Living abroad but Court action threatened.

nublue1

Hi, I’m living abroad and so upon the advice of the forums here and in particular, some very sound advice from @sourcrates, about 18 months ago I stopped paying into my DMP and sent letters to all of the creditors giving my address abroad
I also gave the address of a UK mail forwarding service, explaining that mail gets lost here, so the UK mailroom address is best.  I also have a redirect in effect on my old address which goes to this forwarding mailroom, so I can see that not one of them changed the address and all sending to the old one. 

Most recently I’ve had letters from ACI and Westcott saying something along the lines of “we have checked publicly available information sources and have confirmed you live at the address named above (my old address and I haven’t lived there for almost 3 years). 

More worryingly ACI has threatened next step is either send Verify to the address (don’t care, don’t live there) OR instructing TM Legal to start country court proceedings,  which is a little more concerning to me. 

Should I be concerned? 

Grumpelstiltskin

If you don't intend to return to live in the UK in the next six years then no problem, as long as you have informed them you are not living in the UK let them waste their money.

It probably is the usual empty threat but there always is the chance they will go ahead with it but it won't affect you overseas.

fatbelly

It sounds like an empty threat to me.

nublue1

Grumpelstiltskin said:

If you don't intend to return to live in the UK in the next six years then no problem, as long as you have informed them you are not living in the UK let them waste their money.

It probably is the usual empty threat but there always is the chance they will go ahead with it but it won't affect you overseas.

Thanks, I  definitely don’t intend to return in that time, but I haven’t told ACI specifically that I’m abroad because I’d already told the actual creditor, ACI weren’t involved at that point.  Should I be contacting them to tell them, or leave it as no contact? I had in the back of my mind that I should avoid contacting them because if I don’t for  6 or 7 years then they can’t enforce the debt? Not sure if that’s true or not. 

I do have some money in a savings account to cover my medical bills here, should I get it out of the UK, in case they do take court action? Is there much notice? Could I wait and see if they do and then take the money out if they do.  I leave it there because there isn’t the same financial protection here, but if it’s going to get taken if left,  I may as well take my chances here. 

Grumpelstiltskin

After 6 years from the date of default ( 5 years if it happened in Scotland) the debt becomes statute barred, so honestly just ignore it.

nublue1

Thank you

sourcrates

Makes no difference if you get a dozen judgements against you, they are not normally enforced, except sometimes by an attachment to earnings, as you don`t live or work in the UK, that won`t hurt you.

CCJ`s will just sit on your credit file for 6 years then they will be removed.

Let them knock themselves out, you are off the radar of any UK debt collector, these are just standard threat letters they are sending, they can`t take money from your bank account in the UK, and as said previously, CCJ`s for consumer debt rarely get enforced in the UK, and abroad almost never.

Even with court judgements there is very little creditors can do with them if your in country, and if your not in the UK, they can do absolutely nothing, hypothetically speaking, even making you bankrupt won`t affect you where you are living now.