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Post by lisa on Aug 7, 2008 5:45:00 GMT -5
hi there
what if you are the person they are truly seeking? is there any way of getting out of it??
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Post by Webmaster on Aug 7, 2008 17:14:38 GMT -5
hi there what if you are the person they are truly seeking? is there any way of getting out of it?? If the debt is yours and you are willing to repay it in instalments that are affordable to you, you can send Leeds Consultancy Services and/or the original creditor a breakdown of your income and expenditure, which will indicate the amount of money you can reasonably afford to repay. www.nationaldebtline.co.uk has a good information pack and a blank income and expenditure chart that you can fill in on your computer. If you would prefer not to deal with Leeds Consultancy Services, or any other debt collection agency, you could ask the company to whom you owe money if you can pay them directly. I *think* the company is obliged by law to allow you to do this - i.e. you don't have to deal with the debt collector - but I'm not entirely sure on that one. If you do owe money but the amount Leeds Consultancy Services is claiming is not correct, contact the company to whom you owe the money and ask them to give LCS the correct information. Tell LCS you won't deal with them until they have sent you the corrected correspondence. If LCS are harassing you by phone, you can write to them by recorded delivery and ask that they only deal with you in writing. If they ignore you, you can take the matter further. Don't allow LCS to bully or intimidate you in any phone call. Just say "I will only deal with you in writing, please do not call again, goodbye" and end the call. Depending on the value of the debt and/or the company's assessment of how likely they are to get some or all of the money back, you may be pursued in a County Court, with a view to obtaining a County Court Judgement against you. This will sit on your credit file for some years and will make it more difficult for you to obtain credit in future - but more seriously, bailiffs will be authorised to take your possessions to clear the debt if you do not pay voluntarily. I think the short answer to your question is: yes, it is possible to evade your creditors and simply not pay, but it is risky and it WILL damage your credit file, even if you don't get a County Court Judgement. If you can pay even a very small amount per month, then it makes sense to offer it. It really depends on your personal circumstances. If the debt being chased by LCS is just one of many, you might want to consider other options, such as an IVA or bankruptcy. Information on both is at nationaldebtline.co.uk. |
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Post by KAZ on Nov 11, 2008 6:23:12 GMT -5
I got a card with red print on it threatening to call at my house on a specified day. The card was of a threatening nature and therefore very intimidating. The address is actually my fathers address but at the moment I have nowhere else to live and very little money to live on. I am worried that they will just turn up when I am not there and intimidate my father who is 87 years old and start taking goods of his away. Do they have the right to do this? I personally have no possessions, they were all left in the flat I was evicted from because I had nowhere to take them at that time. I have spoken to the original people I have the debt with asking that I pay in instalments and am waiting to hear back. Next thing is I get this threatening card put through my dads letterbox. Really scared.
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Post by Webmaster on Nov 12, 2008 17:53:27 GMT -5
Kaz - the intimidating postcard is just standard procedure for Leeds Consultancy Services. The date is just an attempt to provoke a fast response - I don't think they have any intention of visiting you. I received a card and they never came.
Debt collection agencies don't have the right to enter your home or take goods away. If you failed to pay the debt, or make any attempt to repay it, it is possible that the creditor will seek a County Court Judgement against you. If this happens, you will get a form in the post and the chance to submit a defence of the claim. If you failed to respond, or your defence failed, you would get a County Court Judgement. If you then failed to pay off the amount of the judgement, it is possible that bailiffs would call at your home. You would get a letter from your local court before this happens, and the chance to make an offer of repayment, even at that late stage. Even if bailiffs call at your home, they cannot force their way in unless they have been inside your property previously. They will only get in if you let them in, or they can enter peacefully (i.e. through an open door or window). So the message there is never let anyone who calls at your home regarding a debt into your property, regardless of any documentation they may show (including court papers or warrants), or anyone they may have with them (including police officers, who are sometimes present if they think there may be a breach of the peace)..
Don't communicate with or pay any money to Leeds Consultancy Services - if they know someone cares about their letters and phone calls, they will harass you further. You can make any payments directly to the people you owe.
You have absolutely no need to be scared. You have made an offer to repay by instalments. You are doing everything right. Don't let these people intimidate you. There is no way they can remove any property.
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Post by Kaz on Nov 19, 2008 5:36:17 GMT -5
thank you so much for answering my question. you have put my mind at rest a bit. i wrote to them after receiving their red card and told them that I have made an offer to the people of paying in instalments. they were due to turn up yesterday but didnt. I havent been able to speak to my dad about it because he has cancer and is 87 and I am frightening the shock of someone turning up at his door will destroy him. So so worried about him. They have just this morning left another message on my voicemail telling me to call them but once again I am scared to answer their call. i havent slept for weeks now. averaging two hours a night if I am lucky. What really upsets me is that I made an offer and they dont seem to care about that. I wish you could listen to the voicemail I have from a chap from LCS called Richard. He is very intimidating. I am 50 years old and not in good health myself. Dad has cancer, brother is in remission from cancer, mum died not that long ago. Dont know how much more I can stand.
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Post by Webmaster on Nov 24, 2008 19:30:44 GMT -5
Kaz,
If LCS are harassing you by phone, you can write to them (preferably by recorded delivery) and ask them to stop. If they fail to stop, you can take the matter further. LCS won't care that you've made an offer to the original company, because LCS won't get their cut if you pay the company directly.
Remember it's your telephone, and you have the right to choose who you want to speak to on it. If you answer their call, just say "I will only deal with you in writing, please don't call again, goodbye", don't wait for their response, just put the phone down.
You might also want to write to the company you owe money to and say what LCS are doing to you - if they have any ethical sense at all, they might consider the harm they are doing and think twice about employing LCS in future. A long shot, but it can't hurt.
Fear is the debt collector's biggest weapon. They send you scary letters and leave you intimidating phone messages because that's all they've got. There's nothing they can actually do unless they get a County Court Judgement against you. Even if it gets to that stage, you will be able to defend the claim by saying you've tried to reach an arrangement with the original creditor.
So I hope you sleep better soon. Nobody likes owing money, but you've got nothing to worry about, because you're doing everything right.
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