Surprise CCJ - advice

micky317

My son was in rented accommodation and had a SMART meter fitted. His next bill from EON was 4xhigher than the previous years equivalent on an analogue meter without any change in usage patterns, resulting in a 6 month bill of over £1000 for a one bed flat. He disputed this amount with EON and the resolution dragged on requesting evidence of previous spend. During this period my son bought a house and moved, informing EON of his new address. He changed provider at this point and took out a new mortgage.

After moving he spoke to EOn via email and telephone and was informed that the matter was ‘on hold’.

Recently his fixed price mortgage expired and he decided to renew for a deal at 3.8% for one year fixed. He got an offer letter and made an application but was rejected. On enquiring why he was informed that he had a CCJ on his file, which was via a debt recovery company that had bought the ‘debt’ from EON. His £1000 debt has increased to £3500, and the best mortgage deal he can get is 5.5% fixed via his current provider. 

How should he proceed ? This feels unfair, will have cost him over £8000, his credit rating (which was previously excellent), and may force him to sell his house…..

[Deleted User]

When was the CCJ applied for? Was it after or before he moved? This is important as they could have been sending the debt letters to the old address but if he had informed them of the details of the new address, they shouldn't have been sending them to the old one.

What dates are we talking about here? It seems like it would be a long time if they have given up chasing and sold it to a debt collector

You can apply for a set aside on the CCJ though you'd need a good chance of winning at a hearing for a new CCJ though. How much correspondence does he have from EON and when did it stop?

Ignore the pretend "excellent" score, nobody ever sees it, a 5.5% deal is not a bad thing in the current market and I can't see what he'd gain by selling the house. The CCJ will fall off his credit record 6 years after it was applied (though this doesn't mean the debt will go away)

micky317

After but he was unaware this was happening ….. only found out with mortgage application rejection.

this all happened over the last 18 months. I think EON may have passed on debts when new company EON NEXT was formed.

micky317

He had zero correspondence from either Eon or the debt collector…. But has telephone transcripts from Eon call centre where he provided his new address.

micky317

He has applied to set aside his Ccj and is awaiting outcome but his new mortgage will be 200 pm higher and he has a fictional debt to pay and a poor credit rating

DullGreyGuy

micky317 said:

He has applied to set aside his Ccj and is awaiting outcome but his new mortgage will be 200 pm higher and he has a fictional debt to pay and a poor credit rating

Doesnt sound like a fictional debt just that the amount of the debt may be wrong.

If he has already applied to have the CCJ set aside what advice do you want/need? There will be a hearing where the judge will review both the reason why it should be set aside (presumably as it was served on the wrong address) and why you think you've a reasonable prospect of defending the claim should the claimant reissue. 

micky317

I don’t think it’s fair that he is £8000 out of pocket and that EON should be accountable for the fact that it did not properly address his dispute, and sold the debt when it was still in dispute without informing him. This stopped him getting the mortgage deal he had been offered. 

Perhaps he needs to seek legal advice ?

[Deleted User]

They don't have to tell you if they are selling on a debt but the only time it would get to that point would be a lack of communication from your son for a number of years (even if in this case it was because mail was going to the wrong place).

How long did he set up the mail redirect for when he left?

He could formally complain to the firm about sending the letters to the old address if he has proof he gave them the new address. What communications does he have showing he was continuing to engage with them?

micky317

He got a voice recording from EON through a subject action request. The voice recording clearly shows him providing his new address in June 2021  - this was prior to the loan being sold on. The last communication he had from EON stated that the case was on hold due to him disputing the bill.

[Deleted User]

I think @sourcrates is the best one to assist here in dealing with this going forwards, hopefully they will respond

sourcrates

Well, it`s a case of wait and see now, hopefully the set aside will be successful, if it is, then he can dispute the amount of the bill, and ask for proof of liability.

It would be interesting to see how/why his debt has increased by so much, as debt collectors/buyers, are not allowed to add charges or interest unless the original agreement allows them to do so.

If the set aside were to fail, all bets are off unfortunately, and he would still be liable.

Let us know the outcome.