Hi guys, Just to provide an update - I got in touch with them again and made up the figures as best I could, leaving for £100 per month as an available amount for repayment. This has seemed to satisfy them and the court proceedings look as though they've been dropped. I couldn't risk it going to a county court as there was no way I could pay off the whole sum, and a monthly repayment would have still left me with a CCJ, and we're going to be trying to buy a house next year. They've set up a direct debit, and I'll be making payments starting the end of this month.

Hi SabreSheep & dx They have already started court proceedings - this was basically a last ditch effort by myself to avoid court action, as I do owe the full sum If it gets to court, it will get awarded against me and since I can't pay the full amount I'll get a CCJ on my file which is what I'm trying to avoid. I'm hesitant not to answer their questions at this stage as they might just tell me to bugger off!

Hi, I've recently been chased for a rather large debt that I do owe from just under 6 years ago (unlucky!!) I have a modest income but most of that is going to paying back other creditors and generally trying to get my credit file back into a good place. There's very very little left at the end of the month. I probably have only around £100 at most that I could pay this company per month but I'm concerned that if I tell them how much I owe (even taking into account other debts being paid off) they might tell me that I have to renegotiate with the other creditors (really not possible) or that they think I could afford more. I they do that it's likely that it'll lead to a CCJ, and I can't afford to have that on my file or pay off the amount outstanding in order to avoid it My question is, is it worth telling them that I earn less than I do, leaving only a small amount on top of the "essential" bills like council tax / rent etc. or could they (would they be likely to) demand proof of my income and expendature? It's at the stage where they have filed for a CCJ hearing and I've just received the paperwork, so calling them is a last ditch effort to try and get a payment plan in place. I wish I could just tell them that this is what I could afford, but they're adamant that they want the figures. Thanks for any help!

Hi guys, Thanks for the advice, does paying the council mean paying the whole amount though (and online rather than on the phone)? The amount outstanding is for the last tax year not the current, I'm worried that if I pay them £100 online they'll just take it out of this years bill? Either way, talking to Rossendales has gotten my back up, I actually wanted to get it sorted before hearing this guys attitude!

I've got an unpaid council tax debt of £200, it slipped through the cracks until it ended up with Rossendales, not the best but there you go... the letter says that the amount due is £203.50 plus costs (costs underlined several times!) It also goes on to say that "if you cannot pay this amount in full, you should be aware that even at this late stage with an initial payment of £100 you can still pay by installments" but after calling the number of the letter the guy that I spoke to unhelpfully said that he wouldn't accept £100 and then the rest next month. When I read out the letter to him he said that a payment plan can only be set up if I let him into my house to make a list of my goods, or took the details of my or my wifes car as they couldn't just take it on faith that we would pay next month. There's no way that's happening and my car is on HP, the wifes car is worth a lot more than a £200 debt - we'd not be happy agreeing to that. He then said that we had no choice and that if we didn't pay they'd apply further charges to the account for visiting us to enforce collection. It doesn't seem fair that they won't accept half of the debt this month in good faith that we'd pay the rest next month (why wouldn't we if we'd already paid half?) and they'd use the threat of further charges to get us to pay up in full now even though we can't afford it. It seems we could pay £100 but then rack up an indeterminate amount of charges until we pay the next amount, or not pay and rack up charges anyway.. .. Don't know what to do - does anyone have any suggestions? Thanks in advance Dan

29th March 2009 now about 4.5 months ago, although the problems were reported early on within their warranty period and a lot of time (and expense) has been taken to get the bike fixed. Something else slightly dodgey - there was no written warranty or even a mention of one when I bought it, and they didn't offer to do any repairs under warranty. It was only mentioned once I was outside of the period and apparently only a 'verbal' warranty that they give with all bikes from their dealership.

Hi guys, I recently bought a "nearly new" triumph speedmaster motorbike from a dealership and after a short period of time the engine has completely blown and they are refusing to take responsibility. Here is a copy of the letter I sent them (rather than rewriting!) Hope someone can help as I feel like I'm getting screwed over :-| Thanks for any help in advance! ---> Hi there, Further to our conversation earlier today I have attatched a photo of the side of the Speedmasters engine. As you can see, something has clearly blown a hole in the side of it. Since riding home from G.P. motorcycles there have been intermittent problems with backfiring generally and power loss after the engine was getting warm. I had called G.P. on a number of occasions but was told that there would be a cost of over 100 pounds to have the vehicle collected and taken down to Grantham for inspection, so It was agreed that I'd take it to a local Triumph dealership (M&S motorcycles). They examined the bike and informed me that there was a gaping hole in the air box under the seat. This could have been the cause of the backfiring due to an incorrect fuel/air mix. This was repaired and the problem was still occurring. A strange noise was also coming from the engine occasionally prior to the fix. It was taken in again and the ignition coil was diagnosed as faulty and replaced, which seemed to improve the overheating issue but a day later the engine 'ticking' was getting worse and as I was travelling down the A19 with my partner on the back of the motorcycle, a very loud rattling sound could be heard and the bike was behaving irratically. I pulled over, and off the road and that is when this picture was taken - oil was leaking from a hole in the engine. Anything could have happened at this point - we were lucky not to have been thrown off the bike and injured or killed. I believe that there have always been problems with this motorcycle, and do not believe that a full service has been done on the bike. Initially,on the phone today, you told me that every major component would have been checked and replaced if needed, including the air filter. I then explained about the air box being damaged which would have been noticeable during an inspection and then you stated that the air filter and components under the seat would only have been looked at if there was a need to - if the bike was running fine you wouldn't have checked this. There were several other problems: * After inspecting the spark plugs they were also black with carbon and did not look to have been replaced in a long time. * The clutch cable was worn almost to the point of breaking * The front disc was warped. * There was also a dirty rag stuffed into the hole in the air box, presumably as a temporary fix. I have got photographs of these issues, and receipts from the Triumph dealership that inspected the bike and these are not things that could have occurred due to fair usage in the time frame in which I have had it. I do not believe that this motorcycle was fit for purpose or in fully working (serviced) condition. I tried to rectify this with you and called you for advice several times during the course of the 3 month warranty period that you talked of over the phone but due to the price you quoted it was more economical do do this locally - even though repair costs within warranty should be covered in law by the dealership. You also informed me that you do not believe that I have ever called GP since - but I can produce mobile phone records to prove this. Now the entire motorcycle (which I paid over £3,500 for) has an engine that is damaged beyond repair. I have incurred over £250 of labour charges at the dealership already, and this has also made a trip to the continent (planned to start last weekend) impossible. I am seeking either: * A replacement like-for-like engine * A complete restrip and rebuild of the existing engine to a working condition or * A full refund on the price of the bike. Please let me know how you plan on handling this situation. Best Regards

Hi 42man, Where can I find a 'letter before action' template, or is it just a generic letter I'd create myself. I've searched on the forums but can't find anything. Also, if I have to go down the small claims option, can I bill them for all the time this has taken me? (Would just be happy to get the marker removed though to be honest!) Cheers & sorry if I'm wasting your time!

Oh another quick question - does Equifax have a duty of care to investigate, or are they free to just pass the buck like this. Here is their reply to me: and my response

Hi all, Myself and my partner are looking at securing a mortgage believing ourselves to have mostly good credit and having saved a deposit - only to find a default placed by 'Thames Credit'. I received several phone calls and letters purporting to be collecting on an old debt to Barclays / Barclaycard. Until very recently I've never even had a Barclays account so this was a mystery to me. I called them a few times and was only told that I could make an offer of payment to stop them calling me, I kept telling them it was not my debt, even after requesting a signed agreement, they kept repeating the same pay up mantra. I've received numerous letters since then, and a default on my credit file for £1,600! I contacted Equifax to resolve the query, but was told that Thames are stating the record is correct (I asked them to request a signed credit agreement but they have not) and that they will not amend it without their permission - & to give them a call to discuss payment terms.(!!!) They are supposed to be on my side helping me investigate, or so I thought. Anyway, I requested a signed copy of the agreement using a template letter and it's been over a week and have had no reply. On calling them the agent said that as they are not the owner of the debt they have no obligation to provide those details and the only way to get the record off my file was to pay them. I've now contacted the ombudsman, a very helpfull person there has pre-filled and sent me a complaint form which I am in the process of signing/returning. My question is this: I am trying to apply for a mortgage and this is making it impossible - noone will go near me with this default. What is the quickest way to get this dealt with - is it possible to take this to the county courts? Thanks in advance for any help or advice!

Yeah I'm also interested in this one, any update?

Hi All, I have had some battles with numerous different companies (DCAs, vodafone, abbey etc.) and I nearly always come away from these situations thinking that it was much much harder work than it should have been. I left it at that for a while, feeling extremely let down and angered by the lack of respect or care for the consumer. After I started coming up with some business ideas of my own a friend told me that I am a capitalist 'Petit Borgouis'... and that I should read some books on capitalism (or more specifically Marxism) Having no idea what that meant I have spent the past week or more looking at some material that has really opened my eyes to the evils and injustices of our current society (people think about this bit) but also a much greater understanding of how it functions and why. The fact that we are the very people that provide the material wealth for the corporations and that we ourselves hold the power in this world (I would hope that the realisation of this could have been the driving force behind setting up CAG - collectively fighting these companies for our rights - when we shouldn't have to). I wouldn't (and couldn't) reproduce all of the things I have read in this thread, nor can I explain what I have learned in a medium sized post, but allow me to post a few introductory links and I would welcome any discussion especially criticism if it helps me see things in a different light. Karl Marx Marxism FAQ What I'm trying to find out is: Have many people here read these theories? What are your views on how our society works. What would you change, and let's discuss it. P.S. I know I should have done this kind of thinking in sixth-form rather than mid-twenties - but I've been busy being a capitalist :o

is it worth once I get the letter of satisfaction sending it to get it marked as satisfied or would this hurt any potential appeal I might be able to make? Plus I'm thinking that even a satisfied marker might not mean much when it comes to increasing my credit score - probably best to get it removed completely if at all possible.

Hi, I had a CCJ registered against me years ago without my knowlege because I had moved out of the address in question and no mail was ever returned to the court to say so. I only found out about this about 8-9 months ago because of a default entry on my credit file from Lowell who had purchased this debt from capital one and a CCJ from cap-one at that old address. It was naive to move away and forgetting to deal with the issue but I filed for the court to strike off the CCJ because the papers were not served and I was not given an opportunity to defend myself (I would have done - all of the money owed was due to ridiculous charges and capital one were less than helpfull in helping me deal with it) Upon turning up at the court, I met someone who was representing Geoffrey Parker Bourne (a company I origonally thought was a solicitors office, turns out to be a debt collection agency?) although they did not state that, I honestly thought this was someone from the court, who asked me a lot of questions and made notes, and then told me she represented Geoffrey Parker Bourne and the case was called infront of the county court judge. I was then told that because the papers were not returned as undelivered it was deemed that the notice was served. It was also put accross to the judge from this 'agent' of JPB that at the time they had called me asking me about this debt and I had told them that 'unless they removed the CCJ I would not be paying the debt' which is utter twaddle. I also informed the judge that I had been making payments to Lowell as a gesture of good faith now I knew about the debt but was in negotiation about the amount as I did not believe it to be accurate. The judge then said that because of this I had 'accepted the debt'?!? not exactly...! Surely I should have had the chance to put it to the court that the amount was incorrect in the first place and to work out a fair payment rather than having to do it with Lowell. I feel that by 'doing the right thing' and making a payment to Lowell that has somehow invalidated my chances of removing the marker which I believe to be unfair as I was never presented with notification or warning, if I was I would have been able to raise the funds to avoid it in the first place. Is there ANY way now of appealing this decision or doing anything to repair my file? I feel completely victimised with the way this has been handled especially with the unscrupulous 'agent' of JPB cornering me and taking notes before the hearing which seems very unprofessional. If there is absolutely no chance - if I make the final payment and get a letter of satisfaction, will this reset the 6 year period for it to fall off my file or does the 6 years go from the origonal judgement (and the same question for defaults) Thankyou in advance for any help! DanB

I no longer have a contract with a certain TV supplier - they offered me a refund of an amount I was in credit but I never cashed the cheque (out of laziness and for the fact I forgot about it due to other commitments) but I have noticed that they keep on updating my credit file with "0" markers (payments up to date) rather than settled. Is it just me or is this an incredibly good thing? I was thinking of cashing the cheque yesterday, but then thought, for the sake of 20 quid it's probably worth continuing to receive the good marks on my credit file. Anyone else have an experience of this or any insight into it? Cheers