UK Debt Collection - information they don't want you to know

[HOMEnHIGH]

dude this is bullshit...dont open the door, dont acknowledge, they have no legal right to take your money, they bought the debt off the company that you owed it to, so therefore the debt has been paid, you have no contract with debt collectors that shows you owe them money....its as simple as that...

[MissFireballxl5]

@HOMEnHIGH - agree but what happens when the card is bought from the bank you bank with and they take the money from the account anyway???

[HOMEnHIGH]

@MissFireballxl5 ...close your account...sounds simple, and it is.from when you walk in and sate that you no longer bank with them, you no longer bank with them...you will not be taken to court for owing the bank money, because that money does not get generated untill you earn it and start pay it back, therefore there is no loss to report...look it up , you will be enlightend.

[james7167]

dont see bailiffs goin to david camerons to get our taxes

[YouKnowIAmRight]

Excellent work...thank you : )

[Flamorgan]

There are no Ballifs in the U.K , only England uses ballifs.

[dcamaggots]

@Flamorgan

I'm in England, though.

Also, threats of bailiffs are used in other parts of the UK, primarily in auto-letters - which is a key point. With many people, even the mere written threat is enough to get them to jump.

[Flamorgan]

@dcamaggots Yes, letters are sent in all parts of the U.K but there are no actual ballifs in the rest of the U.K so no one can actually take your property, I think this is unfair and that baliffs should also be removed from England.

[dcamaggots]

@Flamorgan

Yes, bailiffs should also be removed from England - I couldn't agree with you more on that one.

[freedombiteback]

@dcamaggots consumeractiongroup ?? links please.

[cannotfindavoice]

I know debt collectors do nasty things & so do some bailiff's, but being devils advocate here I have to say this. People should not get themselves into these situations in the first place, for debt, you have to live or try to live within your own financial positions. Now bailiffs these can be because of debts & or fines, again they should not get themselves into these situations. They should pay there fine's as soon as they get them, this is truth & fact borrow nothing & live within the law.

[dcamaggots]

@cannotfindavoice

Sometimes, financial difficulty is just unavoidable or unforeseen.

Besides, if threats of legal action are being made against you, then there's nothing wrong with using that law to come back at them with.

Especially if those threats turn out to be groundless, which they often are.

[MissFireballxl5]

@cannotfindavoice - also there are enticements that appear to be above board but set you up to take a fall. Miss-sold cards are very common. Also there is no "money" within the credit card account that you could use for credit to be given of that amount. so the "payback" they get is pure profit plus interest..! on what?

The credit card thing is a scam.. only when you know do you then run a mile.

[Pythonaria]

Excellent video.

[NickTamotor]

Do not enter into any dialogue whatsoever with collection agencies. do not even answer the door. Have a code ring/knock for your friends. As soon as you let them know you are resident at your address you will get bombarded with threatening letters and visits. They cannot do anything if you dont respond as you could be someone else who lives there and who dont open other people's letters.They cannot get bailifs/police on the strengh that you "maybe" live there it has to be 100%...so just be quiet

[darksidehumourxx]

great upload thankyou Sir :)

[TheTwony]

on this video you mention about keeping a copy of a letter by the door, can you provide a link as to where to find this as i have spent much tome searching on the site you mentioned and can find nothing about it, cheers

[OurnameisLegion66]

good info!

[komputaman]

bail outs for the banks - bailliffs for the poor

[pootymcpoots]

Thanks for pointing me to C.A.G., it's not really overstating things to say they've been a life saver.

[Lucasimo]

1 person here is a debt collector

[kingwaldo100]

If you are seriously in debt, just go bankrupt !!!. Forget the FSA AND OFFICE OF FAIR TRADING. If you take your cases to the Financial Ombudsman Service, be careful !! ( I shut my mouth ). The infrastructure has collapsed with knowledge and standard. Act, compliance, risk management, guidelines etc not being acknowledge. The levels of people's competency is well below par.

Dont be bullied and start again, keep your family together.DEBT COLLECTER'S ARE VULTURES.

Ex ...... under FSA

[roysheard]

watch this bailiff runs off

[MoneybuddyUK]

Gawd I laughed re your comments on the bailiffs! I have had some great experiences of my own with bailiffs from non-paid parking tickets. They tried to take my lease car away for a £30 parking ticket which wasn't paid. I told them to bugger off and took my car away. They haven't been back.

Re door step debt collectors - you just send them a letter as soon as they threaten this - telling them they have no legal right to do so as you withdraw your common law right to do enter your property.

[dcamaggots]

@MoneybuddyUK

Amazing how quickly they'll back away when they begin to realise the frighteners aren't working.

[henryd8th]

@dcamaggots dont u mean lawfull right, and why would u withdraw your common law rights.?

[killalmostwise]

You should put the links in the description box. Many thanks for the vid, very informative :)

[dcamaggots]

@killalmostwise

I thought I had. I'll get round to that.

[Steveo8786]

You're in debt by mis-managing your finances or irresponsibly borrowing showing that you lack any foresight as to your finances. For example, I have a credit card which although I have a fairly high limit I won't allow the balance to go above £150 as I want to make sure that even if I were to be put out of work then I would be able to pay it back. People lack responsibility when it comes to things like this and look for any way they can to avoid facing that responsibility.

[dcamaggots]

@Steveo8786

It's easiest just to cover one point at a time ;-

"You're in debt by mis-managing your finances or irresponsibly borrowing showing that you lack any foresight as to your finances."

Those are possibilities, and you've only mentioned two of them. Other possibilities are unlawful charges, company error, an employer that hasn’t paid you on time, a close family tragedy that’s thrown everything sideways, a job that suddenly goes tits up.

[Steveo8786]

@dcamaggots "Those are possibilities, and you've only mentioned two of them... an employer that hasn’t paid you on time, a close family tragedy that’s thrown everything sideways, a job that suddenly goes tits up."

Again, someone who has managed their finances well, will not fall into difficulty when situations like you mention arise. If people spend and save responsibly, you can have a great credit rating, matched with a monetary safety cushion for difficult times.

[dcamaggots]

@Steveo8786

You can never know what the future holds, no matter how careful with money you may be. There is always the possibility of the unexpected, or something you were never prepared for.

When much information that CRAs have registered with people is either wrong, inapplicable or defamatory, then you can't put much onus on a 'great credit rating'. Besides, would a credit rating even matter if you have no intention of or didn't borrow at all?

[Steveo8786]

@dcamaggots "Other possibilities are unlawful charges, company error," And I would not consider arguing against a company being called to account should such situations arise, whether that be in a court of law, or by other legal means to get those issues resolved.

You're protected by your T&C's. Use them to your advantage, but don't moan when a credit company acts fully within the rights of their contract just because you didn't read it. (not saying you, but some people do)

[dcamaggots]

@Steveo8786

Law protects you more than T&Cs. And if you're advocating using the T&Cs to your advantage, then I'm only advocating using the law to your advantage.

Besides, certain T&Cs may be unlawful in themselves, which is more the fault of the company than the customer - since the company will obviously know about consumer law and what can/can't apply in T&Cs.

And if the company tries to enforce a T&C that turns out to be unlawful and it costs them, then more fool that company.

[dcamaggots]

@Steveo8786

"For example, I have a credit card which although I have a fairly high limit I won't allow the balance to go above £150 as I want to make sure that even if I were to be put out of work then I would be able to pay it back."

And if the company starts whacking on unlawful charges or refers you to a DCA without your permission or knowledge? Or begins abusively demanding money from you without reason or allow you any leeway? Would you be so willing to pay it back after all that?

[Steveo8786]

@dcamaggots "For example, I have a credit card which although I have a fairly high limit I won't allow the balance to go above £150 as I want to make sure that even if I were to be put out of work then I would be able to pay it back."

If they unlawfully whack on charges, then I can guarantee you I'd see them in court. Why do people need to have knowledge or give permission to be referred to a DCA? They have accrued a debt (just talking the lawful stuff here)...

[dcamaggots]

@Steveo8786

And would you pay to take them to court? It's an expensive business, and the burden of proof is on the accuser.

The reason for permission is due to data privacy rights - to prevent abuse of private, privileged information by someone/some company.

This doesn't stop debts from 'swimming around' so many agencies that, after a while, even the OC doesn't entirely know which agency actually has it.

[Steveo8786]

@dcamaggots if you have a debt with a company then you should quite rightly pay it back and be forced to do so by a DCA and the law. You borrow money, you pay it back. If I had borrowed money, and I ended up with my details with a DCA, no matter what the experience I had with them I would pay that money back.

[dcamaggots]

@Steveo8786

And the law would likely tell you that it's a civil matter.

But you would still pay back (assuming that a debt exists at all) - even if the DCA verbally abused you, shouted at you, or you knew was lying to you for some reason? That would smack of lack of self respect.

Or, if in the instance you sent a request into them for them to substantiate the debt, collection activity still continues.

[ninondulac]

@Steveo8786 fool...money is debt antway and doesnt even exist, they screw u wall the time so u obviously like it, i screw them b4 they screw me

[ninondulac]

@Steveo8786 fool...money is debt anyway and doesnt even exist, they screw u all the time so u obviously like it, i screw them b4 they screw me

[dcamaggots]

@Steveo8786

"People lack responsibility when it comes to things like this and look for any way they can to avoid facing that responsibility."

How so? Please amplify. And what if the company dealing with your account behaves irresponsibly, unreasonably, and possibly unlawfully?

[Steveo8786]

@dcamaggots "How so? Please amplify. And what if the company dealing with your account behaves irresponsibly, unreasonably, and possibly unlawfully?"

I agree with you on the point of unlawful behaviour and they should find themselves in court for any such behaviour. What I mean is simply peopel lack the responsibility to look at their finances and say "hmm, can I afford to have this credit card?" If this is even a question, then you should probably stay away. It's irresponsibly to borrow...

[dcamaggots]

@Steveo8786

I don't encourage people to borrow. In fact, I do exactly the opposite and have as little to do with dealing with the financial industry as humanly possible.

Not just because of the potential pressure of paying it back or keeping it under control - but because the financial industry - especially so in the last 2 years - cannot be trusted.

[Steveo8786]

@dcamaggots money you're not 100% sure you can pay back. Define unreasonable and irresponsible in the context of lenders.

[dcamaggots]

@Steveo8786

Death and taxes are the only things you can ever be 100% sure about. Unreasonable and irresponsible? Previous comments I've made answer that one.

[Steveo8786]

Yes, let's teach people how to avoid paying debts they have accrued through their own irresponsible actions.

[dcamaggots]

@Steveo8786

What makes you think that it's necessarily the person's fault?

[warface66]

thankyou

[playgirlc]

funny you should mention rossendales. i've had a few visits from them, and i have been indoors every time and only once did they ever ring the doorbell. can they charge you for subsequent visits if they didnt have the balls to knock, does anyone know?

[dcamaggots]

@playgirlc

First visit £24, second visit £18. They can visit you 100 times, but they can only charge for the first two. If you visit the Consumer Action Group forum boards (Bailiffs and Sheriff Officers section is the one you want), you'll find a wealth of info on Rossendales, who are regularly featured, and do a YT search for 'Rossendales Bailiffs' as well.

[playgirlc]

@dcamaggots - thanks. so basically if they visit 3 times or 100 times the most they can charge full-stop, total, is £42? so if i send them a cheque for £42 they can't chase any more (and if they do, i complain to them and next step the council and court?).

i use consumer action group a lot and can see there's a lot on rossendales there. chances are the council know what they're like and use that kind of disreputable bailiff to scare people into not doing it again.

[dcamaggots]

@playgirlc

The most they can charge for visits is £42.

I'd also ask for a screenshot of the account, the details of which (minus personal details - only amounts and what they relate to should be posted) should be posted on CAG. This is so it can be established what they have a right to charge and they're trying to sting you for.

And being Rossendales, there WILL be an attempt to con you somewhere down the line.

[IrishMaverick2008]

its quite simple pay your bills on time and you wont have to deal with debt collectors :)

[dcamaggots]

It's even more simple - have the companies provide proof that it's owed or that they even have legal right to collect on it :)

[WaterBaby5548]

Baliffs are not interested. Baliffs use act of illegal power to enter into your home and misuse thier authourity .

[dcamaggots]

True, they're not interested and routinely abuse what authority they have.

It takes a very stone-hearted individual to actually want to be a bailiff, and I can't understand why anyone would want to do that line of work - even out of desperation.

[whitenightf3]

@dcamaggots They have no authority you are the highest authority on the planet.

[dcamaggots]

@whitenightf3

I wouldn't say I had any authority - but they certainly don't.

[whitenightf3]

@dcamaggots the only Sovereign is you let them know it.

[playgirlc]

i should imagine most people do not evade their council tax deliberately and do not know their rights. in my case it was a mixture of council incompetency, my own stupidity, a genuine error and the council's incompetency (yes i know i said that twice...). so don't be too quick to judge before you've walked a mile in someone else's shoes, or you'll sound like a brainless, inconsiderate moron.

[WaterBaby5548]

what if the debt is not yours and debtors continue to harrass you calling at your home. What do you do then?

[dcamaggots]

Depends if it's a bailiff or a run on the mill door-to-door debt collector. That's why I keep recommending the Consumer Action Group website. They've got separate discussion forums dedicated to bailiffs or debt collectors.

If you have a problem with one or the other, it's worth signing up with that site, posting your story, what your problem is, and wait for sound advice to come your way.

[willie3976]

Baillifs are scum and so are debt collectors they pray on people when they are at their lowest point and make a bad situation all the more worst the companies can afford to write debt off THEY JUST DONT WANT TO COS THEY ARE GREEDY I!!!!!!!!

[dcamaggots]

Indeed. If they had showed more understanding, they might gain a little bit of credibility and then people might be prepared to listen.

Instead, because their actions have become so sickening and widespread, people are learning instead to fight back.

If the situation wasn't so bad, and people now realising that the law's going to do nothing for them, then there'd be no need for clips like this one, or advice forums for that matter.

[WaterBaby5548]

People still need to know how to act when bailiffs knock at your door. More so if you are an inoccent person and the debt does not belong to you. And Bailiffs harrass you. People need to continue complaining about how bailiffs treat people so that the law can be changed to protect innocent people the bailiffs harrass.

[dcamaggots]

There are ways and means. There are other bailiff sites beyond CAG as well - just a question of looking about.

But it is important to find out which court actually certificated the bailiff in question, and certainly a complaint should be made there.

But bailiff regulation is not quite as cut and dried as it is with debt collection, which is fairly direct in comparison. Debt collectors can more or less be told to fuck off. Bailiffs are more tricky to get rid of.

[WaterBaby5548]

Baliffs are SCUM and the way they act is in human. However, an adult is responsible for thier own action. People should pay thie bills on time.

[dcamaggots]

Depends on your point of view.

People should always pay on time, but these days, that's not easy - especially if you're struggling, or your bank fucks up, or you're vulnerable, or ill, or something else.

There are laws that bailiffs are supposed to follow in respect to such cases, but that never happens - it's just threaten and bully!

If you fall under that remit, then check up on what your rights are, and then use them to stand up for yourself against those trying to exploit you.

[beefcurtains67]

@willie3976 Do you give away free lemonade from your lemonade stand? That would be bad business. Admittedly, using scare tactics isnt really good business either, but I dont think companies are silly enough to start giving away their product for free.

[centurion1688]

save yourself money on truecall - divert the call to my mobile and i'll record it & post it on youtube :)

[mejustjeri]

thank you so much for this info .. i have dealt with a few of those mentioned and have allways called their bluff .. dont be afeared by them . they will and do all they can to intimerdate you but once you show that they cant they tend to backdown somewhat .. take all the advise you can and us ethe laws we have against them to the fullest ... keep them out of your house at all cost and once they have left contact your local consumer advise group asap ..DONT WAIT FOR THE NEXT VISIT ACT IMMEDIATELY

[johnshenton999]

One important bit of advice I know is that once a bailiff has been given permission to enter the house, next time they are allowed to break in. I suspect in practice, this may be done by using a locksmith, rather than a sledgehammer.

Also remember to lock those back doors and windows, including upper floor windows. Bailiffs may be like spiders and crawl in that way.

[dcamaggots]

The homeowner/tenant would have to grant that permission, and bailiffs will lie, cheat or try to force their way in to do this.

They routinely lie to police and courts, and Consumer Action Group has an excellent Bailiffs/Sheriff Officers forum explaining in far greater detail the tricks they get up to.

It does it in much better detail than I can possibly elaborate on via a YT clip or comment.

If you suspect a bailiff isn't playing straight, that's probably because he isn't.

[realisticmotorsport1]

hi mate good stuff

my mum is getting hassel from debt agents sayin they will be around collecting debt owed from my brother who defalted on a loan 4 years ago..she is 70 and disabled...she has written them and said he has not lived at the house for 5years and yet he still write and say they will be coming to collet money or house possions....what can I do to help? other than knee cap them for bulling my mum.

kindest regards

[dcamaggots]

Has she written to these companies?

A template letter should be kept at hand - Consumer Action Group has an excellent one, citing 'Tort of Trespass'. That's the letter you need.

These 'agents' have no right to even turn up at the door without prior appointment.

If it's a loan, then it's a consumer debt, is unsecured, and whoever turns up (if anyone, which is unlikely) has less authority than the paperboy.

Any company that continues this bullshit should be reported to the OFT.

[AzziDePazzi]

impressive again :)

[dcamaggots]

Thanks again. Hope that problem got itself sorted out, or that it's less of a problem than it was before.

[deborah8576]

wow u really know your stuff!! no debt collection agency would mess with u that's for sure haha!! cheers 4 the good advice u gave me and keep up the good work.

[dcamaggots]

I've not heard from a DCA for about 8 months now. Shame - I feel unpopular.

[wypapitjiity]

Let's hear your next post sooner! Best regards......

[dcamaggots]

If any further developments arise, rest assured.

But a couple of interesting things happened just today -

1. Anne Widdecombe is now railing against debt collection firms, according to Today's Daily Express, and she's quite formidable and self-assured - so it's nice to have an MP on side.

2. Lloyds TSB have just announced losses of £4 billion. Well, that £17 billion to rescue then went far, then. I give it about a year before they're in the toilet.

[zimerdy]

Just brilliant, as would be expected from the CAG and its members.

[dcamaggots]

No problem zimerdy - thanks for the kind words.