Notice of Assignment received 5 years after debt sold Citicard

[surprise]

Citi have done exactly the same to me. 1st Credit did write to me once I received the notice of assisgnment. I think it is 1st Credit who sent this out using Citi's letterheads. Keep your envelopes and you will see what I mean.

 

My claim has been with the FOS since August last year and Citi were aware of this. All the letters I've received from 1st Credit I have sent to the FOS. FOS contacted Citi who said they would hold off collection for 30 days, however, in this period I received a Notice of Legal Action from 1st Credit's Solicitors. I've written to the Solicitors and advised that my claim was with the FOS as there was no signed credit agreement. They have now gone quiet, I wonder why?

 

1st Credit are like all other DCA's, "the pits", when you get their first letter they say something like to send £5.00 admin charge. I politely told them to take a hike.

 

I did do some full and final settlements but only got the bills reduced by about 30%, but that was before I joined GAG. I wouldn't have settled so easily if I had known about signed credit agreements.

[The GodMother]

i would

 

remind each company they dont have a cca and advise each company they either take the offer or the money goes else were.

[rory32]

Does a notice of assignment mean they have sold the debt to 1st Credit?

Not necessarily. There is assignment in terms of selling a debt, but you would also need to supply a letter of assignment if someone is going to collect on your behalf. Although 1st Credit often do buy accounts.

[Duffers Mum]

Surprise - thanks for that, I will redo my letter as I sent to the address on the letter received yesterday which is not the usual address, I will deny any knowledge of any letter advising of assignment! If 1st Credit send me anything I will send them a letter cc'ing Citi advising the account is still in default as they haven't complied with my letter and therefore should not be selling or assigning this debt to anybody. I am also going to contact TS over this.

 

Am I right in presuming that 1st Credit usually ignore everything you send them anyway?

[surprise]

I suppose you could use the word 'ignore'. They have acknowledged my letters but keep reiterating that I must contact them to make payment arrangments. I did receive a letter saying that they were contacting Citi for a copy of the signed agreement and that they would respond in 28 days, but a letter from their Solicitors threatening legal action was their actual response.

 

I have copied in everything to the FOS for their investigation.

 

Good luck with Citi, I thought CapOne were slippery but I think Citi must now take that honour.

[Duffers Mum]

How do I go about contacing the FOS? I might write to them and TS. Thankfully I don't owe Citi that much and if push comes to shove could probably pay it all off, but as they haven't complied with my request I don't see why I should. I've found Barclaycard and Sainsbury's to be the worst to deal with, Goldfish and M&S have been really good, and Citi were too at the start, its only this past month they've started sending Default Notices etc. I wonder if its a result of this credit crunch that's happening in the U.S.

[surprise]

You need to have a final answer from Citi before passing to the FOS. At the moment they are so slow, they've had my Citi complaint since June 07. They have negotiated a refund for me which I accepted subject to the interest being frozen as they did not have a signed agreement from me and when the FOS passed my email to Citi with my comments on this is when Citi assigned the Debt to First Credit.

 

Citi only want customers where they can make pots of money out of, and I was obviously becoming one of those customers.

[Duffers Mum]

I must admit it seems to me that as soon as I asked for a copy of my agreement following their default notice, this is when they passed it over to 1st Credit. Well unless 1st Credit can prove they have bought the debt and provide me with a copy of my agreement, they won't be getting a penny out of me!

 

Does anybody know if under the freedom of information act you can request how much the DCA paid for your debt?

[rory32]

You need to have a final answer from Citi before passing to the FOS. At the moment they are so slow, they've had my Citi complaint since June 07.

They actually have 8 weeks to give you a final answer to any formal complaint. If they don't give you a final response then after this time you can forward your complaint to the FOS.

[rory32]

Does anybody know if under the freedom of information act you can request how much the DCA paid for your debt?

No you can't. The Freedom of Information Act only applies to public bodies.

[Duffers Mum]

Thanks Rory, I'll wait and see what Citi's response is to my F&F letter. DH had some funds through today so am all ready to start paying the vultures off once and for all, never thought I'd see this day!

[Duffers Mum]

Today I have received from 1st Credit a letter advising me that citi financial have assigned the full outstanding balance to them, and this is now due (yea right course it is!)

 

Not had to deal with one of these before so what should I do? Do I need to write/email 1st Credit and ask for a copy of the assignment, or do I need to advise them that Citi have not complied with my CCA request, or do I write to Citi and cc in 1st credit?

 

I sent a letter of to citi recently offering a F&F settlement but I haven't heard anything from them, no doubt they will ignore this anyway now, but it was worth a try.

 

Any help would be much appreciated as I don't intend paying 1st Credit anything!

[surprise]

They don't have to provide you with a copy of the assignment. I would write to first credit stating that you are surprised that City have passed this alleged account to them bearing in mind that they have yet to supply you with a signed agreement. I would suggest therefore that you pass the matter back to Citi.

[Duffers Mum]

Surprise thats exactly what I have done, I think I will also write to Citi with a cc to 1st credit telling them the same thing. Unfortunately I think 1st credit are a right bunch of cretins and will probably ignore what I've sent them anyway.

[The GodMother]

They more than likely will ignore you.

 

I have lived in this house for 3 years in August and for all that time i have recieved letters for the previuos tenant from 1st credit. I was sending them back with not known at this address addresse move out june 2005 but untill i emailed them threatening legal action they refused to accept the person did not live here.

 

They have not sent me a letter since.

 

this is the thread l started for advice When will these PPL give up?????????

[Duffers Mum]

Have had a response to my email to 1st Credit sending me their complaints procedure, so that has given me up to 4 weeks grace! If the outcome is not to my satisfaction I will send a CCA request to 1st Credit and see what they come back with, no doubt the same T&C's that Citi sent me.

 

No responses yet to any of my F&F offers.

 

I'll keep you posted.

[The GodMother]

i am still waiting for there complaints procedure.

[Duffers Mum]

I must admit i was rather surprised at their prompt response, although suspect the outcome will be that they say they are perfectly entitled to collect on the debt.

[The GodMother]

oh r they.......................just remind me they is no CCA is there which means they dont have the rite.

[Duffers Mum]

i know that, you know that, and they (I suspect) know that, but they won't let a little thing like that stop them will they! I do not intend paying 1st Credit a penny, I will continue to pay Citi as agreed, and if 1st Credit persist in chasing me I will report them to TS etc. I will also, as stated above, request a copy of my CCA from them.

[The GodMother]

well u have only recieved the one letter from them from what my memory recalls so ignore them.

 

they cant do much but take you to court and they wont win. If u want to have fun with them i have found that advise of sequenci may help.

 

On every letter you send them CC in TS then you will start having fun.

[Duffers Mum]

Below is the email I received today from 1st Credit, along with my response. I do wonder whether these people have any brain cells at all:-

 

1st Credit wrote:-

 

Please clarify exactly what this dispute is as we are still unaware. I would not consider that solely requesting a true copy of an agreement to be disputing the debt itself.

Whilst this request for a true copy remains outstanding, (assuming a payment of £1.00 for the copy was sent to our client), then I agree that the debt remains unenforceable. However this does not mean the debt is illegal or void. There are of course many other ways to prove that the debt exists. This is a credit card debt and statements demonstrating its use and transactions made would be, for example, one way? Of course it may be possible that you are claiming the card has been fraudulently used. In that case we would be happy to liaise with the Police to investigate this matter. Please clarify if this is the case.

We do not provide copies of the relevant notice of assignment. I would suggest you pass Trading Standards a copy of the letter dated xx xx 2008 sent to you by ‘Citifinancial’ which gives full details of the sale in accordance with relevant legal regulations. Alternatively I am happy to speak to them directly.

As we were unaware you had requested a true copy of the agreement and you did not advise us until the xx xx 2008 I do not think a complaint against 1st Credit Ltd for writing to you prior to that date is a justified complaint against us.

I believe we are fully entitled to hold your details and do not therefore consider that complaint to be justified either.

We will of course contact you once our client has provided a true copy of the agreement.

I trust this clarifies our position and I look forward to being advised of your specific dispute shortly.

My reply:-

My CCA request was carried out in accordance with the Act and was accompanied by the necessary fee. That Citi Financial failed to provide the correct documentation places the account in dispute as documented in my previous email. Whilst the debt remains in dispute it is, as you rightly agree, unenforceable.

 

My complaint against First Credit is that you have taken over an account which is in dispute which is against the law, as I have been advised by both the CAB and Trading Standards.

 

The so called letter from Citi Financial which supposedly advised me they had assigned the debt to you quite clearly came from yourselves, with exactly the same paper and bar coding etc. If I was to suddenly write to you asking that you pay me £x would you just pay me without first ensuring that all the correct procedures had been followed? I thought not. Therefore you can hardly expect me to do just that because you happen to say that is the case. Do you not provide copies of appropriate Notices of Assignment because they don't actually exist?

 

I have no doubt that Trading Standards will be contacting you shortly.

 

I trust this clarifies the situation for you. I have no intention of getting involved in a war of words with your company, and therefore wish to advise that until such time as my CCA request is complied with I will only communicate with Citi Financial.

So, lets wait and see what their reply will be. Each reply so far is getting a little more aggresive which is what I suspected would happen. I have set up a specific email address to deal with these cretins and can close it as easily as I opened it.

I'll keep you posted.

[surprise]

Funny, I had a letter from 1st Credit introducing me to their debt help team. quote

 

"Our internal Debt Help Officers are available to discuss the matter with you in acourteous and considerate manner. If you are considering re-mortgaging your property or taking out a loan to clear your debts please advise us. Our Debt Help Officers have full authority to offer you a very generous discount for a prompt full payment. They have also been given full authority to discuss and agree a payment plant with you".

 

I have written back and said "Thank you very much for introducing me to your Debt Help Officers, although I am not sure why, when they have been unable to provide a properly executed agreement". I've gone on and told them I don't want to hear from them again until negotiations are over with the FOS.

 

Like you, I am just waiting, not stressing, let them hang themselves I say.

[The GodMother]

you both are as bad as each other.

 

DM i like the use of one of the lines u have used. I have used it my self.

 

If i was to write to u and say u owe me £X would you just pay me without first ensuring all the correct procedures were in place. I thought not.

[Duffers Mum]

GM - Glad to be of assistance. I'm just so cross that I've offered a decent F&F settlement to Citi and they've just ignored it, the way they are going they won't get a penny!