Cabot rejected £600 full & final settlement on £2,224 CCJ debt – what next?

mrmagoo38

Hi all,

I'm looking for some advice regarding an old Ambrose Wilson debt that is now with Cabot Financial.

The debt was originally an Ambrose Wilson account and was later assigned to Cabot. A CCJ was obtained in August 2024 for around £2,173. The balance is now approximately £2,224-£2,269 depending on which statement or credit file entry I look at.

I currently have a payment arrangement in place with Cabot and am paying £15 per month. I have a copy of the arrangement and can upload a redacted version if helpful.

Recently I offered Cabot £600 as a full and final settlement. The offer was made over the phone and was rejected. Unfortunately I do not have a written rejection because the discussion took place by telephone.

My questions are:

1. Was £600 simply too low an offer given that there is already a CCJ in place?
2. Is it worth making another full and final settlement offer in the future?
3. Should I ask Cabot to consider a written settlement offer instead of discussing it by phone?
4. Does the existence of the CCJ make Cabot significantly less likely to accept a reduced settlement?
5. If anyone has settled a Cabot-owned debt after a CCJ, what percentage of the balance was accepted?

My circumstances are fairly limited financially, which is why the offer was only £600. The £600 would be a one-off lump sum and not money that I could easily replace.

I've attached redacted copies of:

• The payment arrangement.
• The credit file entry showing the Cabot account.
• The CCJ entry.

Any thoughts or experiences would be appreciated.

Thanks.

mrmagoo38

Hi all,

I'm looking for some advice regarding an old Ambrose Wilson debt that is now with Cabot Financial.

The debt was originally an Ambrose Wilson account and was later assigned to Cabot. A CCJ was obtained in August 2024 for around £2,173. The balance is now approximately £2,224-£2,269 depending on which statement or credit file entry I look at.

I currently have a payment arrangement in place with Cabot and am paying £15 per month. I have a copy of the arrangement and can upload a redacted version if helpful.

Recently I offered Cabot £600 as a full and final settlement. The offer was made over the phone and was rejected. Unfortunately I do not have a written rejection because the discussion took place by telephone.

My questions are:

1. Was £600 simply too low an offer given that there is already a CCJ in place?
2. Is it worth making another full and final settlement offer in the future?
3. Should I ask Cabot to consider a written settlement offer instead of discussing it by phone?
4. Does the existence of the CCJ make Cabot significantly less likely to accept a reduced settlement?
5. If anyone has settled a Cabot-owned debt after a CCJ, what percentage of the balance was accepted?

My circumstances are fairly limited financially, which is why the offer was only £600. The £600 would be a one-off lump sum and not money that I could easily replace.

I've attached redacted copies of:

• The payment arrangement.
• The credit file entry showing the Cabot account.
• The CCJ entry.

Any thoughts or experiences would be appreciated.

Thanks.

fatbelly

Settlement deals are less usual on judgement debts, though not unknown. Yes, give it 6 months and then try again with an increased offer, doing it in writing using the National Debtline template.

There's more experience of these deals over on debt-free wannabe

TadleyBaggie

Duplicate thread:

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/6671488/cabot-rejected-600-full-final-settlement-on-2-224-ccj-debt-what-next

Grumpelstiltskin

Never phone these people, only deal with them by writing.

I would do nothing and wait and see what they send you in writing, you can ask for all communication to be in writing.

Normally I would say stop paying them but with a CCJ that is a bit more difficult..

mrmagoo38

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/82026330#Comment_82026330

Sorry about that, i posted it in the wrong category, initially. Ive tried to delete the original thread, but it wont let me.

fatbelly

It's ok. I've asked for them to be merged

Brie

I've closed the other with a link to here in case someone wants to respond.

Brie

To save answers on duplicate posts I'm closing this one. If you want to respond please do so here:

Cabot rejected £600 full & final settlement on £2,224 CCJ debt – what next? — MoneySavingExpert Forum

sourcrates

Once they have secured the debt by way of a court judgement, it can be harder to settle for less than is owed.

Usually you would need a good reason why they should accept, one that will pass muster, given the fact they could wait and collect the full amount over time.

An example of a "good reason" would be a reduction in your working hours, leading to less disposable income being available, or possibly increased costs due to the cost of living, whatever it might be, you have to persuade Cabot that taking the deal you offer them is in their interests, and represents the best possible outcome they could hope for.

A random offer of £600 on a judgement debt of 2k plus, is bound to be rejected outright unfortunately, unless it`s presented with a good back story.

Definitely try again in a few months, just try and sex it up a bit first lol.

ManyWays

What are the rest of your finances like? It is, as @sourcates says, much harder to get an offer accepted for a CCJ.

So you could use the money to clear other debts? Or as an emergency fund.

If you have a lot of other debts and no assets, then you could look at a debt relief order (DRO) that would clear the CCj along with all the other debts as well.