Lowell/Overdal County Court Action – advice needed

[Paperwork]

I have received an email from Overdale, acting for Lowell, informing me they have begun legal action at the County Court. I have not yet received anything at all from the court, and have not previously received anything from Overdale (although post has been very unreliable where I live) but Overdale's email says this:

"We act for Lowell Portfolio I Ltd and note that you have not repaid your debt or contacted us to agree a suitable resolution to this matter.

Legal proceedings have now been issued and you will shortly receive a County Court Claim from the Civil National Business Centre for the total amount of [approx. £2,000]."

Overdale's email also claims that "You can avoid a CCJ on the condition that the outstanding balance is paid in full within four months … To take advantage of this offer and to agree the exact terms of an arrangement, please contact us on xxxxxxxx, within the next 10 days."

As far as I'm aware, this is not a legal provision and just something Overdale are offering, so I'm not sure how they can be so specific with the timescale.

Any advice on what I should do would be greatly appreciated.

[echat11]

Hi Paperwork

Welcome to LB

Have you checked your credit file?

It would be good to establish exactly what the debt was for and how old it is?

At this moment in time there is nothing to avoid as they need to get a Judgement against you and only if you ignore the Judgement, they might be successful in obtaining a CCJ. It's not as 'black and white' as they make out.

The debt might be statute barred.

Update the thread if you receive anything.

[Paperwork]

Hi there,

Thanks for the prompt response.

On my credit report, the debt is currently only showing as Lowell, but I understand it is a debt related to PayPal Credit from 2020. Lowell also hold two other credit card debts but they are not mentioned on the email I have received regarding court action.

My understanding from the email is that they are already seeking a County Court Judgement against me, and that I just haven't received the paperwork yet. Am I misunderstanding the process?

[echat11]

Hi there,

Thanks for the prompt response.

On my credit report, the debt is currently only showing as Lowell, but I understand it is a debt related to PayPal Credit from 2020. Lowell also hold two other credit card debts but they are not mentioned on the email I have received regarding court action.

My understanding from the email is that they are already seeking a County Court Judgement against me, and that I just haven't received the paperwork yet. Am I misunderstanding the process?

The way the small claims court works, is:

They issue a claim against you,

You can either defend or accept the claim,

If you defend the claim, they have 28 days to respond to your defence.

There is the possibility of mediation.

The parties exchange witness statements 14 days before Hearing,

The Hearing - Judgement.

There is no automatic CCJ as long as you deal with the Judgement.

(Even while this is going on, you can try to settle the matter).

If they've issued a Claim, you will need to defend providing you have grounds, which there maybe.

[Paperwork]

Thank you. I will update when (if) I receive the claim.

[Paperwork]

I have still received no paperwork for this. Should I be concerned? Overdales stated explicitly that "Legal proceedings have now been issued and you will shortly receive a County Court Claim from the Civil National Business Centre" – I'm assuming they would not say this if they had not actually launched a claim?

[echat11]

I have still received no paperwork for this. Should I be concerned? Overdales stated explicitly that "Legal proceedings have now been issued and you will shortly receive a County Court Claim from the Civil National Business Centre" – I'm assuming they would not say this if they had not actually launched a claim?

It depends what sort of backlog there is, with the Courts there is always one.

How can I say good business practices aren't their number one priority, they should be, but there not.

When you think about it, distract yourself, do stuff that makes you happy

[Paperwork]

I've still received nothing from the courts but I've just received this email from Overdales. The email is clearly written to suggest that they've already begun proceedings, and that proceedings may even have progressed, but then it's interspersed with mentions of just resolving things with them, which makes me uncertain as to what they've actually done. Any advice? Is a 'Notice of pending County Court Judgement' actually a thing?
Notice of pending County Court Judgment (CCJ)

Dear XXXXXX

You have failed to respond to the County Court Claim with either a proposal for payment or a valid explanation as to why the debt should not be paid.

If you do not respond to the County Court Claim within the time specified or contact us to resolve this matter within 7 days from the date of this email, we will ask the Court to enter a CCJ against you.

If a CCJ is entered against you and you do not make payment in full within one month, it may remain on your credit file for 6 years and can make it more difficult for you to obtain further credit, such as a mortgage, credit card, car finance or mobile phone contracts.

If a CCJ is granted and you do not make payment as ordered, we may seek to enforce the CCJ by using one of the following methods:

• Warrant of Control - A bailiff could attend your property to recover the debt or goods to the value of the debt which may then be sold at auction.
• Attachment of Earnings - The Court could order your employer to deduct an amount directly from your wages to settle or discharge the debt.
• Charging Order - If you own property, securing a Charge against your interest in that property. The debt may then be deducted directly from the proceeds if you sell or remortgage your property.

Please pay [approx. £2000] by calling 0333 111 0121 or online at www.overdales.com.

If you are unable to pay the outstanding balance in a one-off payment, we are prepared to hold our application for a CCJ against you on the condition that the outstanding balance is paid in full within four months of [original date]. To take advantage of this offer and to agree the exact terms of an arrangement, please contact us on 0333 111 0121, within the next 7 days.

If the above options are not suitable, you can complete the Admission form and make a payment offer to suit your circumstances which will result in a CCJ. If you need support with this process, please contact us on 0333 111 0121.

[echat11]

I've still received nothing from the courts but I've just received this email from Overdales. The email is clearly written to suggest that they've already begun proceedings, and that proceedings may even have progressed, but then it's interspersed with mentions of just resolving things with them, which makes me uncertain as to what they've actually done. Any advice? Is a 'Notice of pending County Court Judgement' actually a thing?
Notice of pending County Court Judgment (CCJ)

Dear XXXXXX


You have failed to respond to the County Court Claim with either a proposal for payment or a valid explanation as to why the debt should not be paid.

If you do not respond to the County Court Claim within the time specified or contact us to resolve this matter within 7 days from the date of this email, we will ask the Court to enter a CCJ against you.

If a CCJ is entered against you and you do not make payment in full within one month, it may remain on your credit file for 6 years and can make it more difficult for you to obtain further credit, such as a mortgage, credit card, car finance or mobile phone contracts.

If a CCJ is granted and you do not make payment as ordered, we may seek to enforce the CCJ by using one of the following methods:

• Warrant of Control - A bailiff could attend your property to recover the debt or goods to the value of the debt which may then be sold at auction.
• Attachment of Earnings - The Court could order your employer to deduct an amount directly from your wages to settle or discharge the debt.
• Charging Order - If you own property, securing a Charge against your interest in that property. The debt may then be deducted directly from the proceeds if you sell or remortgage your property.

Please pay [approx. £2000] by calling 0333 111 0121 or online at www.overdales.com.

If you are unable to pay the outstanding balance in a one-off payment, we are prepared to hold our application for a CCJ against you on the condition that the outstanding balance is paid in full within four months of [original date]. To take advantage of this offer and to agree the exact terms of an arrangement, please contact us on 0333 111 0121, within the next 7 days.

If the above options are not suitable, you can complete the Admission form and make a payment offer to suit your circumstances which will result in a CCJ. If you need support with this process, please contact us on 0333 111 0121.

Email them back, ask for copies of the Court Claim / alleged debt they are referring to.in their email.
Also ask for their Complaints procedure.

Have you moved house in recent years?

[Paperwork]

Thanks.

I've also just noticed that the subject line of the email includes a reference number in the format of "Notice of pending County Court Judgment (CCJ) : 123/4567890". Would this be an actual case number and is it something I can use to look into it further?

[echat11]

Thanks.

I've also just noticed that the subject line of the email includes a reference number in the format of "Notice of pending County Court Judgment (CCJ) : 123/4567890" – would this be an actual case number and is it something I can use to look into it further?

Try the last 7 digits on MCOL, see if anything comes up.
You'll have to Register with them.

https://www.moneyclaim.gov.uk/web/mcol/welcome

[Paperwork]

Thanks. It asks for a 'Defence Pack Password' as well as a claim number, so it seems I'm not able to search for a claim without having received the defence pack from the court.

[echat11]

Thanks. It asks for a 'Defence Pack Password' as well as a claim number, so it seems I'm not able to search for a claim without having received the defence pack from the court.

What's known to happen, is that sometimes they use a previous address to send Court papers to, it's not correct that they should act in that way, but they do.

Send them an email.

[Paperwork]

Thanks. I have emailed them. I have not changed address in over 10 years so there really should not be any reason for them to do so.

[Paperwork]

I have received this email response from Overdales:

"Thank you for your recent contact.

We are currently managing your account on behalf of our Client, Lowell Portfolio I Ltd under the reference 123/456789. The details of which are below.

Lowell Reference: XXXXXXXXXX – Original Creditor: PayPal – Original Creditor Reference: XXXXXXXX – Current Balance: [Approx. £2000]

We can confirm that this account was opened on 20/04/17 and was reported in Default to the Credit Reference Agencies’ (CRA’s) on 16/01/20. The last payment received by the original creditor was for £75.00 on 28/01/21. This agreement was applied for using the email address [my email address] and the correspondence address [my current address]. This balance had the original credit limit of £2000.00 and the last statement balance was for [approx. £1700]

Please find a copy of the Credit Agreement attached for your reference. Also enclosed is a copy of our Complaints Procedure, as per your request.

As the account is now subject to legal proceedings, you may wish to seek independent legal advice.

A County Court Claim form was issued to you on 20/02/24. We understand you state to have not received this from the Court.

We have instructed a further copy be issued to you in the post, please expect this soon. Once received, you should respond to the Claim form how you deem appropriate, as per the guidance on the form.

If you are admitting the debt in full and wish to pay by instalments, contact us on the number below. Our agents are available to complete the Admission form with you over the telephone. Alternatively, you can complete the form and return it via email or by post to the address provided below or to the Court.

Failure to respond to the Claim may result in a County Court Judgment (CCJ) in Default being entered against you.

If you wish to speak with a member of our team, please call us between 8:30am and 7:30pm Monday to Thursday, 8:30am and 6:00pm Friday or 9:00am and 2:00pm Saturday, on 0333 111 0800."