Dear Slick, As a site team member can I just ask why my post has only got 2 replies whereas others seem to get 100's. Am I doing something wrong? I do have the letter which normally I would offer to scan (less personal info) but yesterday I fell off my pushbike (dangerously invisible kerb in cycle lane in Reading) and am not moving well at moment. Will try to do tomorrow if old bones less painful. Original debt was @£2k. Settlement figure was @£50. I have the paying in book receipt as well as letter. As per DX's suggestion I was going to send copies to CQ with my letter disputing their claim (they gave me 14 days to respond which is probably only a few days away). Have again been reading lots of very useful info on site including notes on meaning and use of "Without prejudice". I suspect letter was written by a disgruntled employee of BPF? Going to bed now but will find letter tomorrow. Thanks David

Hi, Hope this is the right way of doing this. I have read the notes .... but. Some time ago I got behind with payments to Barclays PF. Instead of contracted payment I agreed to pay them a reduced payment which I did. Then late 2009 I got a letter offering me a "Discounted" settlement. The discounted rate was stated as @ the equivalent of two months of the agreed reduced payment (or @ 1% of the outstanding balance). Later when they realised that I was no longer making my "agreed payment" they bombarded me with phone calls. I just used to tell them that I had settled it (the loan) as per their Letter dated XXXXXX. They always played "dumb" to the contents of the letter and claimed they didn't keep copies of "Computer Generated" letters to customers. After a while of repeating myself I no longer took the calls. Some months passed and they would occaisionally send me letters telling me how much I owed them and one day I answered a call by accident but just repeated my usual phrases. The girl on the phone said that I couldn't possibly think that I had settled the account for such a small figure to which I replied "I have settled it in accordance with your letter of XXXXXX and then hung up on her as the conversation was going around in circles. Sometime last year they sent me what I think was a "Notice of Default" (sorry I can't find this at the moment. I won't have thrown it away but its not where it should be filed) that I ignored. In the first post after Christmas day I got a letter from BPF telling me they had assigned debt to CQ and a letter from CQ telling me I had 14 days to make arrangements to pay them. They followed this up the next day with a phone call (from South African callcenter??) with a very agressive lady threatening me with all sorts of things if I didn't pay her over the phone. When eventually I could get a word in I stated the usual "I settled this debt with BPF as per their letter dated XXXXXX". She was unimpressed!!!!! and told me to send a copy of letter to CQ at address on letter within 14 days. I have not done so. I have now recieved a letter which is titled : Letter of Claim under the Practice Direction - Pre Action Conduct I have not yet replied pending guidance Apologies for length of this initial contact. Kindest Regards

Thanks ellisnan, Have just done letter and AND OFF TO POST OFFICE. Its spookily quiet today (as in the phone - this monday morning has not rung once). Where are all the DCA's today? Maybe they all called in with stress related sickies. Rgs OSB

As a "Newbie" I was disapointed that no one has responded to this post-my first proper one. Guidance appreciated - even if its to tell me not to write such long ones or not to post them in the early hours of morning! Rgs OSB:-)

Hi, I received a letter from Bryan Carter ref an egg cc debt. The last para reads: "If you dispute liability for this debt please state your reasons in writing and supply us with documents in support of your defence to any claim. If you fail to notify us of any potential dispute prior to issue of proceedings and you subsequently file a defence to any claim we reserve the right to show this letter to the District Judge or Sherriff. To prevent futher action being taken......contact Frerickson within 7 days.........." Do I ignore it? Predating this I have made (via funds direct from a family memeber) an offer Direct to egg. Fredrickson said that egg wouldn't deal with me. egg have never notified me that Fred were dealing with my account. I might ask for a copy of my CCA as per other posts and tell them that I will respond after I have studied that? Am I posting stuff correctly? Im new to this form of communication.

New to Forums - First proper post so please be gentle with me I have read guidance notes and many (great) posts advice/templates as directed by joining instructions so hopefully wont be asking stuff that has already been covered. A bit of background - you could call it my introduction to Caggers. @a year ago, when times for us self employed people were good (pre Bank/Brown meltdown), and on the advice of my accountant I obtained a Mac product via BPF. In April HSB C following a "strategic review" first asked for return of Overdraft facility "on demand" and subsequently withdrew banking facilities altogether. I had been a "valued" customer since 1976! I run a fairly seasonal business and their actions reduced me to pitching for cash jobs or the worst paid jobs for which I didn't have to buy much in way of materials (no working capital for those that understand s/emp stuff). No jobs, no money, debts spirally out of control, stress, more stress, agreeing to pay amounts that I couldn't afford, then not paying anyone anything when money ran out with no work coming in, more stress, tons more calls, cCJ action by HSBC CC (pending) (Thats another story altogether - it might be to late to do anything), more stress.............then I found CAG site via Yahoo. Anyway, BPF have been harassing me relentlessly (all the usual stuff - 8 calls a day, 7 days a week including christmas period, ringing less than 24 hours after you thought that you had come to "an arrangement" with them only to be told that no such "note" was on their system etc. etc..... I am sure you all know the score. Anyway now the point of this ramble. They sent me a letter (S.87 (1) stating the usual stuff but near the end ....that I owed them @£1900 and that I could "discharge my indebtedness under the agreement after taking into account the above rebate (which had been left blank) on early settlement is @£50". Whenever they call now I refer them back to letter by date of issue and say that I have settled it as requested. For some bizarre reason they don't seem to agree??? (Paid in cash at a Barc Bank on one of their paying in slips)Recently passed to Mercs and I have now said I will only respond if they write to me. They still keep calling but only @1x / day. Any thoughts? (Mental note - learn brevity before next post!!!!)

I would also suggest that you claim money back from Post Office. I sent something a few years ago that was Special Delivery Signed For. The postman who delivered it did not get it signed for despite me writing on the Envelope "Do not deliver unless sig. obtained". I photocopied envelope just in case.... On checking PO website I noted that it had been delivered but there was no record of a sig. On complaining to the Post Office and requesting a copy of the sig., which nevr arrived they sent me a Postal Order for the difference in cost between 1st class post and their Special Delivery service without me having to ask. The Postie who services my road frequently posts stuff through my door without obtaining my sig. even if its required. Maybe he fills the card in with a "Solicitors Sqiggle" sig. and his bosses never query him. Posties are under pressure (according to him) not to come back to their sorting offices with undelivered mail and to keep up with their delivery schedules they no longer have time to ask a neighbour to sign for it.