Has anyone had dealings with this bunch of incompetents who claim to be a debt collection agency? For weeks now they have been bombarding me with letters and phone calls demanding payment of a debt I know nothing about. I have responded to each of their letters by asking for details of the debt ( which has now grown into two debts, to the same company, for completely different amounts!) but they have not given me any explanation whatsoever. They have, however, continued with their threatening letters.
In my last letter, which I sent by Recorded Delivery, I told them that if they didn't stop harrassing me and my family, I'd report the matter to the police. I also invoiced them £100 for my time, letters and phone calls to date!
Should I be doing anything else?
Alan
Don't reply to this e-mail address - messages will be deleted unread. To reply to me take away the news and substitute alanc
BCW are a bunch of tossers who give the impression that they're solicitors - they're not.
I still have here a letter I got from them earlier this year headed "Notice of Court Action" with regard to their client "The Carphone Warehouse" for £26. It begins:
"Despite repeated requests for payment, your overdue account....remains outstanding"
I called them in response and told them that I had received no previous request at all. Their response was "yes, we put that on all our first letters to people".
I then told them that I'd never bought anything from The Carphone Warehouse and was told that it actually related to Sainsbury's Mobile.
When I told them that I'd had no dealings with Sainsbury's Mobile either, other than a free trial of their service some 2 years ago, which was cancelled within a few days, and I'd heard nothing from them since, they continued to insist that I owed them money.
I wrote them a letter detailing why I didn't owe them any money and why I wouldn't be paying. If it helps in your case, the letter I wrote finished:
"Although I personally would relish the opportunity, you would be wise to withdraw your threats to take legal action against me. You will make your clients look extremely foolish and incompetent, and you can be sure that their, and your, administrative inadequacies will be aired in full.
This letter is the first and last time that I will enter into written correspondence with you, or your client, regarding this non-issue at my own expense. Any further correspondence received from you or your client, other than a letter of apology and a confirmation that this issue is now closed, will incur administrative charges at the rate of £25 per letter"
I didn't get the letter of apology, but I also never heard from them again
Thanks for that - interestingly, the alleged debts BCW are going on about relate to Vodafone - another mobile phone company.
Another thing - the two "debts" are described as "bought debts". Does this mean that BCW have purchased the "rights" to the debts from Vodafone and that any sums recovered by them are retained by them?
If thats the case, I'm afraid they have chucked £180 down the pan!
Alan
Don't reply to this e-mail address - messages will be deleted unread. To reply to me take away the news and substitute alanc
If they have purchased the debt (and assuming the debt is 180), I would think they paid a lot less than its face value - perhaps 10% of its face value?
As little as that? It's going to cost them more than that to try and recover. And if it goes the whole way to a Small Claims court they will really be out of pocket as I would defend any action - and there are no awards of expenses in defended Small Claims under £200, IIRC.
The annoying thing about it is that the whole matter could probably be resolved quite easily if they would just reply to my letters instead of ignoring them!
Alan
Don't reply to this e-mail address - messages will be deleted unread. To reply to me take away the news and substitute alanc
IANAL - Well done - you've prepared the ground (I assume you've detailed why you believe you do not owe this money). Given that this does not appear to be an isolated incident, if they contact you again chasing the debt write a letter to the police asking for them to be prosecuted.
I'm going to see the police tomorrow to see what can be done. I've also requested small claims forms from my local sheriff court and may well raise an action against BCW for my expenses to date.
Their latest epistle arrived on Wednesday. Apparently as "repeated attempts to reach a (sic) amicable settlement have proved unsuccessful" they are now considering "the Issue of Insolvency Proceedings, subject to the Insolvency Act 1986 or the Bankruptcy (Scotland) Act 1985".
For £180? Er, no, I don't think so. What this bunch of tossers know about Insolvency/Bankruptcy could be written on the back of a postage stamp with plenty of room left for the combined works of Shakespeare.
Still, my response to them has just added another £20 to my expenses. Now standing at £140 and counting.
Alan
Don't reply to this e-mail address - messages will be deleted unread. To reply to me take away the news and substitute alanc
In order to get the court's sympathy for levying your own charges, you would be advised to have informed BCW that you're doing it. In general you can't form a contract with someone passively anyway, but the courts have tended to look sympathetically with regards to costs orders on consumers who have been brought to court on the incompetence of businesses.
I have told them them I am holding them responsible for my expenses. I am prepared to "go to the line" on this - I do not owe any money to Vodafone, and the tactics that BCW have adopted are completely inappropriate, but distressingly, very familiar.
They, and similar "debt collection agencies" make profit out of the misery of debt. How many people give in to them for a quiet life, even though they may owe nothing?
BCW are, IMHO, scum.
Alan
Don't reply to this e-mail address - messages will be deleted unread. To reply to me take away the news and substitute alanc
I concurr. They are currently on to me. I called them repeatedly about the 'debt', worte to them. Promises opf action but nothing ever done except more threatening letters, and one letter that looked like this:
"HAVE BEEN TRYING TO CONTACT YOU....
IMPORTANT I SPEAK TO YOU URGENTLY....
PLEASE CALL AND QUOTE ...."
That one I nearly chucked away before I realised it wasn't junk mail and was actually from BCW.
Gave up in the end and contacted British Gas direct and sorted it all in 10 minutes - it was a simple misunderstanding of when I had moved out of a property.
They claim to be members of the CSA but break many of its rules, AFAICS.
Contact the company you apprently owe the money to and sort it out directly with them. I did this after 4 months of hassle from BCW. It took 10 minutes. I then wrote a letter to the company thanking them for their help and poitning out that BCW were totally incompetant at recovering the 'debt' (I did not owe anything, it turns out) for them.
What worries me is that it may have gone into my credit file...
I suggest that you complain to OFT who licence debt collection agencies
You could issue court proceedings against them and their client seeking a declaration that you do not owe the money and seeking an injunction but this would be costly.
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