G24 Ltd using debt recovery agency

firsttimebuyers wrote: »

HOWEVER - I am a bit concerned about them passng this to a debt recovery agent Further down the lne you may have letters from a 'DCA' (actually from the to**er sitting at the next desk). just ignore those too.

-does this mean we could have a bailiff at the door to take away our TV, or tow away our car on the drive?

No, bailiffs would only call if:
1. They actually issue you with a court claim
2. They win
3. You then don't pay within 28 days
there is a 0.00001% chance of any of this happening

Do not confuse the words "bailiff" with "debt collector" . The two are entirety different animals. A debt collector is just a private citizen with no special powers. They cannot enter your house , they cannot seize goods and they cannot blacken your credit record. If they do turn up at your door, just tell them to "go away". What exact phrase you use is entirely up to you!. If they refuse to leave then call the police.

Bailiffs on the other hand are "officers of the court". They only come on the scene in the unlikely event the case goes to court, the even more unlikely event that you lose the case, and you fail to pay whatever the judge orders.

So just relax and ignore any more correspondence and do not contact them.

Important distinction:

"Debt recovery agents" are completely powerless individuals who can't do a thing. In the incredibly rare event that one should turn up at your door (and they won't in this case, as G24's business model is 100% mail based and relies only on scaring and misleading people by letter) you tell them to scarper and if they don't budge you call the police and have them nicked.

Bailiffs, on the other hand, work for courts, and will only execute a warrant in the scenario identified by Orford above. Again, that isn't going to happen because there is not a single known instance of G24 suing anyone. (They don't sue because civil penalties are unenforceable. As I have said, their business model consists solely of sending out misleading threat-o-grams and waiting for the cheques to roll in.)

You will almost certainly get a couple of threat-o-grams from CCS Collect over the next couple of months. CCS Collect are a trading name of G24. It's all part of the same scam.

All you have to do is ignore them and they'll give up on you.

Post back on here if/when you get any further letters, if you need any more reassurance.

EDIT - trisontana beat me to it!

firsttimebuyers wrote: »

Thanks Taxiphil - looks like I've just saved myself £95!

I just wonder how many unfortunate people don't have access to this great source of info, and simply pay up... probably vulnerable people like my grandparents, who can afford it even less than myself.

That's the problem and that is how these companies earn their money. Many people confuse the words "fine" with "invoice", and many more do the same between "debt collector" and "bailiff".

It doesn't help that many journalists and TV reporters don't seem to know about these distinctions and so confuse the public even more.

firsttimebuyers- looks like we got letters from G24 at the same sort of time saing exactly the same thing, we too have decided to ignore. Recieved the 'final notice to pay' this morning, I'm worrying again now but feel a little reassured after coming back on here, have you had any more letters?