Newly discovered CCJ from 3 years ago.

[Conchord91]

Hi all,

I'm looking for some advice.

Today I accessed my credit reports. previously I have checked my Experian and Equifax credit reports and saw nothing amiss. However, today I checked my Transunion report for the first time and was shocked to discover a CCJ from April 2018 for £400.

The address listed on the CCJ is my parents old house, I haven't lived there since 2014. My parents were divorced and moved out prior to April 2018 and never passed me any letters from the court re this CCJ.

I don't dispute the debt owed. It came from Lowell who took it off an old mobile contract I used to have, I was rather stupid financially back in the day and I have a memory of some issue with my contract in 2011/2 so it is most likely legitimate.

However I had no idea about it, and didn't receive any letters/emails or calls regarding it. I actually stayed with the same mobile company and they had my correct address and phone number on file (I believe), so they either gave Lowell the wrong/previous address or Lowell didn't check whether it was my current address.

So my question is, should I look into this being set aside? If so, what evidence/documentation do I need to gather? Also, I am happy to pay the amount, as I believe I most likely do owe this money. So can I satisfy the CCJ then look to get it set aside? If I call Lowell and tell them I'm happy to pay but I will be applying to get it set aside would they accept that or offer to set it aside themselves?

I'm not sure quite how it works and any advice would be greatly appreciated.

[leilakozma]

Hi,

I'm in a very similar situation! I've spoken to CAB and a few charities and, from what I've been told, once you make a payment you accept the judgment - so it can't be challenged afterwards.

Whichever way you choose to go ahead I'd suggest to get hold of a copy of the judgment (you can either use Trust Registry or call Lowell to find out which court issued it). (It takes forever for it to arrive, so it's good to get started with it first.)

I've been told quite a few times that I'd need to formulate a valid legal challenge for the court to consider setting the CCJ aside -- say, if a company alleges that you had a contract even if you didn't. I don't know how far you can get with an N244 if you argue that they didn't follow protocol (say, notify you about the legal proceedings in advance.)

If you find out about legal charities / reasonable lawyers that specialise in this stuff, please do let me know (no such thing as enough resources, when it comes to this stuff..)