Is it statute barred?

Tisiphone

Lowell have been chasing me for a couple of years about two alleged British Gas debts (I have good reason to think I don't owe them anything but that's beside the point).

I sent them a prove it letter recently and they say I closed the accounts in February 2016 (I agree) and the default dates are October 2016, so if there is any debt, it should be statute barred.

My question is this: I opened new accounts with British Gas in 2021. Does this count as "contact with the customer"? My thought is that they are new contracts so they shouldn't affect the bar, but I'd like to hear what other's think before I write to Lowell.

Thank you

sourcrates

You have to specifically acknowledge the debt in question, and do so in writing to re-start the countdown clock.

You can contact them as much as you like as long as you didn't write about the debt, verbal does not count.

Those debts will be statute barred if the above does not apply and no legal action was taken.

Tisiphone

Thank you!

DisabledDan

Tisiphone said:

Lowell have been chasing me for a couple of years about two alleged British Gas debts (I have good reason to think I don't owe them anything but that's beside the point).

I sent them a prove it letter recently and they say I closed the accounts in February 2016 (I agree) and the default dates are October 2016, so if there is any debt, it should be statute barred.

My question is this: I opened new accounts with British Gas in 2021. Does this count as "contact with the customer"? My thought is that they are new contracts so they shouldn't affect the bar, but I'd like to hear what other's think before I write to Lowell.

Thank you

If you didn't owe them them in the first place then you could have used the OFGEM back billing regulations if they just rocked up asking for a debt from a period more than 12 months before.

Lowell have so much form for chasing debts they are not entitled to enforce.

Make sure you complain to 

FSA explain that you are adding to the general complaint regarding Lowell business practices 
ICO re data misuse, illegitimate use and unlawful basis
FOS This will cost them a bit of money and you might get a bit of money as an award for compensation

You might start with a Subject Access Request for all data Lowell have on you.  This will show they had not reasonable cause and should have known the debt was unenforceable.  The ICO website has a template for SAR.