Night Monkey's diary

[Night Monkey]

Type of account - Barclaycard credit card
Date commenced - Approx 2012
Approx balance - £7300
Date last paid - Early 2018
Are you on arrangement or not paying - DMP with StepChange
Status - default
Account owner - PRA Group (UK) Ltd.

28.3.19 Letter from Barclaycard, 'We've now transferred your Barclaycardover to PRA Group (UK)Ltd.'
28.3.19 Letter from PRA Group, 'We have recently purchased your outstanding balance with Barclaycard'
17.8.19 Requested CCA details
22.8.19 Returned £1 postal order with above letter, no specific mention of this account
25.3.20 Informed StepChange that we intend to self-manage from now on, redirected £308 monthly standing order to separate savings account.
26.3.20 Received statement from PRA, ~£6700 outstanding, ~£650 received.
14.8.20 Letter from PRA Group (UK) Ltd., account is now with Investigations & Litigation Department. If they do not hear from us in the next 30 days then our account will be considered for the next stage etc.
17.9.20 Letter Before Action with form to fill in. Spoke to Di, ignoring for now.
17.9.20 Sent GDPR request to Barclays online
1.10.20 Received letter from Barclays saying that they were unable to comply with GDPR request as the details I provided did not match their records, asking that I provide id at a branch and resubmit.
Sent certified copies of passport & driving license with new request.
17.10.20 Letter from Barclays, they are unable to carry out my GDPR request as they are unable to 'locate the customer from the information provided'.

Barclays are unable to provide any information as they are unable to 'locate the customer from the information provided'. Despite them sending me a letter to this address in March, telling me that they had transferred my account to PRA. If I wish to submit the request they ask that I provide an account number, any previous names and addresses and date of birth. I don't think so.

Unfortunately I can't find any correspondence from before March, I'm not sure why that is.

Do Barclays have different systems to Barclaycard?

[Night Monkey]

Still nothing showing the GDPR request as delivered to Barclays...

[The Tech Clerk]

Or am I becoming too cynical in my old age = get in the queue lol

[Joanna Connolly Solicitors]

. . . there is no reason they need this? I’m just wondering if this could be used against you in future by being seen as you acknowledging the debt?

My approach is always 'ask don't tell'.

Don't give them any information which could help them to fill in the blanks where they lack necessary information, such as a previous address which could be used to 'reconstitute' a credit agreement.

And don't sign with your signature (sign digitally if possible). There's anecdotal evidence that signatures have been lifted to use on documents retrospectively.

Or am I becoming too cynical in my old age

Di

[Night Monkey]

I’m just wondering if this could be used against you in future by being seen as you acknowledging the debt?

I was a little edgy about that too, but I'd made no reference to the account I'd had with them and didn't give them any previous addresses to help them reconstitute anything. I wasn't telling them anything they didn't know already so felt reasonably safe playing along.

[The Tech Clerk]

Another GDPR security check, the argument been around for years it has no bearing as a company has to make sure security is in place and that is classed as part of requirements .

[wineaddict2020]

Indeed we have, and it was appreciated.

Diary entries now updated but to summarise:

- a letter before action from PRA regarding the Barclaycard account, no CCA supplied so sitting on my hands and waiting to see what happens after the 30-day period (17th October) expires. In the meantime I've sent off a GDPR request to Barclays which prompted a request for some id; I've provided them with passport & license certified at one of their branches so we'll see what that brings.

- an email telling me that there's a change to my credit file. This looked like the MBNA account closing but was ultimately the Santander credit card disappearing and the MBNA changing account number from (I think) an MBNA one to a PRA reference. Maybe someone's getting confused, let's see if anything happens.

- a few other nagging letters & texts, nothing else of note.

Hey I’m pretty new around here and just reading your diary as you have a fairly similar situation to mine.
can I just ask why you’ve supplied your ID in branch for the GDPR request? Surely if they have your address and are sending the info to that address there is no reason they need this? I’m just wondering if this could be used against you in future by being seen as you acknowledging the debt? Not that I am in a way qualified to determine that!
I had a similar request after sending CCA request and ignored it and they still responded eventually.

[Night Monkey]

I've missed the members too, although we have spoken . . .

Indeed we have, and it was appreciated.

Diary entries now updated but to summarise:

- a letter before action from PRA regarding the Barclaycard account, no CCA supplied so sitting on my hands and waiting to see what happens after the 30-day period (17th October) expires. In the meantime I've sent off a GDPR request to Barclays which prompted a request for some id; I've provided them with passport & license certified at one of their branches so we'll see what that brings.

- an email telling me that there's a change to my credit file. This looked like the MBNA account closing but was ultimately the Santander credit card disappearing and the MBNA changing account number from (I think) an MBNA one to a PRA reference. Maybe someone's getting confused, let's see if anything happens.

- a few other nagging letters & texts, nothing else of note.

[Joanna Connolly Solicitors]

...and you're back. Welcome home guys, you were missed.

I've missed the members too, although we have spoken . . .

Di

[Night Monkey]

...and you're back. Welcome home guys, you were missed.

Diary updates incoming...

[Joanna Connolly Solicitors]

should the worst happen wouldn't they in some way pass on to our estate for our daughters to deal with? Certainly when my parents died we were told to total up any debts and pay them, and split what was left.

I can easily see a situation where they are presented with bills for the full amount from any creditors, enforceable or otherwise, and choose to write a cheque rather than argue about it.

Apologies if the above seems overly morbid, we've just written our wills and have been forced to contemplate the unthinkable

You're not being morbid at all, you're being pragmatic. So I will be too.

If a debt is unenforceable when you're alive, it will be unenforceable when you're no longer alive. Either it is or it isn't.

My suggestion is you establish which debts are unenforceable and staple the information to your Will so whoever is dealing with your affairs will be armed with the information when the time comes.

If you haven't paid or acknowledged the debts for six years before you die then they will become Statute Barred whether they're enforceable or not. If you make offers to settle you will restart the Statute Barred clock.

I should also say there are more ways a debt can be unenforceable than just the credit agreement. So if you've been told your MBNA credit agreement is enforceable that doesn't mean that they or PRA have complied with all their other statutory duties.

I agree that all too often a solicitor will simply pay bills of the deceased without question possibly because they don't have the knowledge of consumer credit which is a specialist area of law.

Di

[Roger]

I accept this, but should the worst happen wouldn't they in some way pass on to our estate for our daughters to deal with? Certainly when my parents died we were told to total up any debts and pay them, and split what was left.
I can easily see a situation where they are presented with bills for the full amount from any creditors, enforceable or otherwise, and choose to write a cheque rather than argue about it.
Apologies if the above seems overly morbid, we've just written our wills and have been forced to contemplate the unthinkable

Without being morbid and indeed as a Home Owner the best way to take control of Debt is to follow the AAD Diary format.

Your best legacy will be evidence of six years Statute Barred and or Legally Unenforcable Debt!

Every communication with these DBA's / Banks has the potential to restart the Statute Barred Clock all over again.
You are a long way away from a CCJ and even if a claim is issued terms can still be negotiated depending upon the strength or otherwise of you and or your claimants Case.

Many have BLAGGED their way to Statute Barred!

The First discipline is after sending a S.77/78 CCA (plus £1) is SILENCE! Start Saving instead of paying see what or otherwise you receive and put details up here into your Diary entries!

Its a mindset change coupled with a savy understanding of how to best protect your interests and your legacy!

[Night Monkey]

the debt is your's not your daughters.

I accept this, but should the worst happen wouldn't they in some way pass on to our estate for our daughters to deal with? Certainly when my parents died we were told to total up any debts and pay them, and split what was left.

I can easily see a situation where they are presented with bills for the full amount from any creditors, enforceable or otherwise, and choose to write a cheque rather than argue about it.

Apologies if the above seems overly morbid, we've just written our wills and have been forced to contemplate the unthinkable

[Night Monkey]

Do you own a property which has a mortgage so visible on your CRA file?

We do own a mortgaged property, which is now about 70% owned after some struggle so I wouldn't like to muddy those waters.

You say your CCA Requests have been "ignored" ...<snip>... could they be attempting to source or reconstitute the necessary documentation?

Of the five debts, MBNA is enforceable, Santander unenforceable with Barclaycard and the two HSBC returning the POs without comment or reference to the CCA requests. Whether anybody is still looking for them a year on, who can say?

[Joanna Connolly Solicitors]

if I do decide to let things continue I want it to be an informed decision.

It takes two to make a decision when it comes to settlements.

You've decided you want to settle your (currently) unenforceable debts, but that's meaningless if the debt owners don't want to accept your offers.

Do you own a property which has a mortgage so visible on your CRA file? Some debt owners would rather aim for a CCJ and then a Charging Order in order to turn an unsecured debt into a secured debt where they hope to get 100% of the amount eventually.

I believe negotiation is best done from a position of strength so you need to be certain you've reached the end of the line in your research and the facts of the situation won't or can't change.

You say your CCA Requests have been "ignored" . Do you mean absolutely no reply at all, or could they be attempting to source or reconstitute the necessary documentation?

Di