lovells/hamptons/red from an angry yorkshire man

[hobnob]

dear forum

i took out a loan in my crazy air force days from halifax for 6000 (plus 2500 interest added by lovell) in 2002 . due to youthful exuberance i didnt pay a penny back and thus incurred a ccj (and rightly so)

however lovells have been chasing me ever since and at the turn of 2012 i landed myself a great job with a decent wage and decided to tackle my credit problems with credit expert which have been most useful

in april of this year i decided to try and sort out the debt and pay 200 pounds pcm AND THEY STILL HARRASSED ME to pay more i eventually got the debt down to 6000 pounds after paying 1800 up to december.but they continued to harrass me to pay more and more and more even though i had not missed a single payment from april. so.....i cencelled the direct debit out of frustration with them .however they have since wrote a letter from "hamptons" saying they are going to start issuing another ccj to my name to the sum of 11800 pounds!!!!!! plus 250 court costs

i want to ignore them due to thier bullying tactics as the original ccj has ben removed from my credit file > does anybody out there amongst this forum know what my legal rights are ?

[bluebottle]

Re: lovells/hamptons/red from an angry yorkshire man

Lowells are in breach of their OFT Debt Collection Licence by even attempting to force you to pay more than you can reasonably and realistically afford. It might be advisable to seek an injunction, legally-restraining Lowells and its other aliases from behaving in this way. It would cost you £175 in court fees, but I wouldn't mind betting it would have Lowells' senior management clearing local chemist shops in Leeds of their stocks of Imodium Plus. I am going to bump this thread for other LB members who are experts in dealing with DCAs to look in.

Also, you might like to consider reporting Lowells to the OFT Credit Fitness Team and Trading Standards.

:bump:

[hobnob]

Re: lovells/hamptons/red from an angry yorkshire man

thank you very much for your reply bluebottle you are being a great help i really appreciate your efforts

[bluebottle]

Re: lovells/hamptons/red from an angry yorkshire man

When did Hamptons send you their threat-o-gram? You may need to move quickly to legally-restrain them. Also, did you complete an Income & Expenditure Analysis so that Lowells could see £200 is all you could realistically afford to pay each month after allowing for priority debts, e.g. Council Tax, Rent, Utilities, etc.? If so, their demands to pay more are well in breach of their licence and the law. I am attaching copies of the most up to date OFT Debt Collection Guidelines and a document that takes you through reporting a bailiff company to OFT Credit Fitness Team, though the process is more or less the same for DCAs. I would recommend you submit the complaint to OFT and Trading Standards today.

[hobnob]

Re: lovells/hamptons/red from an angry yorkshire man

the problem is i never filled out a expenditure form i just said ill give em 200pounds per month and have had no paper work from them

[hobnob]

Re: lovells/hamptons/red from an angry yorkshire man

i recieved the threat on the 27th of december only got it today though
its worth noting that i have NEVER ONCE had a letter keeping me up to date on my debt or how much i owe nor have i EVER filled out a expenses form

[bluebottle]

Re: lovells/hamptons/red from an angry yorkshire man

The threat they have made could well be their undoing, legally. If the debt currently stands at £6,000, how do they come out with £11,800? I would report this to OFT Credit Fitness Team today and also speak to your local Trading Standards Department as well. As said above, a DCA cannot force a debtor to pay more than they can reasonably and realistically afford. If they accepted £200 per month, why are they now kicking-off? It might be because you cancelled the DD, which was a bit hasty, looking back in hindsight. However, if you have continued to make payments manually, they might be on a sticky wicket with regard to the threatened legal action.

It might pay you to write to the CEO of Lowells and point out that his company is in breach of the OFT Debt Collection Guidelines (list these in the letter) and the Protection from Harassment Act 1997 with their demands to pay more without taking into account whether such demands were reasonable or realistic, whether they have a right in law to make the threats they are now making and what law they are relying on to make the demands, and whether the use of threats is a proper way of enforcing their demands.

Go to www.debt-line.net/debt-collectors and this will enable you to access information on most DCAs and their CCA Licence Numbers, which you will need to quote when making your complaint to OFT Credit Fitness Team. It is a lot more stable that the OFT's Public Register, which can be a little temperamental at the best of times.

[hobnob]

Re: lovells/hamptons/red from an angry yorkshire man

just reporting them as we speak

[hobnob]

Re: lovells/hamptons/red from an angry yorkshire man

spoke to the debt advice line just now they say i hold all the cards and lowells have had nealry 7 years in which to get the money from me so if they toook me to court again the beak would refuse to let them start another ccj on me again as you cant sue twice for the same debt unless youre certain of a result

secondly the 3500interest is total muck as the original aggreaved party (hbos halifax) would have to apply seperatly for the interested to be continued over the original debt in the original paperwork

they said the majistrate would not allow yet another ccj to go ahead so i can either ignore ! OR offer one off payment of 1000 pounds to have finally sttled the debt as the debt would of got cheaper and cheaper as its get sold on to other companies . either way i have won


thank you very very much for your advice bluebottle i didnt know where to turn

[wales01man]

Re: lovells/hamptons/red from an angry yorkshire man

I would keep your 1k ignore them and have a holiday on the money

[bluebottle]

Re: lovells/hamptons/red from an angry yorkshire man

In short, they have made unwarranted demands with menaces which, by the sound of it, are not a proper means of enforcing the demands being made. That is a serious criminal offence which, not surprisingly, carries a substantial custodial sentence, i.e. 14 years.

I would be inclined to slap them with an ex parte (without notice) injunction under Section 3, Protection from Harassment Act 1997 and then hit them with civil claim for compensation for anxiety and any financial loss you have suffered either on the day you seek the injunction or the on the next working day. The court will need to see a copy of the claim as this is a requirement of the PHA 1997. If you decide to go down that route, after obtaining the injunction, ask for an effective date for the hearing at which your civil claim will be heard by a Circuit Judge, who will make the injunction permanent.

Attached is a copy of the PHA 1997 and Court Form PF39CH. PM me if you need any help to complete the PF39CH, that is, if you need to go down that route.

[hobnob]

Re: lovells/hamptons/red from an angry yorkshire man

thank you once again i was worried sick about lovells but like the debt helpline women said they are breaking the law threatening me like this
judging by the amount of posts on regarding lowells one would assume i wont be the only one is this position

[bluebottle]

Re: lovells/hamptons/red from an angry yorkshire man

No. Just don't be bullied by them. They have already had one injunction slapped on them and they couldn't settle fast enough in that case.

I don't think OFT Credit Fitness Team is going to be too hsppy with them either.

[hobnob]

Re: lovells/hamptons/red from an angry yorkshire man

oh yeah well further to our earlier convos i called the OFT and they said they will look into it for me so its a win win win all over

i would just like to thank you once again

[labman]

Re: lovells/hamptons/red from an angry yorkshire man

Indeed - I apologise, I've only just read this thread, I'm not quite sure how I missed it.

You should have been asked immediately whether or not you had not acknowledged the debt either in writing or by making a payment for a continuous period of 6 years. It is clear from what you are now saying that this is the case. The debt will therefore be Statute Barred. This does not mean it doesn't exist, it means you have no obligation whatsoever to pay back one penny.

As regards the CCJ, they had 6 years to collect it. They can apply to collect it again, but it is rare that this is granted. My advice would be to write to them, inform them it is Statute Barred and you wish them to cease making any demands of you. If they fail to do so, report them to the OFT.