Debt letters sent to wrong address

beachBOYken

beachBOYken

beachBOYken

Soldato
Joined
18 Feb 2007
Posts
13,243
Location
London
Hi

Has anyone ever received a debt letter with your address but someone else's name?

Obviously this scummy person has used my address so I get the debt letter.

Wondering what I should do, should I just ignore them or phone the debt company and say the person at this address is not the name on the debt letter?

If I do phone and they ask for my name I wouldn't give it as it has nothing to do with me so why should they need to know any of my personal details.

Any advice, its only the first letter, but with these things, i'm likely to get another in the post.

By the way it was a mobile phone line (Three) with £700+ owed, which they have passed on to a debt agency.
 
Last edited:
Had similar before but due to death of the previous house owner.

Phone the debt company and tell them the person doesn't live and has never lived at this address, make it clear you consider this closed and no more correspondence should be sent to this address.

Ignore it long enough and debt collectors will start knocking on the door.
 
Last edited:
Rob_B said:
Depends what kind of letter it is, is it an enforcement letter?

www.citizensadvice.org.uk

Stopping bailiffs if you don't owe the debt

Check how to stop bailiffs visiting you if you don’t owe a debt, find out how to prove you don’t owe the debt and how to complain if the bailiffs still say you owe the money.
www.citizensadvice.org.uk www.citizensadvice.org.uk
Click to expand...

Nah its a first stage I think, just listing what this person owes.
 
I wouldn't phone them at this stage. Your name may somehow get linked to the debt. I once had a generic fishing letter for someone with the same surname in my area who owed some money. I called them to say it wasn't me. The next letter arrived with my full name on it. I got it sorted in the end but I wouldn't give my name in future.

Just seal it up, write "Recipient does not live at this address" and post it back. but do keep an eye on your credit score.
 
Last edited:
I wouldn't contact them at all, seal it up and do what has been suggested. Any more letters you get addressed to the same person (or anyone who doesn't live there), just do the same.

Hades said:
but do keep an eye on your credit score.
Click to expand...
Shouldn't make any difference, credit scores are worked out per person. If he has zero involvement with the debt, his score won't be affected at all. You can have two people at the same address with vastly different credit ratings, one shouldn't affect the other.
 
Feek said:
I wouldn't contact them at all, seal it up and do what has been suggested. Any more letters you get addressed to the same person (or anyone who doesn't live there), just do the same.


Shouldn't make any difference, credit scores are worked out per person. If he has zero involvement with the debt, his score won't be affected at all. You can have two people at the same address with vastly different credit ratings, one shouldn't affect the other.
Click to expand...

Yeah was just going to say that, how would it effect my credit score, thats based on my name, not address. Thanks for the help everyone.
 
Last edited:
beachBOYken said:
Hi

Has anyone ever received a debt letter with your address but someone else's name?

Obviously this scummy person has used my address so I get the debt letter.

Wondering what I should do, should I just ignore them or phone the debt company and say the person at this address is not the name on the debt letter?

If I do phone and they ask for my name I wouldn't give it as it has nothing to do with me so why should they need to know any of my personal details.

Any advice, its only the first letter, but with these things, i'm likely to get another in the post.

By the way it was a mobile phone line (Three) with £700+ owed, which they have passed on to a debt agency.
Click to expand...

I'd ignore it, is it likely someone who previously lived there? If that's the case I'd assume bailiffs would make some checks first of who lives there before turning up.

We keep getting letters from HMRC for the previous owner, despite returning about a dozen of them as no longer lives here, they keep sending them. I started opening them up to see why the persistence and the person now owes HMRC about 200 grand in tax avoidance.
 
Semple said:
I'd ignore it, is it likely someone who previously lived there? If that's the case I'd assume bailiffs would make some checks first of who lives there before turning up.

We keep getting letters from HMRC for the previous owner, despite returning about a dozen of them as no longer lives here, they keep sending them. I started opening them up to see why the persistence and the person now owes HMRC about 200 grand in tax avoidance.
Click to expand...

Person didn't live here before. As you say checks should be done anyway, debt collectors shouldn't just go off an address, neither should the agency sending these letters, pretty bonkers in todays world that there isn't better checks done at the start when people sign up to things and go into debt and use force details.
 
Phone them up from a withheld number, don't give them any of your details, only those found on the letter (debtor's name and address) and inform them that the person they want doesn't live at the address. They'll probably argue that you need to show proof, just tell them one more time that they've got the wrong address, then put the phone down.

If anybody turns up at your door, have your proof ready (tenancy agreement, council tax bill, water bill, etc), cheerily inform them that you've told the company they've got the wrong address and show them your documents. They'll more than likely walk away disgruntled, but never mind.
 
darael said:
Phone them up from a withheld number, don't give them any of your details, only those found on the letter (debtor's name and address) and inform them that the person they want doesn't live at the address. They'll probably argue that you need to show proof, just tell them one more time that they've got the wrong address, then put the phone down.

If anybody turns up at your door, have your proof ready (tenancy agreement, council tax bill, water bill, etc), cheerily inform them that you've told the company they've got the wrong address and show them your documents. They'll more than likely walk away disgruntled, but never mind.
Click to expand...

Don't show a random person your documents. Don't get into any conversation with them whatsoever. Just tell them you aren't interested and close the door.
 
steve_c said:
Don't show a random person your documents. Don't get into any conversation with them whatsoever. Just tell them you aren't interested and close the door.
Click to expand...

That’s my thinking, it’s up to the debt agency to do proper checks, based on comments I’m not going to go out my way other than send the letters back.
 
It's pretty simple.... You write not at this address on it, and put back in the post box.... Rocket science...
 
I've almost certainly received more than one debt letter for other people considering we lived in some pretty sketchy places as students but as others have said anything not for us just went back in the post box and we never had anyone battering our door down.
 
Haze said:
It's pretty simple.... You write not at this address on it, and put back in the post box.... Rocket science...
Click to expand...

Do this. It isn't your letter.

Obviously they have no right to collect debt from you even if they turn up on the doorstep.
 
Last edited:
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom