk/contact-form/index.htm

- To access the form you'll need to enter the code WRT135.

- As well as stating your query in the question box, please also quote "MSE Forum".

Once sent, you'll receive an automated reply with a reference number. You can post it on the forum and someone such as Lee (Vodafone) will check it has been received. It can take at least 2 - 5 days for a response from Vodafone.

National_Debtline

nedian21 wrote: »

Thanks Susie, I will report it to Action Fraud but I still baffled as how Lowell can just report me as defaulted account without proving that this debt actually belongs to me. They have ruined my credit history albeit temporarily but in case if I have to apply for a loan or any other credit agreement then chances are currently I wont get anything. Do you or experts here suggest me calling Lowell and ask them to remove their entry from credit file?

Hi again nedian21


A creditor or debt collection agency (DCA) should only record a debt on someone's credit file if they believe they are the liable party, but they do not have to send proof that the person is liable as a matter of course. However you can challenge an entry on your credit file when you believe it is wrong. If you are going to use the argument that the debt could have been taken out fraudulently, Lowell will expect you to report it to Action Fraud first.


As fatbelly says, you can also try getting in touch with Vodafone as well about this.


Susie
@natdebtline