We feel harassment - advice please!

Miss_Annie

We are pensioners with a top up of pension credit.

Some months ago we had been contacted by letter from a debt collection company after they said my husband owned a bank some money going back ten years or more. My husband agreed that it my be possible but couldn't remember it.

We rang the number on the letter and was very honest with the man on the phone with our money situation. It was agreed that we would pay a small amount each month to clear this debt. We have kept up this payment via the bank without missing one payment.

The problem is husband is receiving texts from the company asking him to pay off the balance with a discount, then we starting to receive letters for the same to pay it off in one payment.

We sent a nice letter back confirming our money situation has not changed and we are not in a any position to pay it in one lump sum. We had a letter back to say his name would be taken off the text list and wouldn't hear anymore, that was three weeks ago and today a letter came saying get a discount on your balance that is outstanding.

If we failed a payment I can understand it but we have never failed a payment. We would like nothing more than to pay this amount off but we can't. We can pay our rent, bills and put food on the table and that is that. We don't smoke nor drink and don't go outside the front door much.

We feel we are being harass for the money and it is becoming stressful. Can this company do this? and is it legal when we have kept up with the agreed amount each month?

Please can someone advise us what we can do.

Thank you in advance for any help

SusieT

Do you know what the debt was for, and when it was defaulted? If it was defaulted more than 6 years ago and you did not pay anything else to it before you recently started to repay it, it will very likely have been statute barred which would mean that you would not need to repay it and they cannot harrass you.
Do you have any more details about it?

Miss_Annie

Hello SusieT and thank you for your reply.

In answer to your questions:

1) Husband thinks the date may be back in 2008
2) The last payment may of been the later part of 2008
3) Husband can't remember what it was for, could of been a loan.
4) The amount this company is asking for is £700.06

What is stature barred? am really sorry but don't know much about these things as I have never been in this situation. Have always saved for what I want and paid cash for it. Yes I am old school.

sourcrates

Statute barred debt refers to a debt that's not enforceable because the time a creditor has to chase payment has passed. This is outlined under the Limitation Act 1980. So yes, stop paying them, they have dug up an old statute barred debt, then given you some old waffle that you have to pay it, well you don’t, the limitation period on consumer credit act debts is 6 years, unfortunately you made the mistake of ringing them and falling for there sales tactics.

You should send them the standard National Debtline statute barred letter and let them figure this out, it’s likely you won’t hear from them again.

Letter here :

https://www.nationaldebtline.org/EW/sampleletters/Pages/Time-has-run-out-to-recover-the-debt-%28sole-name%29.aspx

The onus is on them to prove liability and enforceability, you don’t have to prove anything.

Ben8282

Not being funny but your husband really needs to be a bit more sure.
Statute barred means barred by the statute of limitations. Basically if a debt has not ben acknowledged or any payment made to it for 6 years it is unenforceable.
What would appear to have happened here is that this debt collection agency have bought a batch of old debts for peanuts and have sent out letters to see what sort of replies they get and who they can trick into paying them some money.
Again not being funny but it is a shame that you didn't post here before you contacted them and started paying them.
If you had said that you were absolutely sure that your husband had not communicated with anybody about this debt in the last six years (as would appear to be the case) the advice I would have given you is to throw the letter into the dustbin and not, absolutely not, to get in touch with the debt collection agency.
Now however, in doing what you possibly believe to be the right thing, you have given them the excuse to start this harassment which is unlikely to go away especially if you have given them a telephone number. To put it bluntly, they couldn't care less about your money situation so trying that will be like talking to a brick wall. If you were tramps on the street they would still keep on at you.
The letter about the discount only further proves the point. They know that they can't take you to court because of the statute of limitations.

Miss_Annie

Hello Sourcrates, thank you for your reply.

Thank you for your information, I will go on line and find a copy of this standard national debt line statute barred letter you have informed me of.

I am feeling quite silly and green by being taken in by their sales pitch. Am out of my comfort zone with all this but learning fast, even at my late years lol

Miss_Annie

Ben 8282,

Thank you for your reply. Husband is not able to remember as he is now 71yrs of age and his recollections are not as they where.

We do know the timing is around 2008 because he hasn't had a bank account since then. I do all the banking and paying bills in my name.

The more am learning tonight about this matter the more I'm finding it upsetting and being silly and taken in for being honest.

sourcrates

Miss_Annie wrote: »

Hello Sourcrates, thank you for your reply.

Thank you for your information, I will go on line and find a copy of this standard national debt line statute barred letter you have informed me of.

I am feeling quite silly and green by being taken in by their sales pitch. Am out of my comfort zone with all this but learning fast, even at my late years lol

The link is in my post above, just click on it and it will take you to the ND website.
Send that, and post back on here if you need further help or advice.

Miss_Annie

I do have a question. I have now down loaded the letter and filled in the missing parts and printed it. It is ready to be post tomorrow morning.

In this letter it is saying "I do not admit any liability for your claim" but going back a month ago when it was agreed a payment of £5.00 per month to be paid a letter was also sent confirming this arrangement.

By agreeing and then this letter of disagreeing can this company take hubbie to court because he agreed to making the payments.

Would this put us in an even bigger mess?

SusieT

Miss_Annie wrote: »

I do have a question. I have now down loaded the letter and filled in the missing parts and printed it. It is ready to be post tomorrow morning.

In this letter it is saying "I do not admit any liability for your claim" but going back a month ago when it was agreed a payment of £5.00 per month to be paid a letter was also sent confirming this arrangement.

By agreeing and then this letter of disagreeing can this company take hubbie to court because he agreed to making the payments.

Would this put us in an even bigger mess?

No, it will not put you in a bigger mess, in fact you may even be in a position where THEY have to pay you the money back that you have just paid!!
It may be worth changing the wording slightly, but Sourcrates will be the best person to help you with that

Miss_Annie

Thank you so very much, your help has been invaluable, your so kind. Sourcrates, is off line just now so I will make contact tomorrow re the wording.

Take care and good night x