F19FOX's UE diary

[F19FOX]

F19FOX's account number 2

SMILE (CO-OP BANK)

• Type of account - Credit card
• Date commenced - 21st June 2006
• Approx balance - £4,085
• Date last 'full' payment - 30th Oct 2015
• Arrangement - not paying
• Status - defaulted 2nd Feb 2017
• Account owner - Link Financial

2015
OCT26/10 Advice from Stepchange (SC) to set up temporary payment arrangements of £1 with each of my creditors as my income is less than my expenses.
30/10 Posted SC templated temporary payment arrangement letters to all creditors offering £1 per month token payments. Included budget and list of creditors.

2018
APR 27/4 Wrote to Link to request copy of CCA
JUN 2/6 cancelled all payments as nil response to CCA request
JUL 2/7 SAR letter posted to Co-op bank
SEP 20/9 'Reminder notice - your payment is overdue' from Link dated 17/9/2018. Telling me to pay £1 immediately or payment plan will be cancelled and full balance will be due. I cant be 100% sure that they received my initial CCA request from 27/4 as stupidly did not send recorded so am going to send another one
20/9 Requested copy of CCA. This time sent recorded delivery requiring signature

2019
JUN 20/6 SOA received from link dated 31/5! Does it really take nearly a month by post?!? Filed.
AUG 27/8 Letter from Link dated 22nd Aug 2019 confirming the debt is UE as the Co-Op can't comply with my CCA request

I've just received the great news from Link that both this debt and my overdraft debt (my debt #1) are unenforceable because the Co-Op Bank can't comply with my CCA request. My query is should I rock the boat and chase down the Co-Op Bank to try and move the date of my defaults to an earlier date as they took from October 2015 when first notified that I was in financial difficulty and dropped to token payments till Jan 2017 when both debts were eventually defaulted. All my other debts were defaulted within 6 months of first being notified.

The only reason I am considering doing this is because I need to move home in a couple of years time but will need to take out a new mortgage so need to have a clean credit file. If I leave things as they currently are then it means another year delay whilst I wait for the Link debts to drop off my credit file.

Thanks

Foxy

[Joanna Connolly Solicitors]

My advice?

Don't push your luck right now.

If you want a clean credit file to get a mortgage in a couple of years, then maybe tackle the issue nearer the time.

Di

[F19FOX]

Hi Diana,

I hope all is well with you.

Thank you for your prompt posting. I really value your advice and I will do as suggested and just sit tight.

Thanks Di

[Joanna Connolly Solicitors]

. . . . and chase down the Co-Op Bank to try and move the date of my defaults to an earlier date as they took from October 2015 when first notified that I was in financial difficulty and dropped to token payments till Jan 2017 when both debts were eventually defaulted. All my other debts were defaulted within 6 months of first being notified

Have you heard anything more from Link about these two debts which they admitted were unenforceable?

I'm aware that you want to challenge the Default dates which you believe should have been in 2015 but didn't happen until 2017.

One was a credit card so if you breached the clause that said you should pay the minimum balance etc then that may have been the time you should have been defaulted.

Did you receive a Default Notice from the Co-Op, and if so when?

Di

[F19FOX]

Hi Di

Happy New Year and decade to you!

Thank you for your message.

I've heard from Link with letters in Sept and Nov for both debts chasing for payment. I've also had SOAs sent through for both debts in Dec 2019 / Jan 2020 respectively. Nothing else other than that.

Stupidly back when all the defaults were happening I didn't keep any correspondence from my creditors, including CO-Op Bank. In fairness to myself I didn't have the knowledge that I have now about debts thanks to you guys at AAD. However I have painstakingly trawled through the SAR responses for both accounts again and the Co-Op have not supplied copies of the Default Notices but they do make reference to having supplied them in copies of letters headed ‘final demand’ which were dated Nov 2016 (both current account and credit card account).

From looking through the transaction log it looks like the default notices were issued on 3^rd Nov 2016.

I hope that helps.

Please do let me know what you think I should do, if anything, from here.

Many thanks!

Fox

[Joanna Connolly Solicitors]

Hi Di

Happy New Year and decade to you!

. . . . Stupidly back when all the defaults were happening I didn't keep any correspondence from my creditors, including CO-Op Bank. In fairness to myself I didn't have the knowledge that I have now about debts thanks to you guys at AAD. However I have painstakingly trawled through the SAR responses for both accounts again and the Co-Op have not supplied copies of the Default Notices but they do make reference to having supplied them in copies of letters headed ‘final demand’ which were dated Nov 2016 (both current account and credit card account).

From looking through the transaction log it looks like the default notices were issued on 3^rd Nov 2016.

I hope that helps.

Please do let me know what you think I should do, if anything, from here.

Well, a Final Demand is not a Default Notice under s87 (1) CCA. They would need to produce the DN or credible evidence of it having been served on you. Referring to it in another document isn't enough.

When were both of these Co-Op debts assigned to Link?

Colin explains the necessity for a creditor is issue/serve a compliant DN before an account is terminated and assigned to a debt purchaser >

it would be strange within the industry for a debt to be assigned twice without the agreement having first been terminated. Unless perhaps the series of 'Creditors' are playing hot potato with a debt accrued under an Agreement which they all know to be unenforceable, i.e. 'no, you have it.'

The Consumer Credit Act provides a full balance cannot be called in before service of a compliant Default Notice has been effected, and the term within expired. So, there is a chance a mistake has been noticed hence the reluctance to serve a Default Notice now, as said notice would be calling in the full balance and not arrears due to the premature termination.

Of course the last outpost retreat for a Creditor, and usually an alleged assignee, is to say the loan period has matured, therefore service of a Default Notice is irrelevant. But an Act of Parliament, installed for the protection of Consumers, doesn't say that.

If no Default Notice has been served and no Default registered against you, I would suggest the Creditor knows the alleged Agreement to be unenforceable. As service of a Default Notice is the very strict precondition for the enforcement of a regulated Credit Agreement.

Di

[F19FOX]

Hi Di

Thanks for the interesting post and information!

To answer your question, the credit card debt was assigned to Link on 19th Jan 2017 and the current account overdraft debt to Link on 17th Jan 2017.

Within the SAR I have copy letters from Co-Op bank for both accounts dated 21st Dec 2016 informing me they are passing both debts across to a DCA (which I later found out to be Link). But I've checked again and still cant find any copies of the default notices.

I hope this helps

Thanks

Fox

[Joanna Connolly Solicitors]

Hi Di

Within the SAR I have copy letters from Co-Op bank for both accounts dated 21st Dec 2016 informing me they are passing both debts across to a DCA (which I later found out to be Link). But I've checked again and still cant find any copies of the default notices.

Even if the Default Notices aren't in the SAR (copies of the actual letters seldom are) you need to see if there's any reference to them having been issued, with the dates they were issued/served, and the amount being sought etc in the Co-Op Transaction Log (or something similar).

Di

[F19FOX]

Even if the Default Notices aren't in the SAR (copies of the actual letters seldom are) you need to see if there's any reference to them having been issued, with the dates they were issued/served, and the amount being sought etc in the Co-Op Transaction Log (or something similar).

Di

Hi Di

Thank you for your post!

OK I've just trawled through the transaction log from the SAR and have a couple of transactions that state:

1. Team M9990 P LC21 BP Notice of Default Issued on 031116
2. Team M9990 P LC21 BP Notice of Default Issued on 161116

So these would appear to confirm that defaults were issued for both accounts on the dates shown. The transaction log does not however say how much is being sought.

Does this help at all

Thanks

Fox

[F19FOX]

Hi

I've just checked my credit report and there was a 'hard search' done yesterday by Intrum. I'm not aware of Intrum managing any of my debts - maybe they are if they have just taken over one or more of my debts but their paperwork hasn't reached me yet!

Here is what it says:



Alert status:
Hard debt collection search
27 Jan 2020

Intrum UK Limited (SR, TAC,CT,TSC) has carried out a debt collection search.


My question is can they do this because it's now left a 'hard search' on my credit file which will adversely affect my credit rating? I've not had any hard searches for a few years because I haven't applied for any credit as I was trying to rebuild my credit report because I need to take out a new mortgage within the next couple of years. To have my credit file 'blighted' because of a DCA doing a hard search is a bit of a bitter pill to swallow!

Is this normal practice and is it lawful?

Thanks

Fox

[F19FOX]

So following on from my previous post, I've just received correspondence in the post today that Intrum UK Finance Limited became the legal owner of my debt with Tesco on 16th Jan 2020.

In the envelope is a letter from Intrum and another from Tesco. Interestingly the Tesco letter, under the FAQ section,states:

'Will this affect my credit file?
No, although Intrum UK Ltd will now show on your credit file instead of Tesco Bank. They'll also take over any reporting to the Credit Reference Agencies shortly after 29th January 2020 instead of us.'

The issue I have is this statement is not true because my credit file has been adversely impacted due to Intrum carrying out a Hard Search (and they actually did it on 27th January, two days before Tesco say they would report to the CRAs!).

Hss anyone else come across this and if so what was the resolution please?

Thanks

Fox

[Warwick65]

Just to clarify - what do you mean by a hard search?

Which agency are you using? I ask because I get lots of searches on my credit report each month but the only ones that impact it are those for credit applications

[F19FOX]

Just to clarify - what do you mean by a hard search?

Which agency are you using? I ask because I get lots of searches on my credit report each month but the only ones that impact it are those for credit applications

Hi Warwick

Thanks for your post.

What I mean by Hard Search is that it's visible to anyone (including other lenders) searching my credit file as opposed to a Soft Search whereby only myself and Intrum would be able to see it.

I use all three CRAs - Experian, Equifax and Call Credit.

If you look at my post on 28th Jan you will see I have copied verbatim details of the search left on my Credit File by Intrum . You can see clearly there it says it's labelled as a Hard Search. Like you I have many many Soft Searches which I'm not at all fussed about.

I hope this helps clarify.

Thanks

Fox

[Joanna Connolly Solicitors]

just received correspondence in the post today that Intrum UK Finance Limited became the legal owner of my debt with Tesco on 16th Jan 2020.

In the envelope is a letter from Intrum and another from Tesco.

You've received a Notice of Assignment from both Intrum and Tesco.

Intrum UK Finance Ltd now own your debt.

This could be a good thing since your credit agreement sent to you by Tesco was considered 'enforceable' by Niddy.

However Intrum UK Finance lack FCA authorisation so cannot lawfully issue legal proceedings.

Jo explain this here >

Intrum UK Finance Limited is not authorised by the Financial Conduct Authority to exercise the rights of a lender. They rely on the para 55 FSMA 2000 servicing exemption.

We look forward to using the same legal arguments in the future against Intrum UK Finance Limited which we used against Idem Capital Securities Limited in the recent successful FCA authorisation Appeal where the Circuit Judge found that the para 55 FSMA 2000 servicing exemption did not allow the unauthorised debt purchaser to issue proceedings in the county court.

Intrum also have issues with their assignment process and documentation.

Di

[F19FOX]

You've received a Notice of Assignment from both Intrum and Tesco.

Intrum UK Finance Ltd now own your debt.

This could be a good thing since your credit agreement sent to you by Tesco was considered 'enforceable' by Niddy.

However Intrum UK Finance lack FCA authorisation so cannot lawfully issue legal proceedings.

Jo explain this here >




Di

Hello Di

Oh wow! That sounds very encouraging indeed. You have made my day

Enjoy the rest of your day!

Fox