Rich, I am so sorry that you, your GF and her Mum are going through this at the moment and my heart goes out to you all. I think you and your GF need to go and speak to the Ward Sister/Charge Nurse in the first instance and ask about her care plan, what are they hoping to do, is there delays with some of the tests being carried out, do they need specialists to come and do the tests etc? If that isn't satisfactory, you may wish to speak to the consultant in charge of her care or his registrar and voice your concerns about delays in the care and the lack of any seemingly structured plan to achieve a remedy to the problem. If all else fails, speak to the Patient Liasion Co-ordinator, who can act as a go between/ mediator, I had to use them recently and found them incredibly useful. Wishing you all the best and your GF's Mum a speedy recovery. TF x

Any other thoughts on this offer. Not very familiar in the process of making offers for F&F settlements, so I would greatly appreciate any further words of wisdom or any pointers on how to compose a letter. Also, should I put 'Without Prejudice' on the letter, as they do to me?

They initially told me by letter that, after submitting the CCA request with a PO for £1, the fee had been increased to £10. Thanks to the lovely people on CAG, one sent me a private message saying not to pay it, as they would class this as a payment and as such, as I was on near statute barred territory, the time limits would start again. I think this is a common trick by DCA's trying extort monies from unsuspecting consumers!

Hmmmm interesting. Can I ask if RW&Co are hounding you, because by their own admission this is settled. Also, can I ask if you are trying to get a CCA because this is your ex's debt and your are trying to get the matter resolved. I think we are a little bit confused because the letter admits this debt is settled and a CCA request has gone in. Any clairification would be helpful, so we can help you in the best way possible.

A CCA request does not apply to utility debts, so you cannot request a CCA from them, unfortunately and I think some DCA's do play on this though....1st Credit being one of them. How long ago were you with Powergen, is there anyway you can get hold of the meter readings you would have given when you left them, the supplier you went to after Powergen may have a record of them. You haven't wasted anyone's time, in fact you have empowered yourself to deal with this and that is something you should be pleased with. As you are no longer with Powergen (I assume), they will be unable to force removal of your meter, if you were with them, they could get a warrant of entry and change the meter for a prepay meter, so that is good that you are not with them. Equally, if the debt is indeed 5 years old, they may be willing to accept a % of the outstanding balance as full and final settlement, this might be 25%-50% of the balance, so it is worth thinking about that too. If you need any advice whatsoever, please come back and ask her, we will be only to happy to advise you. Best of luck to you, TF x

Yes, I was advised because my letter from Lowells had 'Our clients.....' but seeing as your stat demand probably doesn't have this, you're probably better off cticking with 'Your Company' unless it expressly says they are acting on behalf of clients.... Best of luck xx

SP, I feel very upset now because of your letter from Hayley.... I got that letter yesterday (re default removal) and she said the same thing.....here's me thinking I was special!!!! Shall we link arms and go to the FOS together then?

Yes it is but I always put 'I DO NOT ACKNOWLEDGE ANY DEBT TO YOU OR YOUR CLIENTS' as I was advised by a CAG member when I first found the group, but by all means, keep it as it is as it is not an essential addition to your letter. Remember to send recorded delivery too!

In your first post you said you were pretty sure you didn't owe the monies but you think you may do now. In that case, if you are sure your owe this money, please don't send the letter I posted earlier. Instead write a letter asking for a breakdown of the debt and the dates it applies from, you will need to get this from the original utility supplier, also ask if they will take this account back from 1st Credit as well, as 1st Credit are a nasty piece to try and deal with. Whilst you wait for a response, make up an income and expenditure table and see how much you realistically can afford to pay back, even if this is just £1 a month, if that is all you can afford, that is all you should pay.

Not unlike many other DCA's, full of hot air!!

I think, personally, send the letter off that I gave you and wait and see, the onus is one them to prove you owe the debt to them, not you don't owe the monies. Other than that, I think Belaflat has given you the alternative scenario and you need to weigh up all the consideration that carries. Does your Mum, by any chance, have any copy bills from Vodafone which show her name on the bill? Mobile phones BTW are not cover by the normal rules under the Consumer Credit Act, so I think your best bet is to send the letter and await a response.

It's tricky with utility debts. They are not covered by a simple consumer credit agreement, thus it's not the same as when you would CCA a company that may have been persuing you for another type of debt. Incidentially, I have also had a letter from 1st Credit acting on behalf of Powergen regarding an alledged debt from my old address, pity I wasn't living there and the land regsitry shows as much! Send this letter to 1st Credit (thanks to Rory32 and Powelll for this letter): Your home address) _________________ _________________ Date: ____________ To: ______________ __________________ Dear Sir/Madam Account no: You have contacted me/us regarding the account with the above reference number, which you claim is owed by myself/ourselves. I/we would point out that I/we have no knowledge of any such debt being owed to (insert company name). I am/we are familiar with the Office of Fair Trading Debt Collection Guidance which states that it unfair to send demands for payment to an individual when it is uncertain that they are the debtor in question. I/we would also point out that the OFT say under the Guidance that it is unfair to pursue third parties for payment when they are not liable. In not ceasing collection activity whilst investigating a reasonably queried or disputed debt you are using deceptive/and or unfair methods. Furthermore ignoring and/or disregarding claims that debts have been settled or are disputed and continuing to make unjustified demands for payment amounts to physical/psychological harassment. I/we would ask that no further contact be made concerning the above account unless you can provide evidence as to my/our liability for the debt in question. I/we await your written confirmation that this matter is now closed. Otherwise I will have no option but to make a complaint to the trading standards department and consider informing the OFT of your actions. I/we look forward to your reply. Yours faithfully (Your signature)

Sillygirl1 yesterday posted about a similar card being posted through for her landlord, advising people to be careful. Although it was another DCA, it still applies. As she said, if it was for a parcel, the 'courier' compnay would have posted it through the door, not posted it and it would always be addressed to the correct person.

No, you are absolutely spot on logical and banks have never and will never go hand in hand. I had previously asked them, when this was accrued, to close the account and allow me to repay a balance of what was £120 in charges, they refused and said I had to repay the charges first and duh, like a naive idiot (Sorry, I was a naive idiot at the time) I believed them and allowed them to keep accruing me charges. I have already paid some monies to them under my old CCCS agreement, so I'd also be willing to waiver those payments too. I am so trying to clean up my credit act and I only have a few more to go through before I can start paying the valid creditors a reasonable amount or offer a reasonable settlement figure, which is why I'd be prepared to forego my case against them. Thanks Spamheed, you're a love!

Yes, of course 'Help' is only a phone call away, you are paying for the call! and 'Help' also comes in the form of sticking thier fingers in their ears and ignoring requests for CCA's. Incidentially I looked in the Ruthless dictionary for their term of help and it read as such: Help: Only a phone call away...once the debtor pays who knows how much pence per minute to call us, we'll lie, bully and intimidate the debtor, even if they are not really the debtor or if we can't prove the debt. Also means to make people pay more than they can realistically afford and then when they default, we'll threaten them with eating their children and making them live in a mud hut. NB: I HATE RUTHBRIDGE!!!!!! Take CB's advice, get another CCA request off, if you haven't already done so and await their response. Don't make any payments or offers of payment until they have provided the requested docs for you to look over, post here if you are not sure of validity of anything. Good Luck TF xx

Mind you, it makes you wonder why a University would allow one of their staff to actively encourage DCA staff to bully, lie, cheat, harrass and intimidate people and to question their means to pay. I wonder if he had to ask permission from the Dean to attend? What impression does this give of the Psychology school? Hmmmmm

OK Arrow Global are chasing me for £560 and I have submitted a claim for £1130 in July to Lloyds TSB for unfair charges. No response to the CCA, so well outside the time limits for this. Lloyds TSB have said they will accept 50% of the balance as F&F settlement....fine but it is made up all of charges. I was thinking, because of the test case, if Lloyds TSB were willing to write off the current balance I would not proceed with reclaiming my charges. I am happy to do this. What I just wanted to know, is do you think this is a fair offer to them and how likely would be they be to accept it prior to the test case? Any thoughts? NB Have reported Arrow to TS and request a complaints proceedure from them, not exactly forthcoming!! TF x

Dear BabyHollie I would just like to add my welcome to those you have received already and I would like to offer you my support too. The advice I would like to offer is on the account you suspect you have a CCJ on. I would advise you to get in touch with your local county court and ask if a judgement has been entered against you, you need to find out: When: Who by: How Much: Once you have that, pop back on and I can give you a hand on this matter, my OH had a CCJ entered against him he knew nothing about, he managed to get it reheard (set-aside) and although he did get the CCJ again, the judge ordered him to pay £3 per month, much less than would of otherwise been ordered, because of his circumstances. You must must must find out about this as soon as possible, if the DCA wants to take it back to court, they could ask for a charge to be made against your home in the worst case scenario. Can I also ask if you went to court with your mortgage company or was it something you agreed before that point? I ask because when I and my husband were in the same position, the judge ordered the mortgage company to change the mortgage to interest only, stop rolling interest and charges and made us payd £39 per month plus our mortgage payment to the mortgage company. The judge was sympathetic and helpful. Good luck and please keep us posted. TF xx

Thanks for that Sillygirl1, I am sure there are people who would make contact on the basis of receiving this card. Glad you had a clued up Postie! Thanks again for letting us know about this [problem], it's just another form like 'Telogram'!

Hi there, First of all, welcome to CAG. I would advise you not to communicate with Red by phone, insist everything goes in writing, for your own benefit and evidence if you need to take the matter further. RED are a notoriously awful debt collection agency and seem to have a speciality in buying debts which are either wrong or unenforcable. The bottom line is, you cannot be held responsible for your Mum's debt, if you did not both sign and agreement. Can I ask if you share the same name or initial as your Mum? The reason I ask is because many debt collection agencies will mass mail people with the same name, initial, dates of births etc as a tool to try to get the debtor to pay up, of course if thet make money by scaring people along the way, they have so little morals that it makes no difference to them This letter was donated to me by Rory32, I believe initially it came from member Powelll, try sending this to them, as mobile contracts do not fall under the realm of the Consumer Credit Agreement as many other accounts do Your home address) _________________ _________________ Date: ____________ To: ______________ __________________ Dear Sir/Madam Account no: You have contacted me/us regarding the account with the above reference number, which you claim is owed by myself/ourselves. I/we would point out that I/we have no knowledge of any such debt being owed to (insert company name). I am/we are familiar with the Office of Fair Trading Debt Collection Guidance which states that it unfair to send demands for payment to an individual when it is uncertain that they are the debtor in question. I/we would also point out that the OFT say under the Guidance that it is unfair to pursue third parties for payment when they are not liable. In not ceasing collection activity whilst investigating a reasonably queried or disputed debt you are using deceptive/and or unfair methods. Furthermore ignoring and/or disregarding claims that debts have been settled or are disputed and continuing to make unjustified demands for payment amounts to physical/psychological harassment. I/we would ask that no further contact be made concerning the above account unless you can provide evidence as to my/our liability for the debt in question. I/we await your written confirmation that this matter is now closed. Otherwise I will have no option but to make a complaint to the trading standards department and consider informing the OFT of your actions. I/we look forward to your reply. Yours faithfully Best of luck to you, shout if you need more help. TF xx

You bet that the members of CAG and other websites are going to hurt the DCA industry, they've been hurting people for years, obviously don't like it now that the tables are turned on them!

If you are going to e-mail her Robert191, you may wish to invest in a Consumer Action Group e-mail address, to add to the fact you are not going to take any nonsense over this matter and it will also protect your own e-mail address too.

How much was the original debt for? The DCA may have considered all payments thus far as full and final settlement, but as Silly says, wait until the next DCA turns up, you'll then know who you are dealing with and how much they are wanting or alledging they are owed. TF x

Thanks Yohe and Gizmo I have had few responses to this thus far so, logically a meet will be in January, possibly February. I will PM people who went to the original CAG South Wales meet up earliest this year to see if some interest can be rallied. If anyone is worried about meeting up, no-one will disclose your identity on this site and no pictures will be published on the internet without full consent, I know this was a worried previously. TF x

Great letter, can you get a pop out for when they open the letter it pops up and says 'Game Over' or 'You've been DMD'ed' TF x