Attachment of Earnings notice

[speechless]

I have been informed that there is an attachments of earnings notice due to be enforced against me. Whilst I acknowledge the debt ( bank credit card), all correspondence relating to the court proceedings and attachment have been sent to my previous address and I have received no written correspondence to the correct address. My bank, who have taken these proceedings against me, have my new address on file and all statements for my current account are sent to my new address.

I am willing to set up a d/d to discharge this debt over time but was wondering where I stand legally on the fact that the correspondence was sent to the wrong address, can I appeal against the judgement on the grounds of bad service and have it revoked? I am sure there are substantial fees involved with the judgement process too.

As I say, I have no written correspondence relating to this judgement and am acting 'blind' based on information I have been able to obtain.

Can anyone advise?

[Ethel]

You can apply to the court to have the judgement set aside and if you are successful proceedings revert to pre-judgement status.

I think the fee is �60.

http://www.nationaldebtline.co.uk/england_wale s/factsheet.php?page=12_how_to_set_aside_a_jud gment_in_the_county_court

[Ethel]

I see the fee is now �75

[speechless]

Thank you ethel for your link and the speedy response.

[saxy_jag]

Unless your credit/court record directly affects your job, an ATE can sometimes be better than paying by direct debit. I've had a couple in the past. Because the court has made the judgement, the interest is frozen and you pay a minimal amount per month based on what you earn in that month. That's nowhere close to what your creditors often ask you to pay. Yes, it takes longer, but you hardly notice it from your pay.

[Ethel]

Not all interest is frozen on an attachment of earnings, though.

It depends on the terms of the order,and some creditors claim the total debt including interest and costs.

The amount that is stopped out of your wages depends on your statement of means - high income, low outgoings and you could pay a lot every month.

It can also affect your career prospects in some situations.

[speechless]

Hi, unfortunately the ATE will affect my job as I am a government official, it really wont look good on my record.

The bank have offered to reduce the amount by 20% (to �5700) if I pay in full now. I personally do not have these funds but think my partner may help. The letter (which arrived today after me contacting their solicitor on hearing of the ATE) states that this would be 'a full and final settlement if paid in full', it also states that 'this letter is sent strictly without predjuice to the Banks enforcement proceedings against you'.

If I were able to pay in full would the above statements from the bank prohibit me from proceeding with getting the judgement set aside due to bad service?

[buildersmate]

Is it me or does not make any sense?
Why would one pay the reduced (80%) figure and then seek to proceed to get the judgement set aside?
If you pay the 80% figure they are offering to write off the other 20%.

[themas]

You agree you owe the money. What is the point of trying to get the CCJ set aside? It is unlikely to succeed anyway, because the judge has discretion on whether to grant the request, and it is generally only granted if you can show reasons why the outcome would very likely be different if set aside was granted and the case then re-heard.

My guess would be that the papers - when the claim was originally issued - went to the last known address which the relevant department of the bank had. If so, this satisfied the requirement for valid issue, unless you had already told that dept. of the bank what your new address was. But even if you had, the above para. still applies.

There's no way you can re-open it after you've come to a settlement and paid.

[speechless]

Hello, themas thank you for your comments, they have put the matter in some perspective for me. I think the best course of action for me is to pay in full and then put this behind me and not be so stupid again.

Buildersmate, I agree that the reduction of 20% is excellent but my point was that if I can pay in full now then I could have paid in full previously had the bank contacted me at the correct address saving court costs etc. That said, this is of my own making.

Thank you all for your comments and advice.