Trouble with Mr Carter

[hunbun32]

hi, i got a letter from this bryan carter and co claiming i owe them money from a company called Lowell finance, there saying its from an Abbey national bank account i had in 2003 i have heard nothing from this company or the bank until early this year, i had a joint account with my ex partner but i never used it after 2003 as we sold our house and both had 17,000 put in seperate accounts and i assumed this one was closed, i rang BC and asked for proof of this so called debt but all the stupid women from the solicitors on the end would say is make a payment make a payment, but i completly refused to make a payment for a debt i know nothing about and they can't give me any proof off she said to me i could pay 900 pound before a certain date i said i'd pay nothing until she had proof of my debt, i went to the CAB and they said not to talk to them they had no evidence i owed this and after 6 years its statuet barred, i even applied to experian and there is no live debt on there from any company, on friday i got court papers and i have no idea what to do is there anyone that can help me??? im so worried i've never had debt, i'm a student nurse and i don't know how anyone can take me to court for money i don't even know that i owe any information would be gratefully recieve, also they have put on the court letter that i have offered to pay monthy instalments, this has NEVER happened how can i offer to mpay for something i wanted proof of owing, this is scary these people are solicitors and their lying about what i've said and i don't know what to do

[Curlyben]

Re: Trouble with Mr Carter

First things first, DON'T panic.
From here on in EVERYTHING must be in writing.

Now I'm assuming these court papers are from Northampton Bulk centre, as they are extremely easy to file.

Could you please post the Particulars of Claim (POC) as stated on the form.

[hunbun32]

Re: Trouble with Mr Carter

it says:

The claimants claim is for the balance due under an agreement which is now all due and payable'

the defendant agreed to pay monthly instalments under account number..... but has failed to do so.

the claimant also claims interest thereon persuant to s.69 county court act 1984 limited to one year the the date hereof at the range of 8% per annum amounting to 55.40

None of the above is true in my eyes i have never offered to pay anything as i have no proof the debt is mine.

thanks
------------------------------- merged -------------------------------
and yes it is Northampton county court

[Curlyben]

Re: Trouble with Mr Carter

Does it have any information concerning who the actual creditor is ??
Does the account number ring any bells ?
Does seem like the usual vague claim from Mr C.

[hunbun32]

Re: Trouble with Mr Carter

It's from Lowells, i went into abbey national with the account number as i had asked BC to give it to me and they had no record of it, i did have a bank account with Abbey a joint one years ago, the first letter i got from BC was this march, i rang them and asked them about this so called debt and they could give me nothing, i asked for proof and all they could give was this account number..... i walked away from that bank account and my ex 7 years ago with 17 thousand and i know he had the same in the bank account, i just dont understand if the bank account got into debt why have they taken 7 years to contact me? i've never used it since the house was sold and as the bank have no idea what the account is neither do I.

[Curlyben]

Re: Trouble with Mr Carter

IF this is for your account from 2003 it is most likely statute barred and Mr C/Lowell's are chancing their arms. Mr C has a reputation for bulk issuing these actions and soon bottles it when people fight back.

No matter, we fight back
So you now have some important dates.
Date of service X
Acknowledgement X +14 days
Defence X +28 days

So firstly fire off an official request for information as the claim is vague, as normal.

Full details are here, just need to edited as required.
DCA: Using CPR 31.14 to Your Advantage - Consumer Wiki

Feel free to post up your draft and we'll make sure it's all good.

As for acknowledgement of service, this is 14 days after service as detailed on the N1. You can do this online and it's a good idea to do this a few days before the deadline, no need to do it instantly.

So what dates are we looking at here ?

[hunbun32]

Re: Trouble with Mr Carter

The issue date was on the 14th july.

A quick question i do believe after 6 years it barred but they are taking me to court how is this possible if no acknowledgment has been made?

[Curlyben]

Re: Trouble with Mr Carter

Simply put, scare tactics.
Until you point out that is indeed the case they will attempt collection through any means.
Problem is as court action has been filed their are steps to be taken.

Firstly we ask for information, then place a defence with reference to any laws we need. In this case, likely to be Section 5 of the Limitations Act 1980.

an action founded on simple contract shall not be brought after the expiration of six years from the date on which the cause of action accrued

[Luminol]

Re: Trouble with Mr Carter

Hi Hunbun, these people hope that people will get scared and just pay, then the jobs a good 'un' as it wear, they know it stat barred, they just hope you don't, your in Curlys capable hands, try not to worry

Lumi x

[hunbun32]

Re: Trouble with Mr Carter

Thanks guys, you have put my mind at ease, i'm completly rubbish at anything like this and i'm very grateful for your time to comment. I am going to look up what you have told me and i'm going to go back to the CAB in the morning, at least i know the foundations of where to begin, I will let you know what happens tommorow, and once again thanks so much for helping me get the ball rolling.

[Nibbler]

Re: Trouble with Mr Carter

A quick question i do believe after 6 years it barred but they are taking me to court how is this possible if no acknowledgment has been made?

The court won't consider whether the debt is statute barred UNLESS you defend on that basis.

BC depend on most people not knowing the law or having the guts to defend, and so cases that should never have been brought just slide through the courts without challenge.

Not going to happen here.

[Curlyben]

Re: Trouble with Mr Carter

Seriously there's no need to go and see the CAB over this as we have vastly more experience dealing with claims of this nature, especially when "old friends" are involved, then they do.
Yes I'm blowing my own whistle here, but it's true.

So dates
Service 14/7
AoS 28/07
Defence 12/08

Jobs a gooden

[ODC]

Re: Trouble with Mr Carter

One word of advice regarding Lowell. They are renowned for discovering imaginary payments or attempted paymens to try to extend the shelf life of a Stat Barred Debt.

They tried it with me but my passport said different. I begged them to take me to court but they declined

[hunbun32]

Re: Trouble with Mr Carter

So the first thing is to send that letter to BC and point out the debt is over 6 years old? and then fill out the form to the courts and contest the claim? I'm sorry if i sound abit thick but as i said before, Law on this sort of thing isn't my strong point i'm more into law and ethics which won't help me here all i can see is no one accepting me for anything now, i've never had bad debt or owed money and this is scary for me.

[Curlyben]

Re: Trouble with Mr Carter

Just send them the letter under CPR 31.14 requesting information.
No need to mention Statute barred at this point, in fact it wont help.
Unless you are 1,000% sure mention statute barring at this point might cause more harm than good.
There's a few responses you'll get

1. Complete Ignore
2. Saying they are requesting information from "creditor" in this case Lowells
3. Send everything you have asked for

Most likely is #1, but #2 is fine as well. Of course #3 would give everything for a solid defence.

1&2 gives us more points against Mr C to make him look completely vexatious in this action, which is a GREAT thing.

Whatever the out come YOU are now in control and we're here to help.