Hi, Have recently had a letter from BC&W in which they are threatening to send a doorstep collector (or words to that effect) to my home about an account that as been passed to them by the original creditor (Provident). So far letters received have included offers of substantial discounts and even opportunities to pay said reduced sums over a number of months rather than in one payment. I have never engaged with BC&W about this account, I was paying Provident's in house solicitors a reduced amount but stopped when there just wasn't enough money to pay as well as meet necessary debts such as rent, council tax, utility bills and then things such as business insurance and fuel for my vehicle which is important as my job requires me to be mobile but is poorly paid. the collection agents mentioned in the letter received are UMS but, apart from them being owned by BC&W (and so therefore only another cog in their internal wheel of threats), it appears they are used to chase utility debts - which this isn't!! They will be lucky to ever find me at home as I usually work 12 out of every 14 days and leave the house at silly o'clock returning in the evening then, on my weekend off, I'm usually catching up with friends, family and life in general. Oh, and I live in a property with secure entry system so they can't actually access my front door that easily!! What is likely to be their next step? Feebee_71

Being Tesco phone accounts is it possible that some, or all, of the credit amounts showing on the accounts is/are as a result of Tesco's policy of 'top up £10 and receive £30 worth of credit to the phone'? Feebee _71

The first thing I wold say is that the bill is for a longer period of time than you have been resident at the property so, write to the with, with proof of your tenancy agreement as part of the dispute; also tell them that you are not the person responsible for paying the bills and then give them the name of your landlord. Feebee_71

Why not change the lock but retain the old one and, when moving out, replace the old one? That way the landlord cannot just walk in with a key!! Not sure if this is a valid option, hopefully someone more knowledgeable will be along soon. Feebee_71

She ought to put in a claim for tax credits - she has to ring and request a form and then fill it in and return. They can backdate by a month but no more. The form isn't too difficult to fill in either. If her income is only £171 or thereabouts a week she'd possibly get help with rent too if she's renting somewhere. Feebee_71

I'm in this line of work and it's usual for domicillary care workers not to be paid for travelling time. The company I work for also, at times, don't actually allow travelling time between clients homes meaning you either have to arrive early at one place or late at the next one. One thing the company I work for does do that is better than what's happening to your sister is that we have rates of pay for 15, 30, 45 and 60 minute calls and anything over an hour is billed at the hourly rate. I often find that I half days where I'm out for the best part of 9-10 hours but only work 7 hours and earn about £45 before tax!! Feebee_71

I doubt there is a hard and fast rule I was just going by experience of someone go past me on the near side (undertaking) and knocking my wing mirror it was pushed forwards towards the bonnet of the car whereas, when I've been moving forwards and knocked the wing mirror it's folded in towards the door of the car. If you had photos taken at the time of the accident that show the wing mirror folded one way or the other you could put that to the insurers and ask how the mirror could end up pushed towards the bonnet if you had been the person with the forward momentum. On the matter of the 50/50 claim and only paying half the excess afraid not - if you accept the 50/50 liability you both lose the full excess and won't be able to claim it back; you'll also lose a proportion of your no claims bonus and you'll have it recorded as being a fault accident on your record which would affect future premiums whereas, if its decided that liability lies with the other party you'd be able to claim your excess back, would have it recorded as a no fault accident on your records and should find that your premiums are not affected by the same amount and could have your NCB reduced by less (if you have protected NCB it shouldn't change). Regarding getting it repaired yourself - no, you wouldn't pay the excess if you pay for repairs yourself but you might well find your NCB is affected as that is governed by the recording of an accident against your driving record and it would also affect your future premiums as mentioned above. You can check this by ringing round and asking for a quote with a fault accident recorded against you, with an unsettled accident against you and with a settled no fault accident on your record. I had an unsettled claim when I changed insurance a few years ago and informed the new company, when the claim was settled as no fault in my favour I got a letter confirming this and sent I to the new insurers and reduced my premium in line with it. Hope that helps. If you are sure you had no part in the causation of the accident then you should insist that the insurers do not treat it as a 50/50 case irrespective of whether they also insure the other party. Feebee_71

Get a fax number or email address for ageas and send them a copy of the letter from your old insurers stating the outcome of the previous claim!! Feebee_71

If she took your wing mirror off then the damage would go in one direction whereas, if you hit her, the wing mirror damage would be in the opposite direction. This might help you prove your point and dispute hers!! Feebee_71

Perhaps the OP's former customer is getting his legislations confused and is thinking of the utility companies and back billing rules about not being able to bill back beyond 12 months if not previously billed. Feebee_71

You could always try putting her full name into google and see what comes up. Many years ago someone a group of us thought of knew was alleged to have passed away while seriously ill, someone in the group googled this person's name and got a complete shock to find not only had this person not died they had never been ill as they'd told everyone but had recently been sent to prison for defrauding their employer (job centre) by claiming loans and the like in client's names and diverting the money to their own account, in total about £25,000!! If your wife's niece has been convicted it will eventually show up in the press online!! Feebee_71

Thanks renegadeimp, That's what I plan to do and have maintained that stance ever since my initial letter offering a small monthly sum while out of work that was ignored!! Feebee_71

Thanks, just read about others getting the same email. Interestingly, I haven't had a second email!! Feebee_71

I too received this email today - timestamped sometime around 1.30am!! Funny thing is, the account they are talking about has already done the rounds of at least 4 if not 5 dca's!! Feebee_71

And, once again I've had contact from Muck Hell!! Obviously think that I'm going to suddenly be scared by the words they use as seen below........ "Unless payment is made on your loan by xx August 2013 it may be sold to a third party collection agency. To help you prevent this transfer your defaulted loan balance has been referred to the QuickQuid Final Resolution Department. QuickQuid will accept a re-payment plan over n/a months. Based on your outstanding balance of n/a this would be a monthly payment of n/a. Please contact our Final Resolution Department between 08:00 and 21:00 Mon - Fri at 0800 016 3114 to accept this offer or to learn about other options available. It is important to provide dates of payment when replying to this e-mail as the arrangement is incomplete without dates of payment. Once a payment plan is in place, collections activities will stop as long as payments are made on time. The only forms of payment accepted for this offer are Debit Card or Direct Debit Mandate. If your account information has changed please inform our agents so they can update your information. QuickQuid Final Resolution escalation@quickquid.co.uk 0800 016 3114 www.QuickQuid.co.uk" Anyone notice the subtle errors? I'll give you a hand - the only thing not as written in the email is the date by which they expect resolution!! Feebee_71

Your best bet would be to contact hospitals in the area you're interested in working in and ask to speak to their recruitment team. Feebee_71

If you want details of changed or cancelled appointments you'll have to ask for computerised records as well as medical notes as it rare for comments about changes to appointments to make it into medical notes because it all happens electronically. Feebee_71

Coolwch, The £42.50 that the bailiff's say is still owing and want to collect are fees for 2 visits to your home (probably flat 1) at some point in the past rather than being interest or similar. Feebee_71

Thanks guys, I'll sit on their offer for a bit longer as it would be a struggle to pay the amount offered as the discounted settlement deal even if it was split into 3 payments!! Feebee_71

I have an account with Provident that, for one reason or another (mainly unemployment) ended up with their own in house 'solicitors' and has been farmed out to BCW. Today I've received a letter from BCW offering me a discount that amounts to 50% me the outstanding balance on the account. They have also offered me the chance to pay over 3 installments. This offer is only valid if I contact BCW by tomorr (states 7 days from date on letter but arrived 6 days after the date on the letter). I've never been in contact with BCW regarding this account and wonder if its really only a ruse to get me to contact them about the debt. What is their MO regarding accounts and discount offers? Feebee_71

Thanks for that info. I've also got a document from the company that says we get 22+8 days leave - it's only since this change of date for leave year period that they want to mess about with giving us less than I was sure we're entitled to!! Will go back to them when I'm not working all hours as I am this week - 7am to 6pm them sleeping night 10pm to 7am!! Feebee_71

Hi all, I am employed in the care sector with a private company going into people's homes. My contract says full time care workers in the company are entitled to 22 days leave and 8 bank holiday days a year. When I queried something last week with my employer about the amount of leave accrued in a period of time over the year - they've changed the leave year from being Jan-Dec to now being June-May - to date they told me I'd only accrued 9 days though, by my calculations it should be 12.5 days or there about. When I queried it I was told that, as we get paid double time if we work on a bank holiday, we're not also entitled to the 8 days off for bank holidays per year. As my hours/days of work always include Mondays and Fridays it means that I have no choice as to whether I work or take the day off - no way can I get through the year with only 14 days leave if I were to take the bank holidays off!! Are my employers right in that I don't get the 8 bank holidays as they pay us double time for working those days or should I be entitled to them in addition to the 22 days leave?? Thanks for help in advance, Feebee_71

Whether applying for 29 jobs is sufficient can only be quantified when compared to your job seekers agreement - if it says 'look on 4 jobs websites, 3 local papers and apply for 5 positions per week' then yes it does fulfil your agreement so long as you've complied with the other parts of the agreement. Feebee_71

Hi, thanks for the reply, No the reduction doesn't take it into account as the letter says I'm going to be paid xx amount from now until April and the figure will include zz amount which will represent an overpayment that will be due for repayment from any future award of tax credits!! Feebee_71

Ok thanks, might do that as it's only a case of them removing about £2/week from the adjusted award!! Feebee_71