Hmm, advice plz regarding debt letter in my wifes name

MeatLoaf

MeatLoaf

MeatLoaf

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A few months back my wife recieved a debt collection letter from HL Legal claiming she owed Halifax PLC the total of £967

Now on this letter we noticed several things wrong:

1: They spelt her name wrong
2: She has never banked with Halifax

So we ignored it until last week another letter arrived, this time i emailled them explaining the situation.

They have written back stating the debt is for a credit card which she apparently signed up for on 11/6/00

My wifes DOB is 14/5/85 so by my maths that makes her 15 at the time they say she opened the account.

What should i do now, i have emailled the company and told them this and im now waiting for thier reply

We intend to visit the halifax just to get confirmation from them that shes never had an account so that should this go to court we have the evidence to fight them
 
It won't go anywhere near a court. It's clearly just an admin error or mistaken identity.

Give them a call, explain the situation and it will be over with the minimum of fuss :).
 
Whatever you do it is not time to ignore them. Best nip this in the bud. As the facts are clear then it should just be a matter of you getting in touch with someone sensible.

However in the unlikely event of something going wrong perhaps there is an agency you could get involved in this? The Citizens Advice Bureau might help?
 
I would book an appointment with the manager to discuss the issue before you contact a solicitor. It sounds as though it will be resolved quite quickly.
 
If they are saying the accound was opened in 2000 and she was only 15 then they clearly have the wrong person. Say that she couldnt not of been the card owner as she was not legally allowed to obtain credit of any form.

This is a fairly common mistake though, I had a letter a few years back from the Halifax saying I owed them £3k on an overdraft, I said thats impossible, if i had owed them that much I would have known about it as I had banked with Halifax for over 10 years.

Turns out someone they were chasing by the same name owed the money, they just put 2 + 2 togeather and made 5.
 
MadMossy said:
If they are saying the accound was opened in 2000 and she was only 15 then they clearly have the wrong person. Say that she couldnt not of been the card owner as she was not legally allowed to obtain credit of any form.

This is a fairly common mistake though, I had a letter a few years back from the Halifax saying I owed them £3k on an overdraft, I said thats impossible, if i had owed them that much I would have known about it as I had banked with Halifax for over 10 years.

Turns out someone they were chasing by the same name owed the money, they just put 2 + 2 togeather and made 5.
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Yep, chances are it's a "fishing" trip by the debt collection agency, sending letters to anyone with a similar name in the area.
 
Better get it nipped in the bud as credit rating agencies are totally outwith the UK legal service and trying to get your name removed from a credit rating agencies list is like getting rid of herpes simplex. :(

The mear fact that a debt chasing company is looking for money may mean it will be too late and when you go to buy anything on HP it will be "computer says no!".

My mum had to jump through hoops to open a rainbow account for my son as we don't like in Scotland anymore. Last month they sent a letter to my son aged 4 asking for his NI number for tax purposes, or else they will have to charge withholding tax. Apparently if you are a child and it's a rainbow account you shouldn't pay any tax anyway.

It's a crazy system just don't ever leave the UK because it's damned hard to get back into the system once you leave.
 
Due to the times involed the debt would be Statute Barred now. In england after 6 years the debt is no longer chaseable in courts as long as you have not acknowledged or corresponded regarding the debt. This means the company can ask you for the cash but cannot pester you or take you to court.

Many companies do this, chase old debt on occasion or even sell the debt on to a company who will attempt to collect.

If they contact you again just advise them that you are disputing the debt, then contact the CAB who are good at resolving these matters. But dont worry, no court action will come of it.
 
Well despite several letters back and forth i thought we had sorted it after not hearing anything for a few weeks, but low and behold my wife today recieved another letter saying they were going to issue Statutory Demand under section 268(1) (a) of the insovancy act 1986

Ive looked into this and i should be able to get it set aside as im disputing the debt on the grounds she was only 15 when the debt was made.

However im not very keen that by the end of the month she could be bankrupt and the house raided for our stuff.

The only thing she owns in this house is her laptop, everything else ive brought when we seperated a few years back, although most things were got 2nd habd so i dont have any reciepts.

I have spoken to capquest ( the debt collector sending the letters ) and again i have to send my wifes birth certificate along with our marriage certificate, again!!
 
MeatLoaf said:
Well despite several letters back and forth i thought we had sorted it after not hearing anything for a few weeks, but low and behold my wife today recieved another letter saying they were going to issue Statutory Demand under section 268(1) (a) of the insovancy act 1986

Ive looked into this and i should be able to get it set aside as im disputing the debt on the grounds she was only 15 when the debt was made.
Click to expand...

I remembered this thread.

So the debt was made by her in the end?

Regardless, get a solicitor on the case, pronto.
 
The first rule is: Never ever speak to these people on the phone.Make sure that any correspondence is in writing.If you don't then they will lie and threaten you with all sorts of nonsense just to get money out of you.

I would also not send them any personal details.They have to prove to you that you owe them money.

Also they cannot just turn up at your house and raid it.They would first have to take you to Court and obtain a CCJ.

You could also sue them for damages if they put false information on the credit record.I.E if they register a default.

As already mention, if the alleged debt is over 6 years, and you have not made any payments within that time then it is game over for Capquest and any other DCA monkey :D

I would write to Capquest stating that under the Limitation Act 1980 this alleged debt is Statute barred.
http://www.opsi.gov.uk/RevisedStatutes/Acts/ukpga/1980/cukpga_19800058_en_2#pt1-pb3-l1g6
 
MeatLoaf said:
A few months back my wife recieved a debt collection letter from HL Legal claiming she owed Halifax PLC the total of £967

Now on this letter we noticed several things wrong:

1: They spelt her name wrong
2: She has never banked with Halifax

So we ignored it until last week another letter arrived, this time i emailled them explaining the situation.

They have written back stating the debt is for a credit card which she apparently signed up for on 11/6/00

My wifes DOB is 14/5/85 so by my maths that makes her 15 at the time they say she opened the account.

What should i do now, i have emailled the company and told them this and im now waiting for thier reply

We intend to visit the halifax just to get confirmation from them that shes never had an account so that should this go to court we have the evidence to fight them
Click to expand...

you need to say you have no knowledge of the debt, then ask them for documented proof, if there is non you'll seek legal advice if the ycarry on harrasing you. And DO NOT even say you may have knowledge of the but its over 6 years, they can restart the debt if you admit to it.
 
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mattheman said:
you need to say you have no knowledge of the debt, then ask them for documented proof, if there is non you'll seek legal advice if the ycarry on harrasing you.
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Good advice, and as others have said, get the Citizens Advice Bureau to help. It's free !
 
Thanks for the advice, i'll draft a letter up anf post it here so you can help with any criticisms. Im slightly worried over the timescale given the current postal strikes as she only has until the 12th september now to respond to this latest letter. I think i will send them a copy of my wifes ID as that will prove beyond doubt her age at the time this debt was allegedly run up.
 
dont worry debt collectors are all mouth get over to consumer action group forums and ask there they are expert at dealing with these morons
 
Meatloaf don't panic.

Keep copies of all correspondance and if they do in fact issue court proceedings (very unlikely as not only is her defence pretty clear cut - too young to have signed for it legally, even if she had), it's almost certainly statute barred anyway, plus the court will look at the facts and laugh them out of court with a demand they pay your costs.

The key thing is, if they do issue any court proceedings don't ignore them, and if they issue them for Northampton or anywhere outside of easy travelling distance for you ask them to move it to your local court.

But as has already been said it's extremely unlikely, and much more likely they are a bunch of chancers who have bought up a bunch of debts without anything other than a name, and amount (possibly they might have a town of residence at the time of the debt!), who are relying on people panicking.

If you are worried the likes of the CAB should be able to help with professional information, as might your household insurance if you've got legal cover.
 
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