Default notice served during on-going legal dispute

[micheklet]

I am currently renting a property and I was informed by the landlord that water charges were included. I have tried to tell the water company this but they have sided with the landlord.

In Feb 2014, they issued County Court proceedings, which I defended on various grounds including the fact it was incorrectly pleaded and signed by the company name not a person. Since then I have not nothing about the case.

They have continued to issue threatening letters and in December 2014 they issued a 'Notice of Default' for £360. This included :

a) All the water charges on the summons
b) The issue fee of £35 for the court summons
c) £60 solicitor charge
D) All subsequent water charges

I had advice to ignore it as "they would not dream of going through with the default"

I checked today and they put a default on my credit file for £360.

My question is :

a) Can they issue a default when there is an on-going legal dispute
b) Is the default notice and hence the default invalid because the courts charges are included ?

[sean5302]

Re: Default notice served during on-going legal dispute

Hello and welcome to the Forum.
I'm not entirely clear what you mean by "ongoing proceedings".
If the water company has issued a county court claim against you, you then have 14 days to acknowledge service and then a further 14 days to send a defence.
If you do neither, they get a default judgment against you.
You are then liable for a variety of nasty processes to get payment from you, including a warrant of execution where bailiffs turn up to seize your goods.

I suggest you contact the county court, quoting the case number, and find out exactly what happened.
I don't think you're going to be pleased.

[micheklet]

Re: Default notice served during on-going legal dispute

Sorry, I havent been clear. They have kind of abandoned the County Court Proceedings after I filed a defence.

They instead issued a default, adding the court fees from the abandoned action

[sean5302]

Re: Default notice served during on-going legal dispute

Where is the default issued?
I'm not aware that water supply is a service regulated under the consumer credit act.

[micheklet]

Re: Default notice served during on-going legal dispute

Where is the default issued?
I'm not aware that water supply is a service regulated under the consumer credit act.

Issued to experian by an English water company

My other issue is I have never signed up as a customer the landlord passed my details. How can they access my credit file witout permission ?

[Kati]

Re: Default notice served during on-going legal dispute

Where is the default issued?
I'm not aware that water supply is a service regulated under the consumer credit act.

It might be on his credit report ... it's a 'new thing' from what I can figure out

http://www.anglianwater.co.uk/househ...-sharing-.aspx

Frequently asked questions about credit reference agencies and data sharing


Following discussions between the Information Commissioners Office, water companies and OFWAT in 2010, approval was given to sharing data between water companies and Credit Reference Agencies, such as Experian. Since then we have hightlighted this change in policy to you in privacy statements included in your bills and on our website.


Tell me more about data sharing

What is a Credit Reference Agency?
What is a Fraud Prevention Agency?
Why we are sharing data with Credit Reference Agencies?
How will data sharing affect me?
Can anyone access or view my personal data?
How does this comply with the Data Protection Act?
How do I get my credit report?
What should I do if I find a mistake on my credit report?

Further information:
For more detailed information on how we share data with Experian and what else we do with your information, such as sharing with other organisations like HomeServe please see our Privacy Notice.

https://www.nwl.co.uk/_assets/docume...bt_NW_2014.pdf

Data sharing
All personal information you provide isprocessed by us in accordance with theData Protection Act 1998 or as requiredby law in order to manage your account forthe supply of water and/or the provision ofsewerage services.

When you first become our customer, wemay check all or some of the followingrecords relating to you, your spouse orpartner, or any financial associate:
a) Our own.
b) Those at a credit reference agency(CRA).
c) Those at a fraud prevention agency(FPA).

When the CRA receives a search from us(as in (b) above), they place a record, knownas a search footprint, on your credit file.Other lenders may see this search footprint.

The CRA can supply us with both publicinformation, such as the electoral register,as well as shared credit, and fraudprevention, information.We may make such checks to help us:
a) Select suitable payment terms onyour account.
b) Verify identities to prevent, anddetect, crime and moneylaundering.
c) Manage your account throughperiodic checks with a CRAand FPA.

If you tell us that there is someone who isjointly liable with you for our charges wewill link your records together. You musttherefore make sure that you have theiragreement to disclose information aboutthem.

CRAs also link your records togetherand these links will remain on your files andtheirs until such a time as you or they obtainfrom the CRAs a disassociation to breakthat link.CRAs and FPAs record the informationwe submit and then supply it to otherorganisations who may themselvescarry out similar checks (and trace yourwhereabouts), in order to recover anydebts which you might owe.

[sean5302]

Re: Default notice served during on-going legal dispute

Hmm.
I've just been reading the law about this.
Since water companies can no longer disconnect you, as a domestic customer, many folks regard it as not being a priority debt.
Water companies have now started rushing to the credit agencies to apply default notices so as to persuade "debtors" to pay up.
It is very clear that only the debt for water and sewerage should go on file. None of this business of solicitor costs and suchlike. They are being very naughty if they've done that and you should write and ask them to remove those elements.
"Your" credit file is a file held by the credit reference agencies. It's classed as a public record, available for perusal by anyone, on payment of the correct fee.
The file has been updated based on the information supplied by the water company.
I'm surprised that you didn't get a proper outcome from the court case. How was that matter left?

[micheklet]

Re: Default notice served during on-going legal dispute

They just never did anything after I filed the defence. They signed it xxxx water company not a persons name. Dead in the water from
that point

[sean5302]

Re: Default notice served during on-going legal dispute

If I were you I'd still contact the court.
After you filed the defence, the court should write to both parties stating that "this is now a defended claim". The claimant will submit a directions questionnaire, enclosing the hearing fee.
If that hasn't happened, you should apply to have that claim struck out.

[micheklet]

Re: Default notice served during on-going legal dispute

Good point, that will help in any action against them for the default issue

[nemesis45]

Re: Default notice served during on-going legal dispute

Issued to experian by an English water company

My other issue is I have never signed up as a customer the landlord passed my details. How can they access my credit file witout permission ?

The water company as you will see from Kati's post the water companies now share data with CRA's, the landlord has passed on your details as the tenant in residence, something it seems you did not contest when it was done.

There is also no " default notice " for such a debt ( not regulated by CCA 1974) a demand for payment and/or a Final Demand is issued, left unpaid a default is placed.

Have you only been in contact at " customer service " over this if so get a complaint in to the top!!

nem

[micheklet]

Re: Default notice served during on-going legal dispute

I got a default notice though with all the usual spiel

[micheklet]

Re: Default notice served during on-going legal dispute

I understand the situation now. It's not a regulated credit agreement so they don't have to serve a notice in pescribed form. (Even though they did with incorrect outstanding amount)

My only avenue is to argue that they did not have my permission to share my data or a court has struck out their claim. (Through their lack of practice directions)

Looking quite hopeless

[nemesis45]

Re: Default notice served during on-going legal dispute

It is a penalty paid often caused by not having everything in writing e.g. the LLs statement that "water charges are included ".

The water co. has been supplied with the name of the tenant in residence at a property , by a person with entitlement to do so, the " "system " allows the water providers to report data to the CRA's and they have done so, personally I do not see a breach of DPA 1998.

nem

[micheklet]

Re: Default notice served during on-going legal dispute

Think i could argue that their court action failed and thus I am not liable for the debt ?