Lowell - Real or Scam?

[Marilou]

Lowell is a regulated Debt Collection company. They purchase defaulted debts from a variety of banks, catalogue companies and mobile phone providers. If you have any questions if you have received a letter or court claim from Lowell please MAKE A NEW THREAD

(you don't need to register to make a first post or read replies ) and someone will be able to guide you through dealing with it.

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First Time Poster! Please Help!

for about 3 months I've been hounded by Lowell with a minimum of 3 phone calls a day and regular letters about a debt with 02 that was in 2015.

I rang 02 first to confirm the debt, after i received the first letter, which was a letter from 02 referring said account in the same envelope with my first letter from Lowell. They confirmed that it was short a number or two from the account number and provided no phone number associated with the account, they said these parts of information are always given and to check with the police. We googled Lowell and have been hesitant to believe they are real. Also on the letters they even had my name wrong . We also visited the police (who just did the same as what i had done with google) and advised me not to pay them anything.

Fast forward to a month later and over 30 voicemails that i've not even listened to. I created a new email and sent them a Proof of Debt Request.
I have now recieved an email saying

"As we don't have confirmation that this email address is for you, we'd be grateful if you could confirm the following for security purposes:
your date of birth
your current address including your post code.

if the security checks are not completed, i'll be unable to continue corresponding by email.

Is this a scam? i don't want to just hand out that information to a possible scam group.
Or do i give them fake details and see what happens?

Thanks in advance!

[warwick65]

Re: Lowell - Real or Scam?

Hi

Lowell are very real and from what you have said about that email response it is similar to ones I had from them.

So- is it possible you owed O2 some money? If so when from?

Lowell usually give their accounts a lowell reference No

I think there are two things you need to do for now

1) Send a letter (proof of posting will do) saying you will only communicate in writing - @Kati does this site have a template- if not I will 'acquire one' from somewhere else

2) Send Lowell a prove it letter - also by post but this one Royal mail signed for

I would hesitate about doing anything else at the moment


By the way, Lowell are debt purchasers and but debts from other companies
[MENTION=5553]charitynjw[/MENTION] any thoughts?

[R0b]

Re: Lowell - Real or Scam?

Lowell is a debt purchasing group and they also purchase bad debt from O2 as well as other companies and they generally operate under Lowell Financial and Lowell Portfolio I.

Their websites are www.lowell.co.uk and lowellgroup.co.uk

Companies House information:
Lowell Financial - https://beta.companieshouse.gov.uk/company/04558936
Lowell Group - https://beta.companieshouse.gov.uk/company/06527689

What gives the impression that they are a scam or fake company? When you say they had your name wrong on the letters, are you suggesting this might be wrong by one letter or have they got your full name wrong? Does the letter look something like the one below? If so, then it might be legitimate.



Have you ever had an O2 account at that time and did you have a contract around that time? If you give fake details and/or ignore the matter then you might end up with a CCJ on your record which will last for 6 years. As you have emailed Lowell with a new email, they are probably asking for that information in order to verify who you say you are and that they have the right account. If you give them nothing then you are in a bit of a stalemate, though whether you choose to correspond or ignore them is up to you.

I'll tag [MENTION=6]Amethyst[/MENTION], [MENTION=87380]Diana M[/MENTION] who might have further comments.

[Marilou]

Re: Lowell - Real or Scam?

hi there and thanks for replying!

So- is it possible you owed O2 some money? If so when from?

i've never owed any money to 02, every account i have had with them has been paid and closed correctly, and 02 also confirmed this, and they also confirmed the last account i had with them ended in 2012 and was fully closed and nothing outstanding.

i have emailed them this letter,
Dear Sir/Madam
Account No: XXXXXXXX
You have contacted me regarding the account with the above reference number, which you claim is owed by myself.
I would point out that I have no knowledge of any such debt being owed to O2
I am familiar with the Consumer Credit sourcebook of the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) which states the following rules.
"A firm must not ignore or disregard a customer's claim that a debt has been settled or is disputed and must not continue to make demands for payment without providing clear justification and/or evidence as to why the customer's claim is not valid." 7.5.3
"A firm must suspend any steps it takes or its agent takes in the recovery of a debt from a customer where the customer disputes the debt on valid grounds or what may be valid grounds." 7.14.1
"Where a customer disputes a debt on valid grounds or what may be valid grounds, the firm must investigate the dispute and provide details of the debt to the customer in a timely manner." 7.14.3
"Where there is a dispute as to the identity of the borrower or hirer or as to the amount of the debt, it is for the firm (and not the customer) to establish, as the case may be, that the customer is the correct person in relation to the debt or that the amount is the correct amount owed under the agreement." 7.14.4
"A firm must provide a customer with information on the outcome of its investigations into a debt which the customer disputed on valid grounds." 7.14.5
"Where a customer disputes a debt and the firm seeking to recover the debt is not the lender or the owner, the firm must:

• (1) pass the information provided by the customer to the lender or the owner; or
• (2) if the firm has authority from the lender or owner to investigate a dispute, it must notify the lender or owner of the outcome of the investigation." 7.14.6

In not ceasing collection activity whilst investigating a reasonably queried or disputed debt you are using deceptive/and or unfair methods.
Furthermore, ignoring and/or disregarding claims that debts have been settled or are disputed and continuing to make unjustified demands for payment amounts to physical/psychological harassment.
I would ask that no further contact be made concerning the above accounts unless you can provide evidence as to my liability for the debt in question.
I await your written confirmation that this matter is now closed. Otherwise I will have no option but to make a complaint to the trading standards department and consider informing the FCA of your actions.
If appropriate I will also take this matter forward as a complaint to the Financial Ombudsman Service and Information Commissioner's Office.
I look forward to hearing from you.
Yours faithfully
Name Here..

should i send this physically as well?

What gives the impression that they are a scam or fake company? When you say they had your name wrong on the letters, are you suggesting this might be wrong by one letter or have they got your full name wrong? Does the letter look something like the one below? If so, then it might be legitimate.

i have a double barrelled surname, and i never abbreviate that signing any contracts, but they have only used one of my last names and not both, the only time I've ever cut the name short is for a email i made for a gaming account . Every voicemail i have received has been via an automated voice and not a real person, and the style of letters has changed with each letter, a different colour scheme and layout on almost every letter.

[warwick65]

Re: Lowell - Real or Scam?

I would send it by Royal Mail as well

It is standard practice for many companies to want to be sure they are dealing with the right person by email- it could be anyone and they have to think of the Data Protection Act.

I assume you have been receiving letters so they have your address

[Marilou]

Re: Lowell - Real or Scam?

yes they already have my home address and current contact number

[Diana M]

Re: Lowell - Real or Scam?

I rang 02 first to confirm the debt, after i received the first letter, which was a letter from 02 referring said account in the same envelope with my first letter from Lowell. They confirmed that it was short a number or two from the account number and provided no phone number associated with the account, they said these parts of information are always given and to check with the police. . . . . . Also on the letters they even had my name wrong .

It's not uncommon for debt purchasers (and other businesses) to refuse to communicate by email.

You say Lowells got your name wrong so could this be a case of mistaken identity (fishing letter) or even identity theft (someone using your name/address to open an O2 mobile phone account)?

Can you clarify what O2 said when you called them? They wouldn't normally speak to you unless you cleared DPA security and from what you say they weren't able to trace the account, in fact they even advised you to contact the police themselves.

There's a good Prove It! letter on this website and some advice on how to follow it through (reminding them of their FCA obligations) > https://debtcamel.co.uk/prove-it/

Di

[Marilou]

Re: Lowell - Real or Scam?

Can you clarify what O2 said when you called them? They wouldn't normally speak to you unless you cleared DPA security and from what you say they weren't able to trace the account, in fact they even advised you to contact the police themselves.

i asked them if they could look at all accounts under my full name, then when they confirmed i had nothing outstanding on my name, i asked them about the first and only letter i received from 02, quoting the account number that i had on the letter and they confirmed there is no such account number as it was missing 2 digits from the basic 8 digit number they always assign, and then they searched through their database for the name on the letter and nothing came up at all. they confirmed that Lowell do take over debts from them but they did say they would always have a record of the account and as far as they could see no such account existed.

[Kati]

Re: Lowell - Real or Scam?

1) Send a letter (proof of posting will do) saying you will only communicate in writing - @Kati does this site have a template- if not I will 'acquire one' from somewhere else

I don't think we do atm Warwick ... I'm happy for you to acquire one if you want?!

[Marilou]

Re: Lowell - Real or Scam?

I don't think we do atm Warwick ... I'm happy for you to acquire one if you want?!

What kind of letter is this your talking about? is this the proof of debt letter? [MENTION=49370]Kati[/MENTION] [MENTION=813]Warwick[/MENTION]

[warwick65]

Re: Lowell - Real or Scam?

Yes it is a prove it letter

Dear Sir or Madam ( I would try to find a name of the compliance officer or is nothing else the name of someone who has written to you)

Account No/Reference No: XXXXXXXX

You have contacted me regarding the account with the above reference number, which you claim is owed by myself. I have no knowledge of any such debt being owed to {INSERT CREDITOR NAME}.

I have familiarised myself with the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) consumer credit sourcebook which states the following rules.

"A firm must not ignore or disregard a customer's claim that a debt has been settled or is disputed and must not continue to make demands for payment without providing clear justification and/or evidence as to why the customer's claim is not valid." 7.5.3

"A firm must suspend any steps it takes or its agent takes in the recovery of a debt from a customer where the customer disputes the debt on valid grounds or what may be valid grounds." 7.14.1

"Where a customer disputes a debt on valid grounds or what may be valid grounds, the firm must investigate the dispute and provide details of the debt to the customer in a timely manner." 7.14.3

In not ceasing collection activity whilst investigating a reasonably queried or disputed debt you are using deceptive/and or unfair methods.

Furthermore, ignoring and/or disregarding claims that debts have been settled or are disputed and continuing to make unjustified demands for payment amounts to physical/psychological harassment.

I would ask that no further contact be made concerning the above accounts unless you can provide evidence as to my liability for the debt in question.

I await your written confirmation that this matter is now closed. Please treat this letter as a formal complaint and should this not happen I will have no choice but to escalate the complaint to the Financial Ombudsman Service

I look forward to hearing from you.

Yours faithfully



PRINT OR SIGN YOUR NAME DIGITALLY

[MENTION=49370]Kati[/MENTION] maybe that should be in a sticky somewhere