Lowell CCJ on debt with no credit agreement

Downbytheriver

Hello.

I hope someone could give me some advice about my situation.

In my student days (I’m now 36) I gained a quite large level of debt, coming from a family without funds I had to pay my way through uni working two jobs but after fees it still want enough and ended up with many numerous debts on credit cards and loans etc. I spent the best part of a decade paying everything off and working hard to be debt free. I got there and it felt great. Forward to two years ago and I received a letter out of the blue from Lowell saying I owed Some money £802 in total but couldn’t say who to. So after lots of phone calls it turned out they were asking for the money for a debt they bought from capital one for a credit card that I hadn’t had for about 7 years. I was meticulous in paying off my debts and am certain that I paid off everything and was surprised by this. I then was told by a commenter on a different website at the time that I should ask them to provide proof of this debt and the original credit agreement. They had already threatened a CCJ but I got in touch with them and explained the situation. They said I needed to put it in writing to request the info so I did. I then received a letter from them saying they had nothing other than an amount owed and the original debt owner (capital one) and could not provide me with any documentation proving the validity of the debt. In the meantime, however, whilst I was waiting for their response, they went ahead with the CCJ - which I didn’t actually find out about until a good 6 months later when I did a credit check.

When I found out about the CCJ i sought advice about having it set aside but after researching online concluded that too much time had passed to effectively do this. I swallowed the fact that I had acquired my first CCJ and just moved on.

Out of the blue, two years later I have received a letter saying they are going to take further action including getting a warrant/bailiff to enforce the CCJ.

Is there anything I can do to halt this from happening? As my debts were cleared so long ago and I have moved so many times since then (some time abroad also) I don’t have any paperwork from my twenties and can’t prove that I paid it (although I’m sure I did) is it catch 22? Is there no burden of proof on the debt collector (Lowell)

Any guidance would be much appreciated.

sourcrates

Hi,

We move posts if we think they will get help quicker elsewhere, so your post has been moved to the general DFW forum,

If you have any questions about this policy, please email : forumteam@moneysavingexpert.com

sourcrates

You usually have to apply for set aside within 6 months, although guidance says “promptly”, so I fear you may be out of time now.

To avoid Lowell further enforcing the judgement, note, they will accept most payment plans you care to offer.

Downbytheriver

Thanks for your quick reply. I’m sure you can imagine I’m hesitant to pay a debt that I believe I already worked very hard to pay off many years ago. Is there a chance that a CCJ could be set aside so long after it was put in place of the debt wasn’t enforceable in the first instance?

sourcrates

Hard to say, you could ask on Legal Beagles, they may be able to help further :

https://legalbeagles.info/forums/forum/legal-forums/court-claims-and-issues

Downbytheriver

Many thanks for the tip. I’ll head over there. have a nice evening.

sourcrates

Downbytheriver wrote: »

Many thanks for the tip. I’ll head over there. have a nice evening.

Good luck with it.

WhenIam64

Is there a chance that a CCJ could be set aside so long after it was put in place of the debt wasn’t enforceable in the first instance?

You could pay the £255 to sit in front of a judge and argue your case. Chances are slim as you didn't act promptly but if you can prove you actually paid rather than the debt not being "enforceable" you might get it set aside.

Lots of people see a CCJ as just an annoyance if they don't need credit.

Is there no burden of proof on the debt collector (Lowell)

The burden of proof was on Lowell at the CCJ stage and since it wasn't challenged it was accepted. The burden now reverts to you to prove a) you did not have the chance to defend as it was (for example) sent to an old address and b) if you did get a hearing you could provide a defence (on the balance of probabilities).