Lowell - Simply Be Debt

[Diana M]

Re: Lowell - Simply Be Debt

I have attached a picture of all three documents sent to me by Lowell. Lowell merely attached a handwritten note advising this is the information I requested. There is a copy of a letter from Simply Be sent to an address I never lived at. This was the same address handwritten on the two pages of CCA documentation that I received alongside the copy of the Simply Be letter.

The Simply B letter dated 10th May 2016 says " in relation to your request for a signed copy of the agreement . . . ".

Do you know who made that request since you say the response was sent to an address you have never lived at? I'm guessing that they replied to the address from where the request came from. Maybe not.

Is that address familiar to you?

Can you also post up the "handwritten note" you received from Lowells which I presume is their formal (legal) response to your s.78 CCA Request. It sometimes helps to read between the lines of what a creditor says (their exact words) to see whether they believe (rightly or wrongly) that they have complied with their statutory obligations.

Have you sent a CPR 31.14 Request to Lowells (sorry I haven't read back through your thread) asking for the DN and NOA etc?

Di

[Diana M]

Re: Lowell - Simply Be Debt

Have you sent a CPR 31.14 Request to Lowells (sorry I haven't read back through your thread) asking for the DN and NOA etc?

Okay I've glanced back through your thread and can't see anything to say that a county court summons has been issued. I could have missed that fact.

In which case CPR 31.14 won't apply.

I assume you are seeking advice proactively in case one lands on your mat although I'm not sure that Lowells know where your mat is

My personal view is you need to look ahead to any scrutiny test which the court may apply to your evidence.

If the bottom line is you never entered into this credit agreement then the court shouldn't uphold any claim against you.

Di

[charitynjw]

Re: Lowell - Simply Be Debt

To whom did you send the CCA request?
The documentation appears to have been sent from Simply Be.

[ths01]

Re: Lowell - Simply Be Debt

To whom did you send the CCA request?
The documentation appears to have been sent from Simply Be.

1. Earlier this year I sent a CCA request to Simply Be from my address.
2. I never heard back so I sent one to Lowell.
3. It had been five or six months, then in October I received a letter from Lowell saying they're still looking into it.
4. In November (although dated October) Lowell sent a letter to say can I contact them now they've fulfilled the requirement. I hadn't received anything so said no, not until they send the relevant docs.
5. I've now received what was posted earlier. The Simply Be info never got to me as it was sent to the address the account was linked to, not the address from where the request came from.

The handwritten note from Lowell reads as below:

Their ref
Original ref
Balance

"Please find enclosed copy agreement and copy statement as per your request".

Regarding the address, I never lived there. My girlfriend did for around 2 months in 2013. At the time I lived with my parents, had a great credit history and was saving for my own place which I moved into in February 2014.

Someone suggested contacting Action Fraud. Wouldn't that land this on my girlfriend's lap. With how her mental health is/has been, I don't think I can. I want to get the best deal I can with regards to any payment to Lowell/Simply Be.

Thanks.

[Diana M]

Re: Lowell - Simply Be Debt

Someone suggested contacting Action Fraud. Wouldn't that land this on my girlfriend's lap. With how her mental health is/has been, I don't think I can.

Simply Be also suggested you should report this as fraud. They've sold the debt so are probably not too concerned anymore unless Lowells ask them for further information if challenged on the authenticity of the documents which they have disclosed.

You don't want to report your girlfriend to the police for understandable reasons, but if Lowells become aware they could decide to report it even if you don't.

It's not a huge sum of money but if the police were to investigate then you are likely to be interviewed since at the moment the account is in your name and you informally reported the fraud to Simply Be when you contacted them before Lowells became involved.

So if you want to make sure the police don't pursue your partner (or point the finger of blame at you for covering it up once you became aware of the situation) then you should maybe adopt a softly softly approach to Lowells when you negotiate a settlement.

I would think twice about accusing them of anything in case they start to investigate further into the background of the account's inception.

Does the statement sent show any credits and how they were made?

Di

[ths01]

Re: Lowell - Simply Be Debt

There are three payments, all quite small so seemingly the minimum payment amount. One is a card payment, the other two are direct debits.

Thanks.

[charitynjw]

Re: Lowell - Simply Be Debt

There are three payments, all quite small so seemingly the minimum payment amount. One is a card payment, the other two are direct debits.

Thanks.

The obvious question is from whom/where did these payments come?
Are they linked to any cards or bank accounts you have or have had?

[ths01]

Re: Lowell - Simply Be Debt

The obvious question is from whom/where did these payments come?
Are they linked to any cards or bank accounts you have or have had?

Not my accounts, I keep them in very good order. My girlfriend made these payments but couldn't maintain them and had a huge episode through 2014.

[charitynjw]

Re: Lowell - Simply Be Debt

Looking at this from another perspective, the debt is for £500(ish).
Lowells will probably have paid a tiny fraction of that to purchase it.
Would it be a wise commercial decision for Lowell to continue with the expense of trying to chase it if they are aware that there could be difficulties establishing your liability for it? (Obviously only Lowell themselves can decide on this, but it's something worth mulling over!).

[ths01]

Re: Lowell - Simply Be Debt

I will approach Lowell in the next few weeks and attempt to negotiate with them. I don't want to open a can of worms here.

More headaches have also come up with regards to council tax arrears (I've posted a thread in that section of the forum). The sooner I can get on top of this stuff for my girlfriend, the better. She really is not able to deal with it.

[charitynjw]

Re: Lowell - Simply Be Debt

I will approach Lowell in the next few weeks and attempt to negotiate with them. I don't want to open a can of worms here.
If you do so you might inadvertently formally acknowledge your liability for the debt (which I don't think you've done to date), so be careful.

More headaches have also come up with regards to council tax arrears (I've posted a thread in that section of the forum). The sooner I can get on top of this stuff for my girlfriend, the better. She really is not able to deal with it.

####

[ths01]

Re: Lowell - Simply Be Debt

Thanks for the advice. I will note that I do not acknowledge the debt as my own due to yada yada, but advise if a reduction is agreed upon I may look to settle it on behalf of those I believe to be liable.

Does that sound OK as a very short summary?

Thanks,
THS