Advice Needed, Please. New Judge ?

[derekpara]

My daughter is in debt to various organisations and has moved back to us - temporarily, I hope ! Now she has received a letter from one company telling her that unless she pays her debt a collection agency will turn up on our doorstep.

My wife and I are pensioners and don't want to be faced with this situation.

What should we do if a debt collector turns up when our daughter is at work - or even if she is indoors for that matter ? She has nothing of any real value here. What is the legal situation here ?

[Old_Geezer]

As someone totally unqualified to say, my course of action would be to tell them to go away. Let them chase your daughter through the courts if they wish, but their physical presence is unwelcome, not useful, and they are not invited. You do not appreciate being harassed. It may even be a simple threat they know they won't follow through on anyway, since it would be pointless. After all, what would they intend to do if they did turn up ?

[Zacs-Master]

Derek whilst you're waiting for NJ's expert reply this might be helpful:
http://www.theguardian.com/money/2009/aug/08/debt-collectors
A call to the CAB might be the correct first step regarding you're unusual circumstances.

[factor-fiction]

They will need papers from the court before they can start trying to take property.

[HongKongphooey]

Although again not qualified, I am pretty sure that a debt collection agency cannot by law take anything belonging to your daughter and definately can't take anything belonging to you, the innocent party caught up in this situation. The only person that can do that is a bayliff and that has to be done through a court order which would take months. We run a small business and have employed debt collectors as a very last resort usually on company directors that endlessly refuse to pay and drive around in ferrari's, etc etc. They can purely work within the law as they told us, and even have to be careful not to be harassing you. Get your daughter to go to citizens advice, they have debt advisors who can work out a plan she can afford to suit all parties. They are free and have been brilliant with people I know who are in debt.

[chrissa1]

Do Not Let Them Over Your Doorstep!!!!!!!!!!
Even if they say, can I come in and we can discuss it. They cannot demand to come in and once they have, they can gain entry lawfully again.

Do Not Let Them In!!!!!!

[FredPuli43]

First of all , no debt collector can seize any property of the debtor without getting a court judgment for the debt first. Then the court enforces the judgment by means of certified bailiffs. Some debt collectors may be so certified, but they still must have a court judgment, and which empowers them to take goods ; the Court may not have ordered that because it may have settled for some other method of recovery. So rule one is don't admit them to the house and demand a sight of the judgment which empowers them to take goods as bailiffs.

They can't take any goods, even then, if they are genuinely told that the goods are not the debtors. In your case that will be patently true; your daughter is only a guest with few belongings.

What I expect they want is for your daughter or you to make them some offer to settle the debt without going to court. You have no obligation to make any offer and shouldn't; the debtor is your daughter and they are restricted to trying to get something from her alone, not you, and your making an offer only encourages them to try for more than they can legally get from her. You'd only be liable if you signed to guarantee payment when she incurred the debt, in the event she didn't pay i.e. as 'guarantor'

The public get misled somewhat by TV documentaries showing cars being seized. The cars will be under hire purchase or some credit agreement whereby the finance company can take the car if payments are not kept up; when they aren't, the company seizes the car. In law, the car didn't belong to the person who had the car and signed the agreement; it belonged to the finance company all the time until a certain number of payments were made.

[Peter Pedant]

Good advice from the Great Freddie !

Hmmm how did they get your address for her in the first place ?

what you might consider is writing a letter of dissociation to the credit agencies - this records the fact you are different to her...

there have been some posts on this already

[derekpara]

Many thanks to you all for the sound advice and words of support.

My natural instincts in my younger days would have been to help them on their way !

Cheers.

D

[themas]

You've had good advice here. Make sure your daughter does contact CAB.

It's highly unlikely anyone will come. These letter are almost always simply attempts to scare the debtor into paying. Anyone who comes has no rights & no authority. Don't let them in. Just tell them your daughter is not available & to leave.

[derekpara]

Thanks, Themas.

D

[flitty]

if they want to take anything they can only take what is your daughters and not yours unless you stood as a guarantor on any loans she had, or did it without you knowing. They cannot force entry if you dont let them in

[flitty]

http://www.findlaw.co.uk/law/bankruptcy/debt_collection/418.html

[flitty]

http://www.goingdebtfree.co.uk/debt-collectors-and-your-rights.html

this one bit more detailed

[sherrardk]

If you do some googling you will find. Firm of lawyers who will give you free advice of the phone and by letter and they will contact any bailiffs that do come to your home (don't let them in, you will know that they have been as they will put a letter through your door). We had to use them and they did the trick, they were really helpful.

[derekpara]

Thanks, Flitty. Great information.

And thanks to you, too Sherrardk.


Cheers.

D