Letter from Shoosmiths re Capquest over £4.5k debt

[Snackajack]

Hello all
I received a letter today from Shoosmiths giving me 14 days to respond before they begin court proceedings regarding a debt.
I'm going to be completely honest with you all.
The debt is £4.5k, owned by shop direct group (Kays catalogue now Littlewoods.com)
I believe the debt may be my own. It was £2800...however I entered a DMP with CCCS in Jan 2011, and they continued to apply interest for around £105 per month whilst payments were made of £5 per month.
The debt was passed from numerous DCA's to Capquest. I ignored them.
I own a home, currently in arrears on my mortgage too, it appears once you're in financial difficulty you're never out.
Years ago, I had a credit card debt which went to solicitors called Bryan Carter solicitors, and the citizens advice bureau got lots of help from your website so I thought I would come directly to you instead of waiting months for them.
I'm terrified. I've checked my credit file, and there's no default, no entry about this account or this debt. None whatsoever.
Guys, my boiler broke down on Thursday and I've since been without heating or hot water. I have a baby on the way (not planned), and a husband facing redundancy after just two years of employment. To say I'm stressed is an understatement.
I hope you can help me.

[nemesis45]

Re: Letter from Shoosmiths re Capquest over £4.5k debt

Good afternoon, welcome to LB.

Carter ( now ceased trading) and Shoosmiths are/were just solicitors for rent in the debt collection industry.

Who is Shoosmiths acting for?

When did payments via the DMP cease?

Do you know when the account was defaulted? The debt not being on credit files may mean it was more than 6 years ago.

Unfortunately from what you say re the DMP the debt is not statute barred.

So you need to make a request to Shoosmiths client for a copy of the Littlewoods/shop direct agreement, there is a template in the green box at the top of the " court claim " forum. ( CCA Request) there's a £1 statutory fee to pay use a postal order marked " For Statutory Fee Only". If possible use signed for post so you can check the delivery date and signature.

nem

[Snackajack]

Re: Letter from Shoosmiths re Capquest over £4.5k debt

Hi Nemesis, thanks for the welcome!

I made 3 payments via the DMP and then stopped - the interest continued to be applied.

I wonder if the default has dropped off and I have my dates wrong? Although I'm certain it was the year 2011.

My concern with the CCA request is that the catalogue operated online, and I'm sure I signed up on the Internet. Would that count for anything?

Thank you for the link, I'll print it off and send a postal order to them.

Thank you so much

- - - Updated - - -

Sorry,
Shoosmiths are acting on behalf of Capquest Investments LTD

[nemesis45]

Re: Letter from Shoosmiths re Capquest over £4.5k debt

Hi Nemesis, thanks for the welcome!

I made 3 payments via the DMP and then stopped - the interest continued to be applied.

I wonder if the default has dropped off and I have my dates wrong? Although I'm certain it was the year 2011.

My concern with the CCA request is that the catalogue operated online, and I'm sure I signed up on the Internet. Would that count for anything?

Thank you for the link, I'll print it off and send a postal order to them.

Thank you so much

- - - Updated - - -

Sorry,
Shoosmiths are acting on behalf of Capquest Investments LTD

Hi,

So the request for the agreement goes to Capquest, it 'll slow things down a bit.
The " tick " on the online app is as good as a signature. It doesn't affect you requesting a copy of the agreement.
It is important now to try and fined out exactly when the last payment was made via the DMP, it would I think worth asking them if they can help.

nem

[Debt Camel]

Re: Letter from Shoosmiths re Capquest over £4.5k debt

I'm terrified. I've checked my credit file, and there's no default, no entry about this account or this debt. None whatsoever.

Where did you check your credit file? Most credit file checkers only look at one of the three credit reference agencies. I thought Shop Direct reported to all 3, nevertheless I suggest you check one of the other CRAs just to be sure, see http://debtcamel.co.uk/best-way-to-check-credit-score/.

What happened to the rest of your DMP debts? How much do you still owe?

Your mortgage arrears, how large are they and do you have an arrangement to pay them in place? Do you have any other priority debts - council tax, utilities, TV license?

[seduraed]

Re: Letter from Shoosmiths re Capquest over £4.5k debt

Boilers look at green boiler co . I've used them to get a boiler despite my credit rating being in tatters.
There will be other Beagles along shortly. However you will need to send a section 78 of the consumer credit act request with one pound postal order. This gives the creditor 12 plus 2 days to provide a true copy of the agreement. If this cannot be found the case cannot be e MN forced in court. The is a , template letter on this site.

[Snackajack]

Re: Letter from Shoosmiths re Capquest over £4.5k debt

Thank you all

Nemesis45 - spoke with step change yesterday, they unarchived my DMP and confirmed the last payment of £5 was made on August 10th 2011.

Debt camel - I've still got a lot of debts but I'm on payment arrangements with number out creditors. I'm also on a payment plan with my mortgage and have £253 left in arrears to clear. All priority bills up to date.

I checked my credit file via Experian - the copy is two months old but there is no entry of shop direct on there, not even under Capquest.

I'll have a look at the green boiler co. It snowed last night and I had the electric heaters on and used all the electric! Thank you so much.

[nemesis45]

Re: Letter from Shoosmiths re Capquest over £4.5k debt

Thank you all

Nemesis45 - spoke with step change yesterday, they unarchived my DMP and confirmed the last payment of £5 was made on August 10th 2011.

Debt camel - I've still got a lot of debts but I'm on payment arrangements with number out creditors. I'm also on a payment plan with my mortgage and have £253 left in arrears to clear. All priority bills up to date.

I checked my credit file via Experian - the copy is two months old but there is no entry of shop direct on there, not even under Capquest.

I'll have a look at the green boiler co. It snowed last night and I had the electric heaters on and used all the electric! Thank you so much.

Take a look at Noddle the free online offshoot of Call Credit just to make sure the entry has gone.

nem

[Diana M]

Re: Letter from Shoosmiths re Capquest over £4.5k debt

I own a home, currently in arrears on my mortgage too, it appears once you're in financial difficulty you're never out.

. . . my boiler broke down on Thursday and I've since been without heating or hot water. I have a baby on the way (not planned), and a husband facing redundancy after just two years of employment. To say I'm stressed is an understatement.

You'll feel less stressed once you take control of the situation instead of letting the situation control you.

It's about priorities.You have a new baby on the way

You have mortgage arrears so put them at the top of your To Do List so you'll feel secure about the roof over your head. How many months are the arrears and have you approached the lender to agree an arrangement to pay them as Debt Camel has suggested?

After you leave a DMP the phone calls and letters come direct so you no longer have that layer of protection (when creditors deal with your DMP provider) but you do have the opportunity to question which ones are likely to be enforceable in court and which ones aren't which can be empowering. Send a CCA Request to any creditor who chases you from now on.

Once you've got your heating and hot water sorted the outside world won't feel so threatening.

Di

[Snackajack]

Re: Letter from Shoosmiths re Capquest over £4.5k debt

Thank you so much Diana, that makes me feel better. I finally have the boiler fixed...with help from my mum.
It saddens me that I'm bringing a baby into the world and being so worried about supporting it. It wasn't what I had planned!

I'm on a payment arrangement with them and they're being so supportive. We have a plan to pay off the arrears over the next 22 months.

I've checked Noddle (thank you about that I didn't know it existed!) and found that no entry is showing for the shop direct debt? Is that not strange? I thought they had to show all my credit arrangements on there? There's a shop direct entry for a £750 debt which was a different catalogue (very) and that debt is still outstanding, but none for the larger one.

The CCA request has been sent to them today. Should I send anything to Shoosmiths?

[nemesis45]

Re: Letter from Shoosmiths re Capquest over £4.5k debt

Thank you so much Diana, that makes me feel better. I finally have the boiler fixed...with help from my mum.
It saddens me that I'm bringing a baby into the world and being so worried about supporting it. It wasn't what I had planned!

I'm on a payment arrangement with them and they're being so supportive. We have a plan to pay off the arrears over the next 22 months.

I've checked Noddle (thank you about that I didn't know it existed!) and found that no entry is showing for the shop direct debt? Is that not strange? I thought they had to show all my credit arrangements on there? There's a shop direct entry for a £750 debt which was a different catalogue (very) and that debt is still outstanding, but none for the larger one.

The CCA request has been sent to them today. Should I send anything to Shoosmiths?

There is another free credit reference run by Experian called Clear Score.

Keep an eye on your credit files to see if anyone is making searches forewarned is forearmed!

nem

[charitynjw]

Re: Letter from Shoosmiths re Capquest over £4.5k debt

The CCA request has been sent to them today. Should I send anything to Shoosmiths?

If the Shoosmith letter is a 'Letter Before Action' threatening court it might be wise to inform them that you have requested information from their client via CCA s78.
Keep a copy & get proof of posting.
Can you remember (approximately) when this agreement started?

[Snackajack]

Re: Letter from Shoosmiths re Capquest over £4.5k debt

Hi Charitynjw,

I've got a statement from the CCCS today which actually shows that the payments were made until June 2012. This is when they stopped paying Shop direct. The interest continued to be applied and they were the only creditor to do so.

I've got a plain letter with a copy of Shoosmiths letter, to Shoosmiths saying:-
I've written to your client Capquest investments ltd for further information under the CCA, Section 78.

Should I add anything to that??

[ellierob]

Re: Letter from Shoosmiths re Capquest over £4.5k debt

Good afternoon, welcome to LB.

Carter ( now ceased trading) and Shoosmiths are/were just solicitors for rent in the debt collection industry.

Who is Shoosmiths acting for?

When did payments via the DMP cease?

Do you know when the account was defaulted? The debt not being on credit files may mean it was more than 6 years ago.

Unfortunately from what you say re the DMP the debt is not statute barred.

So you need to make a request to Shoosmiths client for a copy of the Littlewoods/shop direct agreement, there is a template in the green box at the top of the " court claim " forum. ( CCA Request) there's a £1 statutory fee to pay use a postal order marked " For Statutory Fee Only". If possible use signed for post so you can check the delivery date and signature.

nem

I have done this for my letter from shoosmiths but they have replied...We refer to the above matter and your letter dated 4th Nov. We have issued your £1.00 cheque (it was a postal order) and requested a copy of the signed Consumer credit agreement as per your request.
Once upon receipt of this document, we shall issue this to you. Please not that our client is under no obligation to provide you with this within 12 working days.
Please not that our client remains keep to set up a payment arrangement with you that is both suitable and affordable for you to maintain. You may wish to contact us on 03700868120 to discuss the matter.
If you need to seek advce, there are a number of agencies listed on the next page of this letter. Organisations such as Citizens Advice Bureau and Step change debt charity can offer services that should not incur any expense.

Yours faithfully.,.

I am not sure how to proceed with this.

Can any one suggest?

[Snackajack]

Re: Letter from Shoosmiths re Capquest over £4.5k debt

No idea EllieRob,
Can they issue legal proceedings when you've requested this agreement? Or do they wait to send to you and then start the process? I have no idea.
I hope some beagles can help you.