I have a debt that I am considering disputing

System

This discussion was created from comments split from: DMP mutual support thread part 13 !!.

Queen24053

Hi all.  

I have a debt that I am considering disputing. This Is because there is a difference of £5,962.92 between what the creditor bank says I owe and the amount the solicitors who have been representing the bank are demanding.

 This involves a loan for £25,000 which I got in 2004, yes 2004, from a high street bank, ABC bank, (not real name). I had a few other debts as well from other lenders.

In 2005, I got into serious financial difficulties, couldn’t service my debts, and got entangled in a spiral of debts. The debt became unmanageable, as I started borrowing more to pay old debts. Before I knew it, my total debt was slightly over £80,000 with 8 lenders.

With help from the Citizens Advice Bureau, I negotiated reduced monthly payments, and interest was halted by all creditors. In 2007 ABC Bank engaged RS Solicitors (Not their real name) to collect payments on their behalf. I was making monthly remittances to all creditors directly.

In 2010, due to pressure from RS Solicitors, constant demand letters and court threats, I got myself put on a Debt Management Plan with the Consumer Credit Cancelling Service (Now StepChange). Since then, I have been making monthly payments to all my creditors through StepChange.

Fast forward to August 2023, I received my annual loan statement from ABC bank showing that my loan for £25,000 was fully repaid. I have historical statements from ABC bank showing my remittances and balance progression.

RS Solicitors sent me a conflicting statement showing that I still owed £5,962.92 in interest and other charges. All my creditors, including ABC bank never charged interest during this period.

RS Solicitors said that they got a CCJ in 2007 although they never enforced it, or put it on my credit record. When I asked for a copy, they said they did not have one as everything was done electronically. A CCJ may well have been registered against me because I vaguely recall completing some court forms although I cannot remember what the forms were about.

 I made inquiries with the HM Courts & Tribunal Services requesting for a copy of the CCJ. There was none at HM Court Records. I have also checked my credit file. There is no record of any CCJ on my credit file either.

I asked RS Solicitors why I should continue servicing the loan which was fully repaid. Their response was that they were just following bank instructions. When I called the ABC bank, they referred me back to RS Solicitors.

StepChange advised that I should challenge RS Solicitors and that they would freeze payments while I pursued the matter. I have been reluctant to do this on my own without legal advice.

I have repaid all my other debts. There only two remaining with a combined outstanding balance of £438.80. I hope to clear this as well in March/April 2024.

The situation with RS Solicitors is really stressing me. I am now retired and depending on a state pension. I would like to challenge RS Solicitors but I am not sure how to go about it, and I cannot afford a lawyer.

I thought my loan statement from ABC bank should mirror the solicitor’s records and vice versa. Or am I missing something here?

What are my options?

sourcrates

@Queen24053

This post should be in the general forum, not the DMP support group page.

I have asked for it to be moved.

fatbelly

Actually the ball is on the other foot. You have made your position clear that you have paid this debt and have evidence in the latest statement and the statements leading up to it, from the creditor.

If RS want to argue otherwise, what can they do? They already have a ccj but are out of time to enforce it. They can't get a second ccj. They could ask a court to rule on it but they would not only have to show that their figures are right and yours wrong. They would have to explain why they have taken 17 years to bring something back to court, for which all the paperwork has been lost in the mists of time.

I wouldn't fancy their chances on that one.