Settled @ Mediation Lowell Solicitors claim on a mobile contract

**pt2537** · 27th November 2018, 10:26:AM

Originally posted by Guest View Post

Received a claim? Yes/No:

Issue Date: 01/11/2018
Have you Acknowledged the Claim?: Yes
Total Amount Claimed : Ł476.20
Claimant’s Name: Lowell Portfolio LTD
Solicitors Firm: Lowell Solicitors LTD
Original Creditor: T-Mobile UK Ltd (now EE Limited)
Original Debt (eg. Credit card/Loan/Overdraft) : Mobile phone contract
Particulars of Claim: ( Please type out in full excluding names/account numbers/exact amounts ):
1) The Defendant entered into an agreement with EE Limited (formerly T-Mobile UK ltd) under account reference xxxxxx (The Agreement)
2)The Defendant failed to maintain regular payments and the service was terminated
3)The Agreement was later assigned to Claimant on 30/09/2014 and notice given to Defendant
4)Despite repeated requests for paument, the sum of Ł362.22 remains due and outstanding
Is the debt Statute Barred (have you had any contact with the creditor or claimant over the last 6 years?): I left the country September 2012 and never made contact with any debt agencies, so possibly SB?
List any letters you have sent (eg: CCA/ CPR ): not sent anything yet
Any Other Information or Background Details: I filed the acknowledgement in time, but failed to research this properly earlier and only now came across this brilliant forum. With around 7 days left until my 28 days expire, what's the best court of action? Do I just send out CCA and CPR TODAY with next day delivery, or claim Statue Barred, since I had no contact with this debt since September. Or do I contact Lowell and pay off Ł476.20 today and not let this go through? I really don't want a CCJ, as planing to take out a mortgage next year and my credit score is great...

Hi there

CPR rule 15.5 allows you to agree an extension of time of 28 days to file your defence, so you may want to consider writing to the Claimants solicitors inviting them to agree to this, so you can obtain documents from them and so you can ensure you can file a Defence in time.

If they agree to an extension you must notify the Court under the same rule, CPR 15.

**ryoukosback** · 27th November 2018, 10:32:AM

Originally posted by pt2537 View Post

Hi there

CPR rule 15.5 allows you to agree an extension of time of 28 days to file your defence, so you may want to consider writing to the Claimants solicitors inviting them to agree to this, so you can obtain documents from them and so you can ensure you can file a Defence in time.

If they agree to an extension you must notify the Court under the same rule, CPR 15.

Thanks! Do I just add this to the CPR template available on here? I only have 7 days until the court will be expecting a defense from me, is it likely the solicitors will be able to respond to this in time? I read that they sometimes don't reply at all, which would leave me in a rough spot come Tuesday, 4 December 2018, as I'd have no defence ready

**pt2537** · 27th November 2018, 10:43:AM

I would suggest sending the CPR request, asking for all the documents and information you need. I would suggest sending by email and post a second letter telling lowells you need to obtain key documents to be able to prepare your defence, and that you understand under rule 15 you can agree an extension, will they agree an extra 28 days to allow for the documents you have requested to be provided. tthey should reply fairly quick, but sadly you seem to have sat on your hands a little so they could say no.

**ryoukosback** · 27th November 2018, 11:36:AM

I've sent Lowell Solicitors the edited CPR form via email, referencing 31.14 and 15.5. Got the auto-reply below:

"We are currently experiencing high volumes of emails. We aim to respond within 5 working days, once we have satisfied our security checks. Please note that until we receive the above information from you, we will not be able to deal with your correspondence.

If you are responding to any contact that suggests that we may take further action against you within a specified time, please call us on the below number as we cannot guarantee that we will have seen your email before this action is taken."

Will also send a next day delivery physical copy right now. If I receive no response from them OR if they decline the extension request by the end of the week, what should I do? File defence and try to go with Statute Barred, as i'm pretty sure no payment or contact has been made since September 2012 and they filled for CCJ November 2018, so beyond the 6 years deadline? Contact Lowell next Monday (1 day before the end of 28 days) and pay off the balance in full to avoid potential CCJ?

**Amethyst** · 27th November 2018, 12:01:PM

Yes I'd sent a hard copy by post xx and yes file your defence inc statute barred by the deadline ( 3rd Dec ?)

example defence for a starting point here https://legalbeagles.info/library/gu...-court-claims/

**ryoukosback** · 30th November 2018, 13:48:PM

So i've sent the CPR form via email AND a next-day guaranteed letter, referencing 31.14 and 15 on Tuesday 27th, but had no response from them at all

Today I get the (see attached) letter from Lowell Solicitors sent on 23rd.

As I will not get my CPR back in time, do I submit my defence today on grouds of missing CPR documents and claiming Statute Barred? Is it enough to just file the defence via moneyclaim website?

What happens If my claim to Statute Barred is declined? Do I get a CCJ? If there's a risk of getting the CCJ, i'd rather pay the Ł400

Attached Files

20181130_133814.png (1.14 MB, 2 views)

**ryoukosback** · 2nd December 2018, 15:02:PM

Originally posted by Amethyst View Post

Yes I'd sent a hard copy by post xx and yes file your defence inc statute barred by the deadline ( 3rd Dec ?)

example defence for a starting point here https://legalbeagles.info/library/gu...-court-claims/

Would you be able to asisst regarding my last post, please? I need to action this today pretty much

**R0b** · 2nd December 2018, 19:21:PM

By my calculations you have until 4pm on Tuesday 4 December to submit a defence. Money claims online are deemed served 5 days from the date of issue, you have 14 days to file a defence and a further 14 if you acknowledge the claim, so a total of 33 days.

If you admit the claim now and can't pay within 30 days you will get a CCJ. If you defend the claim, lose and then fail to pay within 30 days from the date of judgment, you will get a CCJ marked on your credit file.

Claims take around 6 months or more to get to a hearing and in that time it would afford you to save a little each month so as a minimum, you would have at least 7 months to save the Ł400 plus a small fee for other cost around Ł200 maximum for a claim like this.

If you have a valid defence of statute barred, then I think it's a no brainer?

**Amethyst** · 2nd December 2018, 20:02:PM

Think R0bs pretty much covered it

do I submit my defence today on grouds of missing CPR documents and claiming Statute Barred? Is it enough to just file the defence via moneyclaim website?

Yes and Yes - post a draft of what you have so far if you're not sure.

What happens If my claim to Statute Barred is declined? Do I get a CCJ? If there's a risk of getting the CCJ, i'd rather pay the Ł400

Its not a case of you file your defence and the judge looks at it and decides... lots to go through first.

If the claimant disagrees then they will have to show that it isn't statute barred and then, if you get to a hearing, the court will look at the evidence and decide, if they agree with the claimant, then yes you'd get a CCJ, but that's a long way off and lots of other things involved.

What happens is you file your defence tmw.... it gets sent over to the claimant... the claimant has 28 days to respond to tell the court if they want to proceed with the claim... if they do you receive a directions questionnaire to complete to help the court send the case over to the right court near you …. if they don't the claim gets put on hold.

Once the court near you has had a look they will issue directions, possibly set a court date, and tell you when to file evidence and witness statements, and tell the claimant to pay their hearing fee. Somewhere in between there may be a mediation telephone appt. Then in a few months time there might be a hearing.

As R0b says use the time to save up the money to settle in full - and there's lots of points where you can negotiate settlement before theres a CCJ risk - only if you don't file your defence … so get that done tmw.

**ryoukosback** · 3rd December 2018, 21:34:PM

Got a response from Lowell:

Thank you for your email.

The account relates to a service agreement and not a credit agreement; it is not governed by the provisions of the Consumer Credit Act 1974. Therefore, there is no statutory requirement to complete and sign any such ‘agreement’ in order to obtain an account of this nature.

As you are probably aware, accounts of this type can be obtained by telephone, over the internet and by mail order and therefore, if no signed contract ever existed then it cannot be provided. The terms and conditions of telecommunications contracts are considered binding upon insertion of the SIM card and the requesting of service that is implicit in doing this, evidenced by phone usage costs, which forms part of the outstanding balance that our client seeks to recover.

We are instructed that the outstanding balance is made up of airtime debt of Ł62.03 and an early termination fee of Ł300.19. A total of Ł188.46 was paid towards the balance whilst the account was with the original creditor. The account was original taken out via Carphone Warehouse with the mobile number 07415490645.

In light of your request, we have requested that copies of the statements of the account be provided by the original creditor. These will be passed to you upon receipt of a response from EE Limited.

In the meantime, as you are aware a County Court Claim has been issued. This was deemed as having been served 6 November 2018. You are required to read and respond to this fully. We note that you filed the Acknowledgment of Service was filed with the Court which provided you with 28 days from 6 November 2018. You must now respond to the Claim within the timescale provided by the Court.

Failure to respond to the Claim may result in our client requesting that Judgment is entered against you in Default.

If you wish to speak with a member of our team, please contact us between 8:00am and 8:00pm Monday to Friday or between 8:00am and 2:00pm Saturday on 0113 335 3334.

**ryoukosback** · 3rd December 2018, 22:01:PM

Thanks for the help guys! Will update the thread with whatever comes out of this. Submitted this as Defence:

1.The Defendant received the claim *deleted* from the Northampton County Court on 06/11/2018

2.Each and every allegation in the Claimants statement of case is denied unless specifically admitted in this Defence.

3.This claim is for a mobile contract agreement and is NOT regulated under the Consumer Credit Act 1974.

4.The Claimants statement of case fails to give adequate information to enable me to properly assess my position with regards the claim.

5. The Defendant contends the alleged debt is statute barred by virtue of Section 5 of the Limitations Act 1980 in that no payment or acknowledgment has been made for over 6 years

6.The Claimants statement of case states that the account was assigned from EE Limited (formerly T-Mobile UK Ltd) to Lowell Portfolio LTD on 30/09/2014. The Defendant does not recall receiving notice of this assignment.

7.On the 27/11/2018 The Defendant sent a request for inspection of documents mentioned in the claimant’s statement of case under Civil Procedure Rule 31.14 to Lowell Solicitors LTD. I requested the Claimant provide copies of the Agreement and Default Notice.

8.Lowel Solicitors has not sent any of these documents to the Defendant.

9. The Defendant have asked the Claimant if we may agree to extend the time period allowed for filing of the defence pending receipt of documents (as allowed under CPR 15.5), but they have declined

10.Under Civil Procedure Rule 16.5 (4) Where the claim includes a money claim, a defendant shall be taken to require that any allegation relating to the amount of money claimed be proved unless he expressly admits the allegation. Therefore, it is expected that the Claimant be required to prove the allegation that the money is owed as claimed.

11.The Defendant respectfully requests the court orders the Claimants to provide the necessary documentation in order for The Defendant to fully plead his case else the Claim should stand struck out.

12.In the event that the relevant documents are received from the Claimant, the Defendant will then be in a position to amend his defence, and would ask that the Claimants bear the costs of the amendment.

13.It is denied that the Claimant is entitled to the relief as claimed or at all.

**ryoukosback** · 7th March 2019, 23:04:PM

Hi! So I've got a mediation call scheduled for tomorrow and Lowell has emailed me last minute the below. Looks like I missed SB by 10 days . Unlucky haha. They don't have my signature or contract though, just the last bill...Should I let it go to court and expect for it to be binned or just pay up tomorrow, maybe with a discount?

Following your request for documents in the above matter, I attach the closing bill provided to our client by T Mobile, showing both the brought forward balance on your account at termination (being an airtime debt of Ł88.03 less credits totalling Ł26.00) and the new charges added at termination (being Ł300.19, the full amount that would have fallen due over the remainder of the minimum contract term, less VAT and other discounts).

As previously explained to you, our client is unable to obtain a copy of any signed agreement and (if the matter proceeds to a hearing in view of the mediation appointment tomorrow) will ask the Court to accept the closing bill combined with your lack of response to any previous correspondence among other factors, as proving the debt on the balance of probabilities. We confirm that the debt and account related to phone number 07415490645 on a contract entered between you and T-Mobile (now EE) through Carphone Warehouse.

We also note that you suggest in your Defence that the debt is statute barred. The limitation period for such debts is six years. All of this debt accrued after your last payment on 11 November 2012 and the claim was issued on 1 November 2018, so 6 years had not passed from the first date legal action could have started, and the debt is not statute-barred.

**ryoukosback** · 7th March 2019, 23:09:PM

Amethyst R0b maybe you guys can advise as per previous replies? Ta in advance

**Amethyst** · 8th March 2019, 06:37:AM

Arses- if that is the case - check with your bank if you paid on 11th November 2012.... if so then you can negotiate on the grounds that they haven't provided any evidence of the contract thus the term allowing the termination charge, nor how it has been calculated or the length of the contract that you were tied in to, and they will need to show how the sun claimed arose after your last payment - at the moment I don't think they have sent you anything have they ? So if you CAN settle for a lesser amount that you're happy with then mediation is a sensible time to do it to avoid it going to a hearing - otherwise they will need to produce the evidence for court and its hit and miss whether they will.

If youre in a position to pay the full amount if it did go to a judgment ( accounting for potentially a bit on top for costs awarded at hearing ) within a month of the judgment then you can risk carrying on but bear in mind that first comment

"I really don't want a CCJ, as planing to take out a mortgage next year and my credit score is great..."

so weigh that up against the risk of losing at court vs settling for a discount now..

Settled @ Mediation Lowell Solicitors claim on a mobile contract