Marlin financial services

melie3

Cool_Chick wrote: »

Hi, I'm another newbie!

I just want to let you know about my experience with Marlin. I incurred a Credit Card debt with First Direct in Aug 2005 when I bought a property. As a First-Time Buyer, I think that's quite common. They bumped up the balance to around £6k by adding the usual fees and interest (which I'm trying to claim back via Martin's Bank Charges Reclaim. Approx £3.5K).

They then passed it over to a debt collection agency called Metropolitan. I set up a direct debit and made small repayments every month without fail. No problems to here!

In October 2007 I then received a letter from HSBC saying they had passed my debt to Phoenix S.A.R.L. I also received a letter from Marlin saying Phoenix had passed the debt to them. I think Phoenix now owns the debt, but Marlin have been instructed to collect it. This gives them distance from debtors under Contract Law which means they do not necessarily have to abide by all the usual rules.

I wrote to Marlin and they refused to confirm their relationship, and they refused to provide statements to clarify the current balance (which I dispute). They have just kept demanding full repayment of the debt, no more instalments.

I am currently temporarily unemployed so cannot afford the full repayment. They wanted me to fill in a lengthy payment schedule and provide photocopied evidence of my benefits and other creditors - I later found out that you DO NOT need to do this, as per the Office of Fair Trading guidelines.

I ensured that I did not give them a phone number for me as I knew they would harrass me for payment.

After receiving my version of my payment schedule, they said that they want the full repayment as I am a home-owner. Instalments are not acceptable. They have threatened a CCJ and Charging Order against my property.

I called the National Debtline and they kept insisting that I shouldn't worry until I receive the Court Order. They have said that this is NOT a priority debt. I must keep making small monthly payments (I send Marlin a cheque as they refuse to give direct debit details) then call them if I receive the Court Order. They seem to think that Marlin won't act, but Martin Lewis's comments say that debt collection agencies are going straight to CCJs and repossession very quickly at the moment.

Marlin have broken the OFT guidelines with me by refusing to negotiate repayments, so I could make a formal complaint. HOWEVER, I will NOT. Even if I complain, they are still allowed to move to a CCJ. Complaining does NOTHING, just ensures that Marlin will move you to the top of their hitlist.

So I am having sleepless nights worrying about the CCJ. When it goes to court, the Judge will only look at my payment schedule and agree with my offered repayments, but having a CCJ stays on your file for 6 years. Also, as I work in the Financial Services, it will mean that I will never work again and it will take longer for Marlin to get their money. I am currently asking them to issue a Tomlin Order against me instead of a CCJ. The effect is the same, but it does not go against my credit record for the next 6 years. However, I do not think Marlin will care what I want, they will do whatever they can to make life harder for debtors.

A Charging Order will only be granted by the Judge if you fail to make the agreed repayments. This means that Marlin will then have a secured debt against my property. If they wish, they can then eventually push for me to sell my property in order to repay the loan, but I believe that this final action takes a while to go through the courts. If it gets to this stage, I think it would be best to sell independently and at least get a fair market value for my property than have them force me to sell at a desperate price.

Sorry to bore you all with my long comment, but I do have one question. As a CCJ would end my career and make me suicidal, can anyone suggest how I could get hold of £6k just to make the full repayment and get rid of Marlin? I know Martin says not to borrow to get out of debt, but could I take on a 0% on purchases credit card? Would it be possible to get a credit card, withdraw cash, pay off Marlin, then transfer the balance to a 0% Balance Transfer card? I think I can handle being a Rate Tart (being unemployed makes you aware of the calendar!), and I might find someone to give me credit. And I should be working again soon as I will be able to start repayments. But can I withdraw cash on a credit card?

Any help would be gratefully received!

hi,
i think the advice from more in the know on here will be to request your CCA. this is what i have done with marlin on 22/01/08. i spoke to them today as ive heard nothing except ' we dont have a copy to file, but will request it and send it'.
i have also asked them whether i should continue with token payment as its in dipute and got 'its up to you' answer. i have been supplied with a bank account number and sort code for them if you want it.

Cool_Chick

Hi, thank you so very much! Could you please advise what a CCA is and gived me their account details? Thank you! Gotta go now.

melie3

Cool_Chick wrote: »

Hi, thank you so very much! Could you please advise what a CCA is and gived me their account details? Thank you! Gotta go now.

yes, its a Consumer credit agreement. if a debt collection agency cant produce this request then debt can only be enforced by a court. im not an expert, im always posting myself for advice, so feel uneasy giving any advice, only what im currently experiencing. before i post up their bank details, can someone advice me if this is ok to do? all i know is that never send them anything with your signature on, as they apparently can transpose it onto a CCA.

Cool_Chick

Hi melie3, thank you so much for your help. I've investigated CCAs on the OFT website and, although still not entirely clear what the Act is supposed to do, I shall ask for a copy. My debts were incurred wholly on my Credit Card Account and Cheque Account with First Direct so I would've applied over the phone initially I think (it was approx 20 years ago).

Re: Marlin's bank details, I'm not sure if it's a good idea to post them here. As Marlin have so many subsidiaries (I've had letters from Marlin Financial Services Ltd and Marlin Recoveries Ltd) I'm sure they will only say that I missed repayments by paying into the wrong account. I am very worried now about sending them my signature but I cannot get around this as I have already sent them many letters and cheques.

I think basically that the OFT and FSA need to actually review the whole Debt Collection process. What is the point in having a complaints procedure against an agency if the agency is still allowed to proceed straight to Court Action? Shouldn't they force the case to be suspended whilst they investigate the complaint? No wonder there are so many people with bad credit ratings, high debts and on state benefits because they have fallen into temporarily hard times. I wish I'd never listened to my Financial Advisor and paid my mortgage repayments by credit card!

Thanks for your help anyway.

jutboy

I also have had dealings with Marlin. I had a credit card debt of £6k which was took over bya debt company (not marlin). We agreed 20 pounds a month as that was all i could afford. Then marlin bought the debt and told me i had to pay it in full immediately or basically i would lose everything. I rang them and their customer services was appaling. I have a house , a wife and 2 children. I have about 11 pence of savings. I told them I would pay £20 a month or do what u have to do. They threatened me with court which didnt intimidate me in the slightest. I know i must pay mortgage, utility bills and pol tax as priority. The rest are unsecured debts. So they took me to court and I filled in a form showing that all I could pay was £20 a month.Before the court make a decision and impose a CCJ, Marlin get to look at my offer and decide whether to pursue it in court or accept my offer. They accepted and I continue to pay £20 a month. So they basically wasted their time. Letters in big writing or red ink doesnt intimidate me at all. The law is the law. So i advise that anyone to not be intimidated and know your rights.

GeorgeUK

Jutboy - might be worth looking at trying to get copies of the credit agreement to see if the debt is enforcable. There are plenty of people here who have requested copies of the CCA.