Lowell debt close to being statute barred HELP!

Fluffyclouds87

Mem62 while I totally agree with you I suffer with depression and anxiety....and something like this just sends me into melt down mode. 

Alot of the advice I read said it started from the last payment so hadn't realised it was from default. 

This is the only debt I have that I haven't paid...i have a couple of other things but I make regular payments and have those fully under control. 

I really want to avoid a ccj because I'd like to be in a position to buy my house (maybe I'm living in fairy land but I need a dream right) 

I'm pretty much living month to month at the moment...and have Christmas coming up so I don't see how I'll be able to save much at all. 

I had a missed call from lowell today....it's just that constant reminder that they are there hanging around. 

fatbelly

It's always a good idea to save. It means you have a fund for emergencies, and for those in debt it is a fighting fund that gives them options.

Regular savers can often get a bit of extra interest

https://www.moneysavingexpert.com/savings/best-regular-savings-accounts/

Can you just confirm that you have no existing banking arrangements with Lloyds? Best to avoid that group so no Halifax/ MBNA

I'm assuming this is the only live debt issue so we won't be fighting multiple battles.

Fluffyclouds87

I have never been in a position to be able to save...without going into too much detail I fended for myself since 15 and got myself into alot of financial trouble when I was younger. 
I opened up a help to save account last month with hmrc. 

Yes 100% my only debt. 

I have my bank account and a Lloyds credit card.

fatbelly

Help to save is excellent. Are you staying on Universal Credit?

It's not good that Lloyds know too much about your present situation, in case Lowell ask them questions and they answer. You really need your banking somewhere else.

Get a credit card that gives you something back

https://www.moneysavingexpert.com/credit-cards/best-credit-card-rewards/

Fluffyclouds87

Which bank should I move to? I don't mind loosing the Lloyds credit card it's only a £500 limit and I've managed to get it down to £0. Because my credit score is poor I'd just kept it.

Yes I'm still entitled to uc at the moment. 

sourcrates

There are loads of stand alone banks to choose from, just don`t pick one with connections to Lloyds.

You have had some fantastic, textbook advice on how to deal with Lowell, allow me to add some context to it.

Lowell work on what we term a "numbers basis", they buy old debts, in bulk, many 1000`s of accounts at a time.
They will send an initial "we have bought your debt letter", as its needed to comply legally with legislation, from then on you may get texts/emails/calls, until the next letter does the rounds.

Initially they will concentrate on those who contact them, those who don`t may get increased collection activity, from the computer, more letters etc.

The goal you have now is to get this over the line next June, might be a tall order, which is why fatbelly suggests saving a few quid to offer in settlement, should that not be possible.

You can basically ignore everything Lowell says to you, or sends to you, with the exception of one very important letter, and that`s a "letter before action" a prelude to legal action if you like, to comply with civil procedure rules they must send one to you.

If it reaches this point, its highly likely the statute barred defence will have to go out of the window and another strategy be worked out, you can choose to make an offer to settle, an offer of payment, ask them to write the debt off as you can`t afford to pay anything, or ask them to prove liability.

You can do any or all of those things in your reply to the pre-action letter as it has a 30 day response time.

So for now I`d do nothing, and see how far we can get this.

Fluffyclouds87

Thank you for breaking that down for me sourcrates....my heads been whizzing with information and I was struggling to take it all in.

Sorry if this is a silly question but how do I know if a bank is linked to lloyds? 

I think my first thing is to switch my bank....

Yes ultimately I'd like to make it to June ..when I thought it was December I felt like that was maybe possible now I'm not so sure 😕 

I am going to try my best to save...I need to open a savings account because the one I have is a Lloyds one (its empty though) 

Ok so I'll sit tight and hope I can hold them off for as long as possible. 

RAS

fatbelly explained above that you need to avoid Lloyds, Halifax and MBNA.

Nothing to stop you holding on to the Lloyds saving account, just don't put anything in there. 

Regarding Christmas, you could start talking to people about the need for a budget one. They won't be shocked. There's enough time now to look round for cheap produce and make jars of pickles, jams etc as small presents.

fatbelly

Well we're singing from the same hymnsheet.

So we know they buy bad debt in huge tranches and pay 6-16% of the balance figure. I assume there are bids from all the debt buyers when a load is released. Lowell seem to buy a lot.

If they collected 100% of the balance figure from the debtors, you can be sure they would not trade at such a discount.

If they pay 10% for a batch, they may know they can get an average of maybe 20-30% back. Some will pay 100%, some will pay nothing, some will be somewhere in the middle.

Obviously they will concentrate on the early engagers first. Why be one of them? Let them try to hook you in with progressively more generous offers.

When we get to next year they will have to take a commercial decision whether to invest more time and money on a court claim. The more they know about you, the easier the decision.

Fluffyclouds87

I have just tried to open a first direct bank account and it got declined. This has left a hard search on my credit file.
Is it worth trying another bank? I don't want to destroy my already very poor credit score.