Dca ccj after 10 years

[Ann23marie]

Hello to all,

i've received a letter from a debt collectors who are saying that they have a ccj from 2016 for an old Argos card. I'm not familiar with statute barred and i sent them this template from nation debtline. Ive since understood this is incorrect as they already have a ccj which never expires. I asked them to erase my data as its old and not being used as intended which they refused.


I also sent them this segment which they havent acknowleged. Is there anything I can send to them to stop them contacting me?


Sec 24Time limit for actions to enforce judgments.
(1)An action shall not be brought upon any judgment after the expiration of six years from the date on which the judgment became enforceable.

[PallasAthena]

As you have discovered statute barred is irrelevant if the CCJ has already been obtained. They are also not required to delete your information because the debt is still owed. Being unenforceable under s24 does not mean the debt is cancelled.

However you are correct that they can no longer enforce the debt unless they (the creditor not the dca) go back to court and get a judge's permission.

Unless they seek permission to enforce you can simply do what you have done. Tell them the debt is unenforceable under s24 Limitation Act 1980 and they should not contact you again.

[atticus]

s24 Limitation Act 1980 applies to fresh actions, and not proceedings to enforce a judgement (Lownsley v Forbes, House of Lords 1998 - https://www.bailii.org/uk/cases/UKHL/1998/34.html).

However, permission of the court is required to take enforcement action on a judgement that is more than 6 years old.

[Ann23marie]

If the ccj was pursued and obtained by the dca and not by the creditor, is it still only the creditor who needs to obtain permission of a court to pursue it after 6 years?

[echat11]

If the ccj was pursued and obtained by the dca and not by the creditor, is it still only the creditor who needs to obtain permission of a court to pursue it after 6 years?

They would need a 'very good reason' why they haven't acted in the preceding years to go back to
Court to enforce the Judgement. If they went back to Court, you could 'oppose' their claim and why
they shouldn't be allowed to proceed.

[PallasAthena]

A DCA can't go to court only the debt owner. That might not be the original creditor, your debt could have been sold on, possibly more than once, although you should have received a 'Notice of assignment' each time it is sold if they have your current address. Most DCAs don't buy debts, they are just hired by whoever currently owns the debt to try to collect it.

The letter they sent you should make clear who they are working for.

Who is the DCA?

[atticus]

If the ccj was pursued and obtained by the dca and not by the creditor, is it still only the creditor who needs to obtain permission of a court to pursue it after 6 years?

This is correct.

[echat11]

If the ccj was pursued and obtained by the dca and not by the creditor, is it still only the creditor who needs to obtain permission of a court to pursue it after 6 years?

The DCA isn't going to do that, they are not the Creditor.

Has the DCA stated that they are going to do something they can't do?

[Ann23marie]

The dca are Lowells, they are saying that they took the ccj out on the debt they acquired from Argos. So is this unusual for them to do that or they aren't legally able to do that?

I've asked for my files which they've sent and it does appear that they did obtain a ccj back in 2016 and I'll go through it again to double check the wordings.

What they've said so far is that its not statute barred which I understand now and that they are looking to enforce the ccj they have from 2016 and I have to make arrangements to pay them which is £2600.

[PallasAthena]

Lowells aren't primarily a DCA they are a debt buyer who buys portfolios of debts from other companies, in this case they bought it from Argos. So they are saying they are now the debt owner and so would be entitled to apply to the court for permission to enforce the CCJ. Whether the court would agree is another matter.

You should have been sent a letter - called a "notice of assignment" - when Argos sold the debt telling you that it is now owned by Lowells but if you have moved since the CCJ you might not have received it. Is there a copy of it in the papers Lowells have sent you?

[echat11]

PALLASATHENA is correct.

This is the important bit - They would need a 'very good reason' why they haven't acted in the preceding years to go back to
Court to enforce the Judgement. If they went back to Court, you could 'oppose' their claim and give reasons why they shouldn't
be allowed to proceed.

[Ann23marie]

I've checked the file they've sent me, it has a lot of internal information that doesn't tell me much. There is a 'Statement of Account' for the same account from Lowells dated 2014 and it says they're sending it as the account was in arrears with the original creditor. I see the ccj from the court for the account with the Claimant as Lowell.

They haven't sent a notice of assignment in my request that they share my details that they have in a subject access request. Should I ask for this or it would be unlikely they would have pursued a ccj if not assigned?

[PallasAthena]

I wouldn't bother pursuing the the notice of assignment point. Lowells wouldn't have gone to court for a CCJ if the debt hadn't been assigned to them. Your paperwork confirms that Argos had sold the debt to Lowells before 2016 and it was Lowells who obtained the CCJ.

At this stage I suggest you keep correspondence with Lowells to a minimum and if they contact you again repeat simply that you have been advised that as the CCJ is more than 6 years old it is no longer enforceable and you will not be making any payments. Then see what if anything they do. You can't stop them writing to you but they cannot send baliffs or take any other enforcement action without a court application.

As Echatt has noted earlier if Lowells did apply to the court for permission to enforce you have to be formally notified of their application and you would have the opportunity to tell the court why you oppose it.

[Ann23marie]

Thanks for all of the advice given, its given me a much better view on my position. So I can't ask them to stop contacting me but I can write to say its no longer enforceable without a court application. Are they likely to apply or is this something the courts wouldn't likely agree to? Maybe its anyone's guess I suppose or dependant upon the reasons given as to why they've cone back now, which I've no way of knowing.


Not linked to the ccj and looking at the documents they've sent (quite difficult to sift through as a lot of text I cant make heads or tails of) it appears they have more recent details on a credit card I had, (application document) that isn't in arrears and has never been in default or anything negative, now closed. Is this normal I'm slightly uneased at the fact they appear to have this and for what purpose.

[PallasAthena]

In your first post you said you have written to them pointing out the time limit on enforcement of CCJs so they know that you know about it. That might put them off taking it any further, or on the other hand they could start the process of a court application to enforce. I assume you have not yet had any reply to your letter.

We rarely hear of Lowells making applications to enforce but I wouldn't want to predict what they might do as regards your debt.

The next move is up to Lowells. It's up to them to decide how to reply to your last letter. I wouldn't contact them again at this point. Do nothing. Wait and see how they respond.