Caught Shoplifting at John Lewis

[Anthony S]

Hi Guys,

I know it's a very common situation on this forum and my case is not unique, so in order to save you guys a time reading this, I will try to be as concise and informative as I can be.

I have been caught stealing John Lewis 6 months ago, amount was 150£, they have recovered it, so they haven't inccurred any actual losses, they have just spent 10-15mins with me, they have took my ID to fine me later.

I have received 4 letters via RLP and as was advised by this website, I have ignored them all, they were quite for few months and now I have suddenly received a letter from BPO Collections that is advising me to repay 325.00£ the same amount as RLP tried to recover from me.

The letter does not mention RLP or John Lewis anywhere AT ALL, which is odd to me.

The letter says:

We were instructed to recover the outstanding liability against you, which we understand is not disputed.

Could you please contact us within 7 days of receipt of this letter, failing which you are at risk of our client issuing a proceedings against you, which will incur further liability by way of the additional Court fees, interest and legal costs.

A County Court Judgment, which remains unsatisfied after 30 days, may also affect your credit rating.

We therefore require your immediate proposals to settle this matter. If you are now in a position to settle the claim, you may pay 325.00£ to BPO Collections Limited.

Please see below for the various repayment methods we offer.

Payment may be made by:

1. Calling our 24hr Automated Payment Line on 141 375 0999
2. Credit/Debit Card Online at www.paymentsplace/bpocollections.co.uk
3. Online banking/Bank Transfer
4. Call and speak to one of our trained advisors on 141 846 2076

We awating hearing from you within the next 7 days to avoid any further action.

Your sincerely,

BPO Collections Limited



Should I still ignore them or write them a letter AMETHYST have advised in one of the other threads?



I mean this letter:

Dear Sirs,

I refer to your letter dated xxxxxx. Any liability to your client or company they claim to represent is denied.

No further correspondence will be entered into.

Yours,
xxxxx


Thank you very much for your time and advice guys.

I look forward to your replies.

[echat11]

Hi Guys,

I know it's a very common situation on this forum and my case is not unique, so in order to save you guys a time reading this, I will try to be as concise and informative as I can be.

I have been caught stealing John Lewis 6 months ago, amount was 150£, they have recovered it, so they haven't inccurred any actual losses, they have just spent 10-15mins with me, they have took my ID to fine me later.

I have received 4 letters via RLP and as was advised by this website, I have ignored them all, they were quite for few months and now I have suddenly received a letter from BPO Collections that is advising me to repay 325.00£ the same amount as RLP tried to recover from me.

The letter does not mention RLP or John Lewis anywhere AT ALL, which is odd to me.

The letter says:

We were instructed to recover the outstanding liability against you, which we understand is not disputed.

Could you please contact us within 7 days of receipt of this letter, failing which you are at risk of our client issuing a proceedings against you, which will incur further liability by way of the additional Court fees, interest and legal costs.

A County Court Judgment, which remains unsatisfied after 30 days, may also affect your credit rating.

We therefore require your immediate proposals to settle this matter. If you are now in a position to settle the claim, you may pay 325.00£ to BPO Collections Limited.

Please see below for the various repayment methods we offer.

Payment may be made by:

1. Calling our 24hr Automated Payment Line on 141 375 0999
2. Credit/Debit Card Online at www.paymentsplace/bpocollections.co.uk
3. Online banking/Bank Transfer
4. Call and speak to one of our trained advisors on 141 846 2076

We awating hearing from you within the next 7 days to avoid any further action.

Your sincerely,

BPO Collections Limited



Should I still ignore them or write them a letter AMETHYST have advised in one of the other threads?



I mean this letter:

Dear Sirs,

I refer to your letter dated xxxxxx. Any liability to your client or company they claim to represent is denied.

No further correspondence will be entered into.

Yours,
xxxxx


Thank you very much for your time and advice guys.

I look forward to your replies.

Hi ANTONY S

Welcome to LB

I think they plan to 'bombard' you with their 'nonsense' letters.

I'd add the following line in between the two lines,

'Please note that any further correspondence from yourselves will be deemed as harassment under the Prevention of Harassment Act 1997, it will be reported to Trading Standards and I will consider taking action against you'.

[Anthony S]

Thanks for the advice ECHAT11.

So first RLP have sent me 4 letters and now since they have passed it all to BPO Collections and they will be doing the same thing?

I am still not 100% sure if I should be writing to them or just ignoring them completely.

[echat11]

Thanks for the advice ECHAT11.

So first RLP have sent me 4 letters and now since they have passed it all to BPO Collections and they will be doing the same thing?

I am still not 100% sure if I should be writing to them or just ignoring them completely.

You could wait to see what they do, they will probably send more letters.
It's just a 'continuation' of RLP, they have no powers.

[des8]

I would just ignore them, as if they are contacted they likely think they have caught a fish and redouble their efforts!

[PallasAthena]

RLP instructing BPO to write letters seems to be a new thing - another example was posted a few days ago. That letter, like yours, failed to mention who their client is or what debt they are chasing! Which gives you some idea how incompetent BPO are.

BPO are just Debt Collector. Debt Collectors have zero powers and cannot take anyone to court. So a BPO letter is no different to if it has been written by RLP, ie can safely be ignored. Or if you prefer send them the letter suggested earlier.

As always it is only if you receive a formal "Letter of Claim under the Pre-Action Protocols" (PAPLOC) or anything actually from a court that must take action.

Possibly RLP are getting frustrated that so many people are ignoring their letters that they are trying a new trick and passing it to new company in the hope that some people are spooked into paying. In reality a BPO letter means no more than a RLP letter.

[echat11]

RLP instructing BPO to write letters seems to be a new thing - another example was posted a few days ago. That letter, like yours, failed to mention who their client is or what debt they are chasing! Which gives you some idea how incompetent BPO are.

BPO are just Debt Collector. Debt Collectors have zero powers and cannot take anyone to court. So a BPO letter is no different to if it has been written by RLP, ie can safely be ignored. Or if you prefer send them the letter suggested earlier.

As always it is only if you receive a formal "Letter of Claim under the Pre-Action Protocols" (PAPLOC) or anything actually from a court that must take action.

Possibly RLP are getting frustrated that so many people are ignoring their letters that they are trying a new trick and passing it to new company in the hope that some people are spooked into paying. In reality a BPO letter means no more than a RLP letter.

I think RLP has been 'emboldened' because shoplifting has been in the media recently, so they are 'doubling efforts'.