Debt Collection Letters and Fines for Previous Owner

Davesnave

rtho782 wrote: »

Why should she have to spend money and prove who she is to strangers? Just tell them to go away... as you would a Capita TV licensing goon.

People have personality differences which affect the way they deal with situations. Physical size comes into this too.

Perhaps the OP does would prefer a chain as an extra level of security, or perhaps not, but I'm sure she'll be able to decide for herself if investing a couple of quid is worthwhile.

eddddy

Out,_Vile_Jelly wrote: »

I just said "that person doesn't live here anymore" and they left. Of course it's more dramatic and exciting on tv.

I expect they film lots and lots of visits that end up like that, but they don't make it into the final programme - because they're not very interesting.

bouicca21

I had a similar experience in a rental a few years ago - and bailiffs did come knocking at the door. I told them I wasn't the person they wanted and they accepted that and went away. Keep ID handy just in case needed, but getting rid really shouldn't be a problem. The debt collection letters kept on coming and eventually I just binned them.

[Deleted User]

I actually had someone turn up to arrest the previous tenant of the rented house I was living in. I just showed them ID, said I had no idea where they were and they went away.

HealthyLady

My elderly parents moved into their bungalow in June 2013. They inherited debts on the gas bad electric supplies which was the first warning all had not been well. 6 years on and debt collector letters are still arriving at the house. It would seem eh previous owners have continued to use teh address for their bank accounts , loans bad credit cards.
Both parents have now passed away and we are in the process of selling but those letters keep on coming and i ma concerned some charge against eh property will rear its head. They left no forwarding address when they moved out. after sending the letters back i took to opening them and calling up. each company then took us off their list but it seems the debts just get sold on. It will be interesting to see how long it is before the debt letters at your property stop.

SallyDucati

This happened to me when I bought my flat. I opened the letters and called. I did have a bit of difficulty with one who kept asking if I was sure I wasn't 'Rebecca', and only stopped once I offered to send him all the solicitors letters etc. proving when I bought the place.

the funny thing about this though was I was given the same phone number as the previous occupant, was on holiday and had forwarded my land line to my mobile. I was having this phone conversation trying not to let on I wasn't at home, while I was walking by the sea on the Isle of Mull.

hazyjo

HealthyLady wrote: »

...we are in the process of selling but those letters keep on coming and i ma concerned some charge against eh property will rear its head.

Read the advice above. Debt applies to people, not property. Up to them to find the person, not you.

worried_jim

rtho782 wrote: »

In my experience the staff probably can't stop the letters (as the system knows it is owed money) and can't change the address without a new address to put in.

This is true, data can't be updated by a random third party.

LandyAndy

caz72me wrote: »

Even though I return these letters to the sender, the same companies keep sending more and more letters to our address. I even saved up 5 letters from the one company (the one who's postcode looks like its a parking violation fine company) and sent them back with a letter explaining we are the new owners; in a brown envelope without a stamp so they had to pay postage but still they send them to our address.

?

Too late for the OP but in case anyone else does this, I work in a mailing house and we despatch thousands of items every week and obviously there are some returns. When we get notification of unpaid items we ignore it and the PO dispose of the items in line with their policy. We never see them.

worried_jim

HealthyLady wrote: »

My elderly parents moved into their bungalow in June 2013. They inherited debts on the gas bad electric supplies which was the first warning all had not been well. 6 years on and debt collector letters are still arriving at the house. It would seem eh previous owners have continued to use teh address for their bank accounts , loans bad credit cards.
Both parents have now passed away and we are in the process of selling but those letters keep on coming and i ma concerned some charge against eh property will rear its head. They left no forwarding address when they moved out. after sending the letters back i took to opening them and calling up. each company then took us off their list but it seems the debts just get sold on. It will be interesting to see how long it is before the debt letters at your property stop.

You have nothing to worry about.