French property debt

[samsung87]

HI all,

Looking for some advice on a French mortgage debt please. I moved to France a number of years ok to work with my uncle and his property renovation business. My uncle wanted my cousin to get on the property ladder (he was 11 at the time) and he had some money to put down as a deposit on a mortgage. I had no money to my name as the business was struggling and I wasn’t paid for a number of months.

We managed to secure a mortgage on a property owned by my uncles firm the date was around may 2007 . I never paid the mortgage as I had little control over my finances due to non payment from the business. Funds were put into my account for the mortgage every month. I left France in roughly 2008 and shortly after I was chased for mortgage arrears via email. I passed this onto my uncle who said it would be sorted. One thing to point out is I never had keys for the property!!

About a month back I was pursued by an international debt collector for the sum of £32,000. The property was purchased for 68,000 Euros. Apparently the property was repossessed and I am being pursued for the outstanding debt. To confirm, the bank have made no contact with myself about the mortgage arrears or about the repossession of the property. The debt collector has told me that the French bank did not have any details for me. However, he has forwarded me the European enforcement order dated 28 July 2014 and it clearly has my UK address on it.

So, where do I stand? I am being chased continually by them and there next action will be registering the EEO in the uk courts? To be clear I have no assets what so ever. They have asked for a breakdown of my income and out goings and I have been honest with them and there is no spare income to pay the debt.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated

[unclebulgaria67]

Sound a bit dodgy to me as the EEO is normally for debts which are not disputed and you have not even been given the chance to dispute it If it has your UK address, why have you not received anything directly from the French court that made the EEO. The French court would surely have written to the address where you could be contacted, so you could make the appropriate defence. If you were resident in the UK, they should have really made the court claim to a UK court.

 

Also for there to be an EEO, there would have presumably been a previous French court judgement against you. Think you will need to ask this debt collection company for the following information 1) Copy of the notice of assignment or instruction from the French Bank that enables them to act in regard to this matter 2) A copy of the original French Court judgement and full contact details for the French Court, together with the reference number for the case, 3) The address of the French Court that dealt with the EEO and the reference number for this.

 

I think you should also write to the French Bank asking them for an explanation and a copy of all documents they used to obtain a French Court judgement.

 

Both letters should really be sent by recorded post.

 

You may need to employ a French advocate or lawyer to make a application to the French court to set aside their judgement, as you were not a resident of France at the time the claimant made the court claim. But send the letters first and see what comes back.

 

You could contact the Law Society to find a UK Solicitors that deal with French law, but I expect that they would be very expensive. If you can find a French legal advice centre in France, it may be worth giving them a call or sending an email to see what they suggest.

[unclebulgaria67]

I should have added that you should not provide any personal information to this international debt collector, as they are not entitled to it. Plus you do not know that it is legitimate.