Dealing with debts and debt disputes

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  • CAB_Swansea_Bay_representative
    CAB_Swansea_Bay_representative Posts: 287 Organisation Representative
    Hi Madcow9uk, thank you for your query re please help.
    I am a bit confused about your post as it is not clear when you paid off these debts with the companies but unfortunately if you were jointly named on these bills/accounts you are liable for the full amount as is your ex-flatmate and if they have moved abroad then it is likely you will be the one they will chase for repayment. You could of course take action against your ex-flatmate to repay what they owe you but again may not be worth the court fees if they are abroad or have no income or assets. I would suggest you check that you are not still associated with your ex-flatmate on your credit reference and if you are you can request to be disassociated. You can also ask for a notice of correction to be placed on your credit reference explaining the situation but this will not guarantee you will become more credit worthy. You have said you have been given a "good" score by Experian so the problems with you getting credit may have nothing to do with your credit reference. It may be because you have changed address lots of times in the past or are not on electerol roll? You can get advice on your credit reference at www.adviceguide.org.uk and there are threads on this forum about steps you can take to restore your credit reference.
    Hope this is of assistance.
    Official CAB Representative
    I am an official representative of CAB. MSE has given permission for me to post in response to questions on the CAB Board. You can see my name on the companies with permission to post list. If you believe I’ve broken any rules please report my post to forumteam@moneysavingexpert.com as usual"
  • I'm hoping someone can provide advice.

    In 2000 British Gas supplied my electricity. At that time, mistakes were made in billing, and I complainted by telephone and letter. I heard nothing further about the matter, but didn't chase up. I point blank refused to pay the final bill until the situation was resolved.

    9 years later, a default was applied to my credit file, without any warning or attempts to contact me.

    Two weeks ago, I noticed this (2012!), and queried this, to be informed that British Gas held no record of any query and that the default could only be removed if the amount was paid prior to the default being added, otherwise, the default would remain on my credit file.

    I'm interested to know what my legal rights may be regarding this.

    ... if there are rules regarding defaults being applied without notification to an individual.

    ... whether under data protection rules, 9 years is acceptable for retention of data (given a limited company only requires 7 years for record storage).

    Many thanks.
  • CAB_Swansea_Bay_representative
    CAB_Swansea_Bay_representative Posts: 287 Organisation Representative
    Hi BigBadBald Thank you for your query regarding advice needed

    I am a bit confused about your post as it did not state whether you had a successful resolution of the complaint and whether a final bill was ever agreed. If British Gas never responded to your complaint and you made it clear you considered the bill to be in dispute they should not have added a default to your credit reference and I would suggest you make another complaint to them stating this with all information you have about the previous complaint and request they remove default notice from your credit reference. If they do not reply or you are unhappy with the response you can make a complaint to the ombudsman at www.ombudsman-services.org.

    If the complaint was resolved and there was still a outstanding balances then British Gas would have been correct in applying a default to your credit reference but that should only stay on your credit reference for 6 years from the date of default so again I would suggest you make a complaint about this to British Gas and could also ask for a notice of correction to be added to your credit reference.

    It is important when making complaints to clearly title letter "complaint" and keep a copy and get proof of postage or send recorded delivery.

    Hope this is of assistance.
    Official CAB Representative
    I am an official representative of CAB. MSE has given permission for me to post in response to questions on the CAB Board. You can see my name on the companies with permission to post list. If you believe I’ve broken any rules please report my post to forumteam@moneysavingexpert.com as usual"
  • In Oct 2008 I attended a university to study for a degree. I failed my course due to health problems and left the course in Oct 2009 owing money for accommodation fees. In Jan 2010 they pursued me through a debt collection agency (Clark Willmott), but as i was sick and unemployed I was unable to pay and did not seek help until a CCJ had been made against me, due to mail being sent to my parents address when they were not there. The CAB in the university town assisted me at the time, had the judgement set aside, and was told they would contact me again soon. I have since moved house twice and heard nothing further from them until last week when someone knocked on my parent's door and served me with a notice advising me that because I hadn't attended a hearing at the county court in early June, I was going to be imprisoned for 7 days if I didn't go to court at the end of August.
    My Dad called the court manager, but they just told him to complete a form asking for this to be set aside as I didn't receive the original requests to attend a hearing, which were sent to a previous address. I don't know what I need to complete on the form they asked me to send in ( N244), as it is asking for things I don't really understand, like a draft of the order I am applying for, whether I want a hearing or not, or what type of judge I need to hear it. Can anyone help? I am not denying I owe the money, but have had no correspondence from them since I went to CAB about it well over two years ago. The deby will now likely be unaffordable, as fees and court costs will have been added on I expect.
  • fermi
    fermi Posts: 40,546
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  • CAB_Swansea_Bay_representative
    CAB_Swansea_Bay_representative Posts: 287 Organisation Representative
    Hi SkiNellieB, thank you for your query
    It sounds like you have been served with a summons to attend a means hearing or a hearing to obtain information. This is a complex county court procedure and I would suggest you seek advice from a specialist debt adviser. You can find your local Citizens Advice Bureau at https://www.citizensadvice.org.uk. They can discuss options for dealing with the debt including varying the judgement to an instalment order at an affordable monthly payment or if that is not possible, look at options such as a Debt Relief Order or Administration Order. The applicability of these options will depend on the amount of the debt, other debts you may have, your available income and other circumstances.
    Regarding the application to set aside the judgement, as you have already done this it is unlikely another application would be successful. It is really important to attend the hearing and provide any information requested and it would be a good idea to prepare a detailed budget, proof of income, proof of employment status and employer details and details of any assets you own. You can find more information on https://www.adviceguide.org.uk.
    Hope this is of assistance
    Official CAB Representative
    I am an official representative of CAB. MSE has given permission for me to post in response to questions on the CAB Board. You can see my name on the companies with permission to post list. If you believe I’ve broken any rules please report my post to forumteam@moneysavingexpert.com as usual"
  • monika_2
    monika_2 Posts: 10 Forumite
    Hi there, I wonder if you can help - my husband and I are currently paying off our debts through the DAS scheme - we are paying off around £51K at £900 per month (we have been paying this for around 2.5 years now) - we are considering selling our house at the moment which would give us the finance to pay back the DAS in full around 2 years early. My question is, are we allowed to do this? If yes, how do we go about doing it - do we speak to the CAB (who we originally set up the DAS through) or to the people we pay the £900 per month to?? Would our debtors expect us to pay back the interest on our outstanding loans/credit cards etc or do we just pay the outstanding agreed DAS amount? Also I wondered how long after paying back the DAS debts in full it would effect our credit rating?? I seriously do not want any futher credit - the only thing I'm worried about is, if we sell our house in order to clear the debts, how long would it be before we could get another mortgage - I don't mind renting for a while but I don't want to be off the property ladder for too long?? Sorry a bit long winded I know, but there are just so many things going round my head I don't know which way to turn!! Oh, and I have also tried to go back to my local CAB to ask these questions, but they never come back to me and I'm really desperate to know the answers to my questions before I decide on putting the house on the market. Many thanks for any help!!!
  • CAB_Swansea_Bay_representative
    CAB_Swansea_Bay_representative Posts: 287 Organisation Representative
    Hi monika, thanks for you query regarding credit rating after DAS.
    I am presuming from your post that you are in Scotland and are referring to the Debt Arrangement Scheme. Unfortunately this forum is manned by advisers from English and Welsh Citizens Advice Bureax so I cannot advise you on Scottish law as it is very different. I would suggest you contact your local Citizens Advice Bureau again and there is information that may be of assistance to you at www.adviceguide.org.uk/scotland.
    Hope this is of assistance.
    Official CAB Representative
    I am an official representative of CAB. MSE has given permission for me to post in response to questions on the CAB Board. You can see my name on the companies with permission to post list. If you believe I’ve broken any rules please report my post to forumteam@moneysavingexpert.com as usual"
  • Hi, I'm hoping someone could help me.
    My girlfriend and I where due to get married in a few months time. However I lost my job so we could no longer afford it. We informed the venue, giving 5 months notice.
    They have sent us a letter saying they are go to take us to court because we have not paid the full bill. (We paid the deposit and realise we wouldnt be getting it back).
    They are saying it states in the term and conditions that the full bill needs paying if its cancelled with less that 6 month to go. We havent signed or even seen the these terms and conditions!
    So basically im asking can they do this if we havnt signed anything?
    Thanks.
  • Hi
    My employer has received an attachment of earnigs order for someone with the same name as me but it is in relation to somebody at an address that is completely different to mine, and i do not have any debts or ccjs etc against me.

    I have contacted my employer to receive a copy of the order which i beleive they must do under data protection, but they are refusing to send this to me. i am trying to establish if there is any information on the order that actually links it to being me such as correct full name, correct address, correct ni number, correct employee or payroll id. i dont believe that any of this is shown on the order but at the moment i am unable to actually prove this.

    I have contacted the hr department and they are saying that it is up to me to sort it all out and they wont do anything at all, i must contact the court that issued the order to send my employer a letter to say that the debt isnt owed by me.

    I believe that their stance is wrong, i believe that my employer should have responded to the order telling the court that nobody of the description in the order is in their employment, or they should have deducted this from sonebody that did match the details in the order. eg if they have two people with the same first name and last name how would they determine who the order relates to if none of the other details match?

    I am unsure what my next course of action should be, whether i can hold my employer responsible for making this mistake and that they should not be making this mistake in the future. Should i complain further to my employer or take further action against them for being negligent, or should it be down to me to sort with the court like they are saying?

    Thanks
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