It's been about 6 weeks now since I threatened them with costs etc and (hopefully) my threat seems to have worked. I have not heard anything from them since. My complaints to various organisation however have resulted in some surprising actions or rather lack of them. West Mercia Police decided that as they have now stopped calling me they will take no further action (despite my 2 1/2 months of harrasment from them). The information Commisioners Office decided they would take no action as I could not prove that HL Solicitors did not have a reason to contact me (despite the fact they admitted they had no trace of me). Ofcom and the OFT stated that they would keep my complaint on file for use in any "similar" complaints. In short, complaining to the world and his wife about this has had no effect because HL Solicitors have now stopped calling me. Still for me the important thing is that they have finally stopped.

This saga gets even more unbelievable. HL Solicitors have now wrote to me apologising for the calls stating that they have now removed my phone number from their system. They then go on to advise me to contact my mobile phone provider as they believe that my "mobile number may have been recycled at some point". I have had my mobile number since 1996 or 1997 and at the time paid for a "vanity number" ie one that is easy to remember. This number had never been used before as it was issued during the transition of mobile numbers from 10 digit numbers to the current 11 digit "07" numbers. They finish their letter with the statement that under the terms of their complain procedure this is their "final response". I am currently waiting to hear from the organisations I have complained to and will update this post with any further updates.

Hi Brigadier, Thanks for the update, I will make sure I add the OFT and Ofcom to my list of complainants. gideonssword, when I carried out a Google search, they seemed to me to be an extremely dubious claims company hence the reason for my complaint to the Financial Ombudsman. I did try to complain to the Solicitors Regulatory Authority however they said they could not act in my case as I had not asked the to act on my behalf. I hope you have more luck. I will try and update this thread with any further updates.

I am having a nightmare with this company. Since mid-July I have been receiving automated calls from them on a series of numbers including (but not limited to): 07964035617 07805919436 07964038716 07964098480 07964082425 07964038719 07964036763 07964038632 07964038360 07964038574 07964035619 07964038540 07964036874 07964038601 01527405495 07791419113 07964038468 07964038544 07964038664 01527586596 I refused to answer any of these calls however they did leave voicemail messages asking me to call them. I wrote to them by recorded delivery telling them I would not discuss any legal or financial matters over the telephone and asking that they contact me in writing only. I pointed out that continued attempts to contact me by telephone after receiving my letter could constitute an offence under Section 127 of the Communications Act 2003. Although they received this letter, they completely ignored it and continued to call every 2-3 days at times ranging from 8:00am until 8:30pm. I have reported them to West Mercia Police, the Financial Ombudsman and the Information Commissioner's Office as I have been told that their repeated contact is not only in breach of Section 127 of the Communications Act 2003 but also Section 1 of the Protection from Harassment Act 1997 as I have medical proof that this is effecting my health. I recently wrote to HL Solicitors advising them that I would be abroad on specified dates and that it would cost me to retrieve voicemails during this holiday. I informed them that should they leave any voicemail messages during my holiday I would bill them for the cost of retrieving the voicemails. They immediately wrote back saying that they had no record of me on my files and if I provided my mobile phone number they would remove it from their system. It would appear that the threat of legal action has no effect on this company however the threat of a financial penalty is completely different. I have faxed them my response today and will see what happens. PS I'm sorry but I am currently unable to post links in my posts but if you Google the acts you can find them on the legislation.gov.uk website

Hi, I hope that I am not repeating an old post however over the last week or so I have been receiving a number of calls on my mobile from mobile numbers I do not recognise. These numbers have included: 07964038716 07964035617 On each occasion I have not answered (I make it a policy of not answering calls when I do not recognise the number). On the calls from the above numbers I have received a voicemail message asking me to call H&L Solicitors. A quick Google search for the numbers and the company suggest that this company have tried to claim that people owe money from debts from more than 10 years ago and that they are collecting the debt before Court action (which could not happen due to the time since the alleged debt). Why they want to contact me I have no idea but there is no way I am going to respond to them over the phone (if for nothing else, I do not know who I am talking to and there is no way I am going to give out personal information over the phone). If they really feel that I owe them money then they can write to me as they must have my address is they have my mobile phone number. In the mean time, I think that everyone should be aware of this new tactic of making calls from what appear to be mobile numbers in the hope that you will answer and provide personal details.

Hi, I have been a frequent customer of Ebuyer due to their low prices, high quality and excellent customer service but I think that I may now have an interesting dilemma. In July of this year I purchased a brand new laptop which was working fine until last week when it began to act strange. Eventually on Thursday, it stopped recognising the hard drive. I ran some test using the hard drive manufacturer's own software and the drive was reported as being faulty. I should point out at this point that I am a computer technician by trade. I contacted Ebuyer who said I had to return the laptop to them. They would then send it back to the manufacturer to have the hard drive replaced and then it would be returned to me. I told the Customer Service Adviser that this was not acceptable and I was not willing to accept a repair on a laptop so new. I told him that I believed this to be an inherent fault as described in the Sale of Goods Act. The agent disputed this stating that for a fault to be inherent it had to effect a whole range or batch and not just one item. I informed him I wanted a replacement laptop or (as they no longer stock the laptop) I wanted a refund. The assistant reluctantly agreed to this but did not mention it in the confirmation email I was sent. The laptop is due to be sent to Ebuyer next week to be examined but in the mean time if anyone can help me I would like to know: Can I demand a refund instead of a repair? Does the term "inherent fault" have to apply to a range or batch or can it apply to one single item? Many thanks in advance for your help.

They have refused so far to provide statements. They claim that all they need to provide is the copy of the terms and conditions and the signed credit agreement. I had never heard of a SAR request before but have looked briefly at the link and will follow that up. Just out of interest, would I seek the information from Argos or Hillesden?

I've checked the paperwork I've got and in November 2009 I received a letter from Argos telling me that they had assigned the debt to Hillesden and a copy of what appears to be a contract selling the debt on. Does the fact that there is no date next to the signature have any bearing on this?

Thanks for the advice, when I get back I'll check the paperwork to see what they have said with regards to who owns the debt.

Hi, A few years ago I got into some money trouble which I am slowly getting out of, mainly through help and advice from forums including this one. I had a number of debt collection agencies chasing me for alleged debts. Following advice I sent them the standard DCA letters requesting a copy of the credit agreement and a statement of account. This has scared most of them off apart from Hillesden Securities which also uses the names "Direct Legal & Collections" and DLC. This company is chasing me for an alleged debt for an Argos store card. After messing me around for more than a year, in February of this year, they sent me an undated but signed copy of the credit agreement and a copy of the terms and conditions of the card. I do not remember receiving the terms and conditions of the card. They have yet to provide a statement of the account but claim that the amount owing is £2,664.59. I have just checked my credit report with Equifax and Callcredit and there is no mention anywhere of Argos or anything similar on them or anything with a similar outstanding balance. However, Hillesden Securities Limited have made an entry on both reports. The entry states that I have a "Credit card" with them which is in default to the sum of £2,664. The entry states that the account started on 04.10.06, entered default on 04.09.08 and was last updated on 09.05.10. My question is can they add this entry to my credit report as I have no contract with them, the card was a store card not a credit card and as yet they have not proved that the money is owing. I have also posted this on the "Credit reference agencies" board. Thanks in advance for your help.

Thank you, the copy agreement supplied was signed in October 2006. It does have terms and conditions on it. I will contact them and quote the relevant sections of the act. Thank you for your assistance.

I am currently being chased by Fredricksen International for an alleged credit card debt. I sent a CCA letter and received a copy of the original agreement and a monthly summary. All the summary shows is the alleged balance for the month and the total of alleged spending during the month. Is this enough to over the requirements of a CCA request or do they need to provide a full statement before I asses the claim?