Received a letter from BW Legal for a 15 year old British Gas "debt"

fatbelly

I agree that you shouldn't need to involve a solicitor.

Just send a standard prove-it. There's one in the sticky threads. No need to complicate things if, as seems likely, they will just be giving up when they realise you won't be paying.

This is a small and ancient debt. I can't see them spending a lot of time and money on it. Certainly I can't see there being a court claim on this

EssexHebridean

Please listen to fatbelly - they know their stuff here. The standard prove it we suggest can be found in the stickies on the Debt Free Wannabe board. 

mall83

@fatbelly @EssexHebridean I posted off my Prove-It letter on Friday. Hopefully I'll hear soon that they're dropping it. 

mall83

So I've just received another letter from BW Legal. In their latest letter they've stated:

"Please be advised that the supply period for this matter is 11 July 2023 to 20 September 2023. You have advised that you left the property 15 years ago, please provide documents to support your claims."

They've not included any copies of bills with my name on or copies of letters from British Gas asking for the money, nothing, no proof at all. Instead, they're asking me to prove that I don't owe it.

What would you advise my next steps to be as they've ignored what I asked for in the prove it letter I sent them?

I don't really want to send them proof of address at previous addresses because that would provide them with my married name and, it feels like I'd be doing their job for them. Surely, if British Gas has sold them a debt from last year they would have provided the account holder details.

user1977

I would ask them to, in their own words, "please provide documents to support your claims". Given the onus is on them...

No need for you to enter into any further correspondence with them anyway, unless they actually raise court action (which I doubt they would for this amount).

mall83

@user1977 My original letter, which was a template from the Financial Ombudsman, told them to provide me with proof that I owe the money and they've ignored it. I feel like if I go back to them and say something along the lines of "no, I said you prove it" we're just going to go back and forth until the end of time! They've ignored the Ombudsman process here.

user1977

mall83 said:

@user1977 My original letter, which was a template from the Financial Ombudsman, told them to provide me with proof that I owe the money and they've ignored it. I feel like if I go back to them and say something along the lines of "no, I said you prove it" we're just going to go back and forth until the end of time! They've ignored the Ombudsman process here.

Then just ignore them.

mall83

@user1977 I would but previous commenters have advised against this, just in case they do try and take me to court or make my life more tricky somehow.

user1977

Like I said, if they do actually take you to court then you'd need to do something. You can ignore all the other sabre-rattling.

A_Geordie

I am not surprised by their response, it's their standard deflection tactic when they have no evidence or documents in their possession to support their claim. 

I did suggest you tackle this head on in an earlier post but you chose to go the path of sending a prove it letter and now you are stuck in back and forth correspondence. I suggest you revisit my post and consider responding more robustly. 

I agree with User1977 that the civil rules dictate it is for the claimant to prove their case, not the defendant and BW Legal already know that. Reminding them again of that principle doesn't hurt. In addition, you could also point to the Pre-Action Protocols for Debt Claims which is a required step before issuing legal proceedings and in particular paragraph 5 which says:

5. DISCLOSURE OF DOCUMENTS  

5.1 Early disclosure of documents and relevant information can help to clarify or 

resolve any issues in dispute. Where any aspect of the debt is disputed 

(including the amount, interest, charges, time for payment, or the creditor’s 

compliance with relevant statutes and regulations), the parties should 

exchange information and disclose documents sufficient to enable them to 

understand each other’s position.   

5.2 If the debtor requests a document or information, the creditor must – 

(a) provide the document or information; or  

(b) explain why the document or information is unavailable, 

within 30 days of receipt of the request.

Point to 5.2 and say that you will not be corresponding any further until they have complied with your request for further information and documentation. If they choose to issue proceedings you will direct the court to BW Legal's deliberate refusal to comply with the Pre-Action Protocols when it comes to any award of costs.

Or, you could do nothing and ignore as suggested, and maybe hope they issue the claim to your current address and not another one. Also you mentioned in an earlier post that they were acting on behalf of British Gas which I found strange but now in your recent post you are alluding to the debt potentially having been sold by BG - which is it?