Letter of claim regarding credit card debt - too late to sue?

[RV30]

Hi, I have received a letter of claim from a firm of solicitors representing a DCA who bought an old credit card debt from 2018.

Am I correct that the six years limitation period starts from the date of the last payment made to the credit card?

I have looked at bank statements and, more importantly, the credit card statement sent from the DCA.

The last credit card payment was made on 3 June 2019.

There were no other payments made after that, as the direct debit was cancelled due to losing my job and problems with my home.

The date calculator website gives me this:-

Duration from 3 June 2019 until today's date 30 July 2025 = 6 years, 1 month, 27 days excluding the end date.

Are they too late to issue court proceedings? I received a very unpleasant letter from the solicitors saying court proceedings would be issued on 22 August 2025 If I didn't make an offer to pay.

Thanks for any help.

[echat11]

It will actually be the date they defaulted the account, so normally it would be after you missed 3 payments, so you paid June 2019, then missed July 2019, then Missed August 2019 and September 2019, so October 2019 would be the Default date, 6 years from that date.

The documents you should seek from them is a copy of the CCA, Default Notice and Letter of Assignment. Even if they provide them, they have to be compliant under the CCA 1974. A template can be found on this site, on the left of the page.

They should then put the account on hold.

Send them a Subject Access Request.

Also if they lodge a claim you can you can Defend it.

[RV30]

Thank you for this information. In the disclosure, there was no Default Notice served by the credit card company.

I don't know what to do about this problem as I now in Sicily and they are saying they will sue me in an English court. I'm on a pension and there's no recourse to legal aid in Italy to defend a claim in an English court for credit card debt.

[echat11]

Thank you for this information. In the disclosure, there was no Default Notice served by the credit card company.

I don't know what to do about this problem as I now in Sicily and they are saying they will sue me in an English court. I'm on a pension and there's no recourse to legal aid in Italy to defend a claim in an English court for credit card debt.

I would email them, state that you seek a 45 days so that you can seek information and advice on the alleged debt.

You can Defend the claim from Sicily, you can email the Court and Creditors solicitors.

You can make Without Prejudice (must be written on offer letter) offers of payment, even if that's £1 a month (you fill in an I & E form).

[atticus]

Does this claimant know that you now live in Italy? You need to make sure that it is fully aware that you do not live at your last known address in the UK.

To sue you in Italy it will need to obtain permission to serve tge legal process 'out of the jurisdiction'. This is not difficult, but is an additional hurdle?

Do you have property or other assets in the UK?

[RV30]

Hi Atticus

Yes I spoke to them today and have also emailed. I don't intend to return to the UK. I don't own any properties nor assets in the UK.

When I spoke to them I again said I'd never had a credit card.

I asked them to update the address and he said he would put a note on the system but couldn't properly update the address as it was outside the UK. I don't know if their system just doesn't like addresses outside the UK, but I am now worried that they will continue to send correspondence to the old address in the UK and they will even send the Court Proceedings there, knowing I don't live there and knowing I won't see them, in the hope of getting default judgment.

I was told before I left the UK to ask them to put account on hold for 45 days to allow me to get debt advice despite the fact that I have been very vocal with them that I don't owe this.

The citizens advice bureau told me the debt is 100% time-bared under the six years Statute of Limitation as the last payment had allegedly been made in June 2019 over six years ago. No default notice was served.

This is my ex husband's debt not mine.

[echat11]

EXC Can you approve.