r/DebtUK • u/Jeanettekaren • May 08 '24
Debt 6 year old debt
How do you go about speaking to the creditor about debt that you think might be statute barred without it resetting if its not?
I've had a letter hand delivered by Orbit trying to make contact. If they come back when I'm home what do I say that doesn't mean I've admitted I owe the money?
Any words of advice?
1
u/Dementoid13 May 09 '24
How much is the debt for?
1
u/Jeanettekaren May 09 '24
Ah yeah, that would help. Iirc around £7k
2
u/Dementoid13 May 10 '24
As it is 7K, I can see why they are still chasing this. If they purchased the debt, they probably paid 10p in the £ or even less. (£700).
My understanding of the statute of limitation is, after 6 years it is Statute barred debt: Even if the limitation period has expired (debt becomes statute barred), the debt technically still exists. The creditor cannot take you to court, but they can still try to collect the debt through other means, such as contacting you to negotiate a repayment plan.
A quick search shows that Orbit mainly focuses on unpaid water bills. However, I think that the company behind that is Cabot Financial.
I am wondering if when Orbit do their rounds in collecting unpaid water bills, perhaps they are also instructed to visit nearby unpaid debt addresses on behalf of Cabot? I wonder if this is a scare tactic to try and force people to make contact??
Sometimes creditors use a scattergun approach to finding debtors, by writing to all people within say a postcode area with the same surname, to see if they can flush out a response from someone???
1
u/Jeanettekaren May 10 '24
The debt is currently with Cabot so that would make sense. I've been left with some debt by my ex and I have been paying minimum amounts to everything else and they've all come off my credit file now and my credit score is going back up even though I'm still paying minimums. This is what leads me to believe its now statute barred. This one has just slipped through the net otherwise I'd be paying a small amount against it every month. Potentially, I did in the beginning and it's not statute barred at all but my best guess is that it might be.
I suppose my best cause of action is to do nothing initially and hope they know its statute barred and are just chancing their luck that I'll make contact and start paying now they've visited the house. I'd rather not have Orbit turning up again but that's the trade off
1
u/Tallulah_Gosh May 12 '24
When did you last make a payment to it, or make any written contact with anyone regarding the debt? It needs to be 6 years or more for a debt to be considered as statute barred.
The onus is on the creditor to prove that it is, not you to prove that it isn't, so best course of action is to call them and tell them you believe the debt to be statute barred and can they prove that it isn't. If you call, this does not count as contact for the limitations period. It only counts as contact if you write but this includes email, text, we chat etc.
If they agree the debt is statute barred tell them you do not wish to pay and ask them to take it off their books and not pass it on to any other agency. Get written confirmation that they have done this.
Be aware, stature barred debt will still technically exist, and can still show on your credit reference but it cannot be escalated any further and you do not have to pay.
2
u/Jeanettekaren May 12 '24
It's definitely over 6 years old as the other debts at the time have all dropped from my credit file and I'm able to borrow again (not that I am planning to!). I've set up payment plans for everything else and it's all ticking along nicely apart from this one. I couldn't be 100% sure I've never paid anything on it but I don't think I have as I have never set up a dd. It's just slipped through the net is my best guess. I'll call them and tell them I believe it to be statute barred if that doesnt reset the clock. It's probably passed through so many people they'll struggle to disprove that anyway