Debt Collecting Agency.. Frustrating!!

Mom2Be

Hi all,
Looking for some advice..

To cut a long story short i switched home phone and broadband to vodafone. Fell €40 behind in payments and woke up to no phone or no broadband. Rang them and was told that there was a bar put on my account until the bill was paid.

I was so frustrated i switched to eircom hours later. Gave 5 days without service so said id pay the bill, services resumed straight away but went ahead with switch to eircom.

Recieved more bills from VF but rang and said my service was changed and why was i being billed? Basically my 12 months contract wasnt up yet so i have to pay cancellation fees. Total amount owed to VF is €251.60.
I have let this go for over 2 months as was only working casual hours and gettin less then the dole :mad: But had to work or else i wouldnt get maternity leave. Im dues my daughter number 2 in 3 weeks.

Recieved letter last week from debt collecting agent stating that VF have passed on debt and they want €281.79, with being heavily pregnant and tired all the time it slipped my mind untill this mornin when they rang me.

I offered to pay them €20 per month as with mortgage, credit union, baby stuff to buy and partner only on Jobseekers it is all i can afford. They said they want €80 a month and i said i can not physically give you what i dont have right now. They said, not our problem, ull have a solicitors letter from us in the next 7 days. I was stunned so just said ok and got off the phone..

Need help, Im worried sick and with 3 weeks to my due date, stress is the last thing i need

Boggles

Mom2Be wrote: »

I offered to pay them €20 per month as with mortgage, credit union, baby stuff to buy and partner only on Jobseekers it is all i can afford. They said they want €80 a month and i said i can not physically give you what i dont have right now. They said, not our problem, ull have a solicitors letter from us in the next 7 days. I was stunned so just said ok and got off the phone..

Need help, Im worried sick and with 3 weeks to my due date, stress is the last thing i need

Write to them immediately and put your offer of €20 euro a month on paper. Outline why you can't pay more.

Here is a sample letter from mabs that you can copy.

http://www.mabs.ie/process/step3_5.html

Keep copies of all correspondence.

ShooterSF

Remember too that Debt collectors have no legal authority over you and would have to drag you to the courts like anyone else. I'd do as boggles says but I'd send the letter to vodafone and tell them your contract was with them and it's them you will be dealing with.

Dont let a debt collector intimidate you.

91011

check the vodafone T&C's - read them carefully and see if there's a get out clause.

They disconnected you and as such they suspended your service.

Legally as they "suspended" your service, the service is not recommenced until you pay off the outstanding amount of €40.

I'd reckon that the T&c's could read in your favour.

Write to VF and tell them you are querying why charges were still being applied whilst they had the service terminated. (Write - do not telephone)

As for the debt collectors - tell them you have written to VF disputing the charges and ask them not to call you again while you are awaiting an answer from VF.

Mom2Be

Thanks for the replies guys..

I spoke to VF today and explained my situation, asked if i could give the €20 a month to them but they said there was nothing they could do as the debt had been passed over. He was a nice guy and quiet shocked at how i was spoken to but still nothing he could do.

Im just worried that im going to answer the door to some big heavy ordering me to hand over the money. Do they send people out or does anybody know what the process is?

I also dont exactly want to end up in court over a small amount. Have never not paid a debt in my life and have every intention of paying this one but just not able to pay the amount per month they are looking for.

91011

OK - read the t&c's. They have is quite well covered, so now my question to them would be.

As you have paid line rental to eircom for the line and that eircom have not billed vodafone for the line, the only payment to Vodafone should be the difference between the line rental and package rental.

This could be seen similar to a situation where airlines kept the airport chrges & taxes when a customer did not take the flight - these charges are now refundable and airline can only charge a reasonable fee against the paperwork involved.

Suggest that the issue is reffered to comreg for looking into. - You might find that suddenly they'll make an exception.

Mom2Be

Thank you 91011,

I am going to do what boggles suggested using the sample letter. Lets just hope i get a response from somebody in their offices that is human.

Thanks again for the reply, really apreciate it

wmpdd3

they will not call to your house looking to repo your stuff. Only deal with vodafone, not the debt collectors. If they call, tell them you do not recognise them as a debtor, only vodafone, though it may be too late. See what they say to the letter.

Mom2Be

wmpdd3 wrote: »

they will not call to your house looking to repo your stuff. Only deal with vodafone, not the debt collectors. If they call, tell them you do not recognise them as a debtor, only vodafone, though it may be too late. See what they say to the letter.

But when i contacted VF today they told me there was nothing they could do, the debt had been passed over so i have to deal with the agency now

jclally

Who are the debt collection agency? I worked for a bank in collections, in the morning I was calling from the bank, in the afternoon I was calling from a collection agency, may be the same setup

Mom2Be

jclally wrote: »

Who are the debt collection agency? I worked for a bank in collections, in the morning I was calling from the bank, in the afternoon I was calling from a collection agency, may be the same setup

Intrum Jusitia~ Im assuming its ok to name them as they have been named here on previous threads..

Doom

Mom2Be wrote: »

Intrum Jusitia~ Im assuming its ok to name them as they have been named here on previous threads..

I had a similar situation with Digiweb, they passed on my debt to same shower, I just ignored them, they may get a judgement against you for the amount owed, but don't worry, we're all indebted up to our necks, couple of hundred will make no difference......anyway I never paid them, checked my credit rating 2 months ago, no mention of it

Mom2Be

Thanks Doom,

You've made me feel a bit better. Im just wondering what to do if i receive the solicitors letter they say they i will have within the next 7 days.

I mean i have offered to pay them, but as they are refusing the amount i can afford im not sure what else to do. The more i told her on the phone that as much as id love to give her what she is asking but i physically cannot give somebody something i dont have the more annoyed and aggressive she got.

The way things are at the minute id prefer to try and keep a roof over our heads.
Oh i dunno, if i dont laugh im going to cry, either that or go into labour early. And thats one thing i could do without.

Del2005

Mom2Be wrote: »

Thanks Doom,

You've made me feel a bit better. Im just wondering what to do if i receive the solicitors letter they say they i will have within the next 7 days.

AFAIK solicitors letters are just the same as any other letter, they've no extra legal standing. They send them out to try and frighten people. If they want the money from you they have to start legal proceedings and issue a summons.

I mean i have offered to pay them, but as they are refusing the amount i can afford im not sure what else to do. The more i told her on the phone that as much as id love to give her what she is asking but i physically cannot give somebody something i dont have the more annoyed and aggressive she got.

The way things are at the minute id prefer to try and keep a roof over our heads.
Oh i dunno, if i dont laugh im going to cry, either that or go into labour early. And thats one thing i could do without.

Send a letter to the debt collectors with the payments you can make, then contact MABS with a copy of the letter. They will contact the debt collectors on your behalf and try and sort it out.

Mom2Be

Thanks Del,

I am going to send a letter tomorrow stating my situation and what i can afford so fingers crossed they will accept it (even though they refused on the phone)

91011

Had further thought on this -

I still think a letter to VF rather than the debt collectors is best route. + Letter to debt collectors telling them that you have noticed a serious anomaly on the bill and have written to vodafone to ask them to explain it and that should vodafone not respond, the issue will be sent to comreg.

It will get Intrum Justicia off your back (they don't and cannot send people to your door - they use the fear of court action to get responses and also can only call you a certain number of times before its legally considered as harrassment)

Write to vodafone and ask them to deduct the line rental charge for the period from when you rejoined eircom to the end of the contract, as they are only agents for eircom in terms of line rental and you have paid eircom yourself directly for the line rental. Hence you should not be paying for the exact same line twice.

Tell them that you believe the line rental should be treated in the same way as airport charges, (refundable in full even on a non refundable ticket) and that unless they can show the Eircom has charged them for that specific line rental, you demand an immediate credit for the number of months line rental was charged without the servioce being attached to Vodafone.

And end with...
I hope I receive a favourable outcome to this, but I am willing to bring the situation to the notice of comreg if a favourable outcome is not given.






I do know someone in VF (at a high level) and might send the an email to see what their reaction is to my "query". I can't intervene in any issue, but it will be interesting to see their take on it. - But any legal heads here might have an opinion.


damn - I think I've opened a can of worms for VF and other telecoms:D

Dempo1

ShooterSF wrote: »

Remember too that Debt collectors have no legal authority over you and would have to drag you to the courts like anyone else. I'd do as boggles says but I'd send the letter to vodafone and tell them your contract was with them and it's them you will be dealing with.

Dont let a debt collector intimidate you.

Absolutely! Whilst the debt will have to be paid, the OP is under no legal obligation to either entertain or deal with the Vulture Debt Agency. A minimum payment to Vodafone should commence whether they like it or not and the OP should only deal in written communication from now on.

As an aside, Debt Agencies are themselves in serious trouble, indeed quite a few have given up on the Irish Market. The old model of threats and intimidation no longer work and more specifically the District Courts have ceased granting installment orders against Social welfare recipients. In a nutshell debt recovery has essentially come to a stand still with no immediate improvement in the situation. Finally, the debt the OP refers to is such that it would not be cost effective to pursue it to district court level and besides an installment order is highly UN likely if the OP can clearly prove her means.

Mom2Be

Thanks for all the replies guys, I really appreciate them..

After a good nights sleep ive settled down a bit and the initial panic is gone. There are families in the country that are being made homeless every week because they are struggling so much.

At the end of the day, i have made contact with this agency (where many would have ignored them) and offered to pay them what i can afford to weekly until the debt is paid off. Its my debt, i am willing to pay it, im not ignoring it but it is not my fault that they want 4 times that amount each week.
Should their solicitor contact me like she said, i will explain my case to him.

As i have stated before, i have 3 weeks until baby number 2 comes along and at the moment, the little lady in my tummy is my priority and im not going to stress myself out to the point where i have a premature baby over €281.79.

I will keep ye posted And thanks again 4 all the replies..

paddy2k1

Don't worry about Vodafone or the debt collectors, if you are really struggling ignore them, in ireland only banks can ruin your credit rating straight off, vodafone have no power to do this unless they bring you to court which is highly unlikely for 280 euro,

it wouldnt be worth their while, now if you owed thousands they would, its costly to bring people to court,

debt collection agencies are powerless, they can frighten you but not much else.

If you really want them off your back and dont want to pay, next time they ring tell them you emigrated, return letters saying not known at this address

on the other hand if they were a bank your credit rating would be in the red straight off and until you payed the amount in full, banks send their bad debts to collection companies then after 6 months of trying to get it off you directly.

this is unacceptable from vodafone, my guess is that they have outsourced this to a debt collection agency because they don't have the man power to chase you down and send you letters.

I think ireland is one of the only countries in europe where domestic bills, ie phone, electricity, cable/satelite bills outstanding don't affect your credit rating

We are a nation of slow payers, its just the way we are and if they made it law that domestic bills were able to ruin your credit rating, we would be all in the red.

don't worry about vodafone or that small amount, they have bigger fish to fry and i reckon in this current economic slow down you have nothing to worry.

They can't send the lads around either, thats something the mafia would do, or a loan shark

hope this helped

davo10

Playing Devil's Advocate, OP had a contract and ran up the debt by using Vodaphone's service so the onus is on her to pay. You are probably right that the service provider will not use the courts for such a small amount but if bad debts rise, that policy may change.


Also consider the effect a debt collector ringing the door bell of a neighbour or turning up at a work place and informing people who they are and why they are there will have on the person owing the debt. Remember debt collectors are paid a percentage of the debt recovered do they will persist.

ShooterSF

davo10 wrote: »

Playing Devil's Advocate, OP had a contract and ran up the debt by using Vodaphone's service so the onus is on her to pay. You are probably right that the service provider will not use the courts for such a small amount but if bad debts rise, that policy may change.


Also consider the effect a debt collector ringing the door bell of a neighbour or turning up at a work place and informing people who they are and why they are there will have on the person owing the debt. Remember debt collectors are paid a percentage of the debt recovered do they will persist.

Even if the debt collector was getting 50% (which I would doubt) putting in a couple of hours getting to and tracking down the OP would hardly be worth it.

Also, "informing people who they are and why they are there", I'm open to correction but would this not be in breach of Data Protection?

partyatmygaff

davo10 wrote: »

Also consider the effect a debt collector ringing the door bell of a neighbour or turning up at a work place and informing people who they are and why they are there

If they were ever stupid enough to try and do that solicitors around the country would rejoice for an easy case. That would be a serious breach of the data protection act.

drunkmonkey

If something like this goes to court and there's a judgement against op she will be liable for costs. The debt may only be 200 euro odd but the legal fees will bump that up quite substantially. The total owed once judgement is obtained could be around €2000.

The easiest thing would be just to pay it and be done with it. The debt collector might settle for 100 or 150 to clear off the debt and stop legal proceedings.

alanacadia

I would not worry too much the health of your new baby comes first at all times.
regarding the debt collectors, you can write to them and tell them you do not have any contract with them and that you will only deal with VF regarding the origional debt, also include in your letter to the debt collectors, that if they keep harrasing you you will file a complaint with the Gardai,

Next if you get that solicitors letter , outline what you can manege to pay VF , most solicitors will present your offer back to thier clients.

Should the case ever even go near a court, the fact that you offerd to pay that Bill will always be in your favour, your not refusing to pay the bill, your just offering to pay it as you can rightfully manage to pay, and also include in your letter of offer to the solicitor thats if your situation improves you will clear the debt sooner rather than later, no judge in thier right mind is going to go with VF, as you are a mother trying to feed and look after your children most important fact of life,

So finally you just chillax, take things real easy for the sake of the new baby, and sure if you ever need any advice sure we are all here to fully support you at all times.

Cheers and good luck with the new baby

Mom2Be

davo10 wrote: »

Playing Devil's Advocate, OP had a contract and ran up the debt by using Vodaphone's service so the onus is on her to pay. You are probably right that the service provider will not use the courts for such a small amount but if bad debts rise, that policy may change.


Also consider the effect a debt collector ringing the door bell of a neighbour or turning up at a work place and informing people who they are and why they are there will have on the person owing the debt. Remember debt collectors are paid a percentage of the debt recovered do they will persist.

Thanks for your 2 cents davo10 but if you read through the posts ~ not once did i say that i was unwilling to pay the debt. What i said was that i offered an amount and they refused! Im not sure about you but in my world its not physically possible to give somebody something you dont have..

And i have already had the threatening letters from them stating they will call to my door and publish judgement against me. The whole amount is €271.89.. In my opinion, they would have to be getting 100% of it to make it worthwhile.

Mom2Be

alanacadia wrote: »

I would not worry too much the health of your new baby comes first at all times.
regarding the debt collectors, you can write to them and tell them you do not have any contract with them and that you will only deal with VF regarding the origional debt, also include in your letter to the debt collectors, that if they keep harrasing you you will file a complaint with the Gardai,

Next if you get that solicitors letter , outline what you can manege to pay VF , most solicitors will present your offer back to thier clients.

Should the case ever even go near a court, the fact that you offerd to pay that Bill will always be in your favour, your not refusing to pay the bill, your just offering to pay it as you can rightfully manage to pay, and also include in your letter of offer to the solicitor thats if your situation improves you will clear the debt sooner rather than later, no judge in thier right mind is going to go with VF, as you are a mother trying to feed and look after your children most important fact of life,

So finally you just chillax, take things real easy for the sake of the new baby, and sure if you ever need any advice sure we are all here to fully support you at all times.

Cheers and good luck with the new baby

Such a lovely message alancadia.. I really appreciate it..
As it goes i have stopped worrying for the time being. I have also emailed VF stating what is going on and have offered the payment to them directly.
(Havnt heard a word back in nearly 2 weeks, i wonder should i send it again or wait?)
I emailed Justitia and informed them that i am awaiting a reply from VF and i would appreciate if they didnt contact me again until such time as i receive a reply as i have a contract with VF and not them. They emailed back and said they would speak to their client (VF)

I also agree that my baby is my priority now and until such time that she is born, everything else will have to wait.

Thank you very much for the reply

djk1000

Debt collectors have absolutely no legal authority, it is just a bluff, it is all a bluff. The can't tell anyone else (like your work or neighbors) because they'd leave themselves open to a defamation claim.

If you are communicating with them by phone/letter, then a dim view would be taken if they started to put pressure on you by visiting in person.

Lets say that they decide to take you to court, you walk in and tell the judge that you can only afford €20, and show him/her a budget that backs it up. Under the law the judge can only make a payment order based on your realistic ability to repay, the debt collector would then be legally bound to accept payments of €20. Long story short, they know this, so they won't take you to court. You have the power, not them.

You owe the money and you have to pay it back, but just stand your ground, use the MABS template letters, only deal with them in writing and consistently say that you only have the ability to pay €20 per month.

If you want to get difficult with them, point out that your contract is with Vodafone not the agency and that you're doing them a favour by dealing with them at all.

The debt collector has no right to add fees or interest, refuse to pay that for a start, the only extras you would have to pay are their legal costs if they take you to court, you'd be paying those as part of your €20 installments.

If your debt is €250, the the debt collector probably bought it off Vodafone for say €100, so they are making their profit already. If you could manage to get maybe €150, you can make them an offer of €150 in full and final settlement of the debt, say that a relative is making the offer not you and it's on condition of full and final settlement.

Mom2Be

Just a quick question ~ Even though i spoke to a vf customer service rep and was told the debt had been passed on and there was nothing he could do (although he couldnt understand why they wouldnt accept the payment), Vodafone are still sending me online bills..

Should i just start to make my payments of them seen as they are still sending them?
Also i have never received aletter from VF stating they had passed over the debt,just a letter from Intrum sayin they are currently collecting it now..

Why are they still sending me the bills if they dont own the debt..

Kristopherus

Mom2Be, the advice you got from djk1000 is spot on. Do not, under any circumstance speak personally with either Vodafone or the Debt Collection Agency. Deal with them only through correspondence, and via snail mail if possible, as it will buy you time if nothing else. Regarding the current bills from Vodafone, write to them and ask why are they still sending bills directly to you when they had sent your case to the Collectors.Best of luck with that matter and also your forthcoming event.

Mom2Be

Kristopherus wrote: »

Mom2Be, the advice you got from djk1000 is spot on. Do not, under any circumstance speak personally with either Vodafone or the Debt Collection Agency. Deal with them only through correspondence, and via snail mail if possible, as it will buy you time if nothing else. Regarding the current bills from Vodafone, write to them and ask why are they still sending bills directly to you when they had sent your case to the Collectors.Best of luck with that matter and also your forthcoming event.

Thank you for replying.
I wonder should i wait for a reply to the email i sent them or just go ahead and write a letter? Im not sure if they have even received the email. Oh this is so frustrating.. And thank you for the best wishes
This is supposed to be one of the happiest times in my life but instead it is being overshadowed by all this going on. I just feel like screaming

Mom2Be

Ok.. Just looking over the letters from intrum.

1st one ~ We would like to give you the opportunity to contact us before any of the following actions are initiated:

*Additional costs and interest will be added to balance..
*A collector will call directly to your residence.
*We will proceed to judgement and publish the disclosure in national publications such as Stubbs Gazette.

2nd one ~ We notice that you have not availed of our previous opportunities to resolve payment of the amount outstanding. (even though i phoned and offered what i could afford but they wouldnt accept)

*We are now seeking authorisation from our client to issue legal proceedings without delay.
*When we proceed we will seek to cover all costs and interest accrues on this debt together with approval court legal costs.
*We will be seeking to publish any judgement obtained against you as soon as possible.

Then i came across this ~

Non-Fatal Offences Against the Person Act, 1997

11.—(1) A person who makes any demand for payment of a debt shall be guilty of an offence if—


(a) the demands by reason of their frequency are calculated to subject the debtor or a member of the family of the debtor to alarm, distress or humiliation, or

(b) the person falsely represents that criminal proceedings lie for non-payment of the debt, or

(c) the person falsely represents that he or she is authorised in some official capacity to enforce payment, or

(d) the person utters a document falsely represented to have an official character.

(2) A person guilty of an offence under this section shall be liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding £1,500.

Im just wondering if what was written in the letters to me would be covered by paragraph (a)..

dave1982

It amazes me how debt collectors put fear into people.

Send a registered letter stating that you can only afford 20 per month.

Request their reply in writing.

Like other posters said judges can only make you can pay what afford.

Should it go to court produce their refusal to accept your genuine offer of repayment.

I can see it's upsetting you

Go away and have your baby and try not to worry about it.

Best of luck with your baby and the debt collectors:)

Mom2Be

Am i that easy to see through

But thank you for the reply. I am not sure whether to send them a letter stating what i can afford though as i already told them via email not to contact me until i receive a reply from an email i sent VF.
And they replied ~
Thank you for your e-mail, we are querying with client and will revert as soon as update is received.

I think i will wait until i hear from either them or VF and then only respond via registered letter.



Thanks again and yes i will concentrate on having my baby

Cabaal

For 250 odd no debt collector will ever go to court over it, its not worth the time and costs, if you've presented what your willing to pay in writing and they have refused then you've been extremely reasonable.

If they won't take what your willing to give them then I'd tell them to feck off, they have no powers in Ireland.

As for Vodafone like any company they can take payment and once the debt is cleared this will in turn stop the debt collection process, the benefit of dealing with vodafone over the Debt collection agency is you won't have to bother paying debt collection fee's that they slap on..

kilbil

Mom2Be wrote: »

Hi all,
Looking for some advice..

To cut a long story short i switched home phone and broadband to vodafone. Fell €40 behind in payments and woke up to no phone or no broadband. Rang them and was told that there was a bar put on my account until the bill was paid.

I was so frustrated i switched to eircom hours later. Gave 5 days without service so said id pay the bill, services resumed straight away but went ahead with switch to eircom.

Recieved more bills from VF but rang and said my service was changed and why was i being billed? Basically my 12 months contract wasnt up yet so i have to pay cancellation fees. Total amount owed to VF is €251.60.
I have let this go for over 2 months as was only working casual hours and gettin less then the dole :mad: But had to work or else i wouldnt get maternity leave. Im dues my daughter number 2 in 3 weeks.

Recieved letter last week from debt collecting agent stating that VF have passed on debt and they want €281.79, with being heavily pregnant and tired all the time it slipped my mind untill this mornin when they rang me.

I offered to pay them €20 per month as with mortgage, credit union, baby stuff to buy and partner only on Jobseekers it is all i can afford. They said they want €80 a month and i said i can not physically give you what i dont have right now. They said, not our problem, ull have a solicitors letter from us in the next 7 days. I was stunned so just said ok and got off the phone..

Need help, Im worried sick and with 3 weeks to my due date, stress is the last thing i need

Just a quick thought, did VF send you any demands seeking payment of the €40 or a final demand saying that if the €40 wasnt paid they'd be disconnecting the service? If they didn't, I'd be inclined to say that vodafone possibly broke the contract by disconnecting the service. To disconnect a service because €40 euros is owing on an account to me seems totally and utterly unreasonable! If thats the case you could adopt the line that VF broke the contract by disconnecting the service - you only owe them €40....and not one penny more!

As another poster said the outstanding debt is with VF and not the debt collecting agency. I'd write to the debt collecting agency and clearly state that your contract was with VF and you are disputing the amount owed on your account. I'd advise them in writing that you are having no further dealings with that debt collection agency and if they choose to persist, that you'll initiate proceedings against them for harassment.

A relative of mine had a similar problem with a phone company (albeit there was no outstanding monies owed on their account to the company) a couple of years ago. My relative woke up one morning to find their telephone and internet service disconnected by the provider without any notice and for no reason whatsoever. So, this person chose to switch providers immediately. My relative had a years contract with the provider, but as far as my relative was concerned the phone provider broke the contract first by disconnecting the service. As far as my relative was concerned there was no get out penalties therefore owed to the provider. However, the phone company had a different opinion and levied the penalties and add-ons etc.

The long and short of it was it ended up in the courts - and the phone company lost because they broke the contract!

Mom2Be

Thanks for replying..

They have themselves covered in the terms and conditions about stopping service if payment is owed.

Well as i have said before. I have emailed them and am awaiting a reply. I have the email saved and the date i sent it. Almost 2 weeks ago. It isnt my fault they have bad customer service and cannot reply to a straight forward email.

Fatbird

Hi everyone

I have a similar problem, however, a larger amount!

I owe my Credit Card Company €6100.00. I have been paying €133.00 a month up to March 2011, but due to lower money coming into the house, have been unable to pay last month, but will be paying an amount this week for this month. approx.€50.00

The credit card company already sent my debt to their own debt collections dept. a few months ago because I had 'missed' a pymt, but had paid it 2 wks later. When I spoke to the collections dept. to let them know I had paid that mths pyt and would continue paying directly to the credit card company the same amount each month going forward, they informed me I had 2 options:
1) Pay the debt in full immediately
2) Pay the debt in full over 6 mths
If I didn't choose any of these options they would instigate legal proceedings. I told them to do just that becuase I simply didn't have that kind of money to pay them. I also informed them that I currently have my property for sale and would clear the debt in full as soon as it was sold and that I have never and will never neglect a debt that I owe. This was the end of the conversation. 3 weeks later I received a 7 day solicitors letter of notice to instigate legal proceedings....that was 4 weeks ago.

Then today I receive a letter from ANOTHER DCA (Risk Management Alternatives - A.K.A. NCO Eurpope!!!) informing me they are now collecting on behalf of the creditors......I have had dealings with this shower of idiots before for a debt I DID NOT OWE!!! They are rude, aggressive and very arrogant to deal with.

I called my Credit Card Company and spoke with a collections Supervisor and explained the above and that I WILL NOT deal with this NCO crowd and would continue to make payments to them each month for what I can afford. He informed me that there was nothing he could do as the debt had been passed over to the Agency, so I asked him to note on the computer our conversation and make it clearly show that I am still willing to make monthly pyts, however, am not willing to deal with anyone other than them as they are my creditor and NOT the Agency.

Sorry for the long post!!!!

Can you please advise what I should do next?

Thanking you for your advice in advance!

slimjimmc

Fatbird wrote: »

Can you please advise what I should do next?

Thanking you for your advice in advance!

Put it in writing and send it to your C.C. Co. so there is no confusion and you'll have a permanent record of your communication (obviously keep a copy for yourself).
Tell them you await their written response. This gives you more time too.

Phone calls can all too be easily misinterpreted, forgotten, or ignored.

Fatbird

OK, will do!
Thank you Slimjimmc.

Faolchu

Mom2Be wrote: »

(a) the demands by reason of their frequency are calculated to subject the debtor or a member of the family of the debtor to alarm, distress or humiliation, or


Im just wondering if what was written in the letters to me would be covered by paragraph (a)..

I doubt 2 letters would be considered infrequent. one is the initial demand letter the second is a follow up letter. now if you were getting two a day every day for a month about the same debt then yes it would be considered excessive. Likewise if they phoned you multiple times a day, turned up at your door multiple times a day and at unreasonable hours etc that would most likely be an offense under the above clause. but two letters and the second most likely after a period of 7-14 days from the first wouldnt be considered excessive.

Mom2Be

Faolchu wrote: »

I doubt 2 letters would be considered infrequent. one is the initial demand letter the second is a follow up letter. now if you were getting two a day every day for a month about the same debt then yes it would be considered excessive. Likewise if they phoned you multiple times a day, turned up at your door multiple times a day and at unreasonable hours etc that would most likely be an offense under the above clause. but two letters and the second most likely after a period of 7-14 days from the first wouldnt be considered excessive.

It was the second part of that phrase i was referring to!