some semi literate bird phones up asks for someone whose name hasn't existed at this address for over 18 years and says
"I represents the XYZ green initiative being funded by Barclays who...."
...and you know for a fact that the EX GF in question who was never a Mrs anyway, cos they used her MAIDEN name, never banked with Barclays, and you in fact do and if Barclays want to get in touch they know exactly how..and you have just spent several hours explaining why renewable energy is a steaming pile of unadulterated wombat turds...to some idiot online...
I am afraid, that I just said 'Oh, just FUCK OFF, will you' and put the phone down.
Leaving my wife in stitches.
I hope the bird at the other end takes this to heart and instantly resigns her tacky job.
I moved house 20 years ago, I still receive offers of loans addressed to the couple who used to live here, including from the Halifax - despite the fact that he was declared bankrupt and the Halifax reposessed the house!
I got threats from various people someone owed money to, but it was for the previous owner of my phone number, not my house, so when he said he was coming round to do me in, I said go ahead.
No threats here. I did have someone who looked like they may be a debt collector (large and thretening looking, but polite) who asked for the guy by name and went away no problem when I told him that he no longer lived here and the contact address for him was via Halifax Property Services. I also had a letter from a court for him and others from a debt collection agency, all ceased contact as soon as I either returned the letters marked "Not known at this address" or phoned and explained.
I've just checked to see if the law has changed over recent years, but it appears debt collectors can still turn up at your door, however they are not allowed to force entry, talk to anyone but you, take goods away, etc.
Presumably some kind of court order is possible to remove goods? Or does that require the loan to have collateral specifically mentioned (eg the house on a mortgage, or a car on HP)?
No problem, they didn't. As I said earlier I've been here 20 years. The debt collectors etc. all turned up in the first few years. It's only loan offers and things like that since.
They go through a process of making threatening "legal looking" letters with intimidating threats. (doorstep visits, court proceedings etc)
Regular phone calls where they apparently try and get you to pay them there and then by CC.
Oh and the letters bthat typically tell you how much you owe and if you don't pay within 7 days the amount will double... and so on etc.
The best advice I ever picked up about dealing with them is that "you don't owe THEM (debt collectors) anything, not a ha'penny so there is nothing to discuss with them and no amount of threats will ever change that. If company "a" the one you may have an outstanding debt with chooses to sell on that debt to company "b" (debt collector) for a trivial amount that's up to them, you still don't owe company "b" anything if your original contract was with company "a".
I had have a run-in with N-Power after switching suppliers and they tried to grossly overcharge me with a ludricously over-estimated meter read compared to the actual (correct) read I gave the new company.
Started off by passing the debt to "GFP Collections" followed by a company called "Buchanan Clark & Wells" (BCW Group) then a "legal" letter from "GPB Solicitors LLP" Acting for BCW Group. Quite worrying but safe knowing that I didn't actually owe anything to BCW Group (and the amount was less than £200 so not worth them wasting too much time on )
A final attempt from BCW Group offering a significantly reduced charge for payment within 7 days.
And there the story closes.
Still get N-Power phoning trying to win back my custom but simply telling the telemarketer that they could offer me free gas and electricity for 10 years and I still wouldn't go back to them stops the sales attempt in it's tracks.
Just to throw some more worms into the can, what happens between the orginal creditor and any other 3 rd parties is no business of mine, I'm not party to those contracts. The orginal debt is between me and the original company settle that directly and any 3rd parties are stuffed. Just make sure you get written proof of settling that orginal debt.
If the contract of your debt has as clause three trillion and one:
'This debt may be reassigned by the creditor without in any way invalidating the right of the credit owner to collect on it, yea even unto the death of the original company' and you signed it, then your business is with the new company that owns it. Period.
You MAY have better luck getting them to prove you actually owe it, than with the original company. But that does not invalidate the basic position that if you owed it to one company before, you legally owe it to another company now.
You would be the first to scream fraud, if a bank lent all its directors all the depositors money, called in the receivers and than blandly announced 'since the bank no longer exists, all its debtors don't have to pay the money back, and the creditors - those with deposits - have no legal right to get their money back either'.
What actually happens is the debt will get sold on at a discount, the creditors get thei rpennies in the pound ,the administrators take a fat salary and with luck, the directors go to jail and or get turned into bankrupts if they didnt offshore the money and leave the country rapidly.
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