eCollect AG debt collection contact by email out of the blue

[Penelope15]

I joined a dating website in late 2021 thinking I’d paid for 1 month - it was over £50. Over the next few months this sum kept being taken from my account every month and when I tried to cancel the website just kept giving very complex instructions about having to contact to cancel 7 days before renewal is due but the form needing to be downloaded and only available after each payment etc.
anyway, I managed to both send a cancellation letter and get my bank to stop payments. And this was back in about February 22. I haven’t heard anything else intom out of the blue o get an email from the above company saying I owe £200 to them as they have taken over the debt. There were np follow up contacts from the dating site. I’ve found the dating site has an address in Germany and the debt company state they are Swiss in the email details but a bit of research suggest owned by an Australian company.
sorry for the long post and thanks for sticking with me this far!
My main worry is I’m about to buy a property and can’t risk anything going wrong with my credit file,
I even opened the link to pay the company as I just want this finished but I’m worried it’s a scam. There’s a message in the email stating you must include your reference number when making the payment then on the link there’s no clear evident it’s included with the payment. They allow you to pay by Apple Pay so perhaps this is some insurance?
if I was dealing with a UK company I’d be more confident challenging the whole process plus I’ve been very unwell and stressed.
Has anyone had dealings with this company!
is there a risk if I pay the £200 I’ll just get another bill?
is there a chance if I don’t it will soon appear on my credit?
can I take out a counter claim against the original dating site?
Thanks so much for taking the time to read.

[echat11]

Hi Penelope

Firstly, you've sent a cancellation letter, the bank has ceased making payments. You don't need to make further payments, making them will only encourage these Australian debt collectors, to ask for money that isn't owed. If a debit card was used to make the payments then you could try 'chargeback' to get the payments back.

Send an email to eCollectors, state that no monies is owed to them or any other company. Explain that the subscription service was cancelled and payments ceased. State that if they persist in contacting you for monies that is not owed, you will lodge a complaint with Action Fraud UK who will contact them. If they contact you again other then to say they will leave you alone. Lodge a complaint with Action Fraud UK, then send a follow up letter, with the Action Fraud Reference on it.

[Penelope15]

Thanks so much for taking time to reply. It’s also just an email so who know what scam it might be? I’m just very worried about my credit file. I won’t respond to the email but I’ll contact the company separately and tell them I’m in dispute and the idea of involving fraud UK is great. Thanks so much - hadn’t known about them.
Cheers

[echat11]

Thanks so much for taking time to reply. It’s also just an email so who know what scam it might be? I’m just very worried about my credit file. I won’t respond to the email but I’ll contact the company separately and tell them I’m in dispute and the idea of involving fraud UK is great. Thanks so much - hadn’t known about them.
Cheers

Make it clear, that no more monies is owed to them, the agreement was cancelled, as such no more payments were due to them. You have lots of options including CAB / Trading Standards. Also don't make anymore payments whatever they threaten.

Update the thread.

[Jpegster]

Hi Penelope

I just wondered what the outcome of your threats from
ecollect were? As I’m also receiving the same threats and unsure what to do. Fairly similar situation to yours where I tried cancelling in April with no response to emails and now 6 months later received a letter from this so called debt collectors (e-collect) stating I owe £223.

Thanks

[ophil148]

I am in a similar situation, but I have got no recollection of this website whatsoever! Can Ecollect take me to court ? I am based in the UK.
My deadline from the letter is Sunday 16th April and I do not want any further letter from them or escalated amount. So I am tempted to pay , but I fear this will not stop.
Any advice will be appreciated .
Thanks

[echat11]

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