SP

Jan 11 2006, 08:55 PM

I found your website today and it seems it will hopefully have the answers I am looking for, so here goes.

I purchased a car in 2001  but unfortunately ran into hard times in June 2004, I contacted YYC advising them and then wrote back to saying they could reduce my payments and gave me a schedule of repayments which I kept to.  Then all of a sudden in October 2004 I received a letter advising that I was in default although I had paid the instalment for that month, the next thing I was contacted by DLC debt collections who as everyone is aware is very unsympathetic and bullied me into returning the car, I kept telling them I had an agreement to have my payments reduced but they said that this did not apply any more and I was in arrears.  Before I agreed to return the car I specifically asked them if there was a charge for collecting the car as I would return it myself to avoid this charge and was told that no there was no charge as SOMEONE WAS IN THE AREA, I agreed and the car was collected and subsequently sold at auction, and I thought that was that.

I then received a letter from YCC in November saying that I still owed them £2069.74 of which there was a charge of £235 for collection of the car, I had been told that there would not be a charge!!!!!!!!!  This left any actual balance of £1834.74, the original sale price of the car was £9862.56 which meant that I had paid just over £8000 for the car.  I again contacted YCC and told them I would not be paying as I had already paid over the amount stated in my sale agreement.  Next thing I was contact by Go-Debt in April 2005 which as an experience in itself.  The staff member I dealt with was extremely rude and unsympathetic to the point of putting the phone down on me three times and refusing to let me speak to her supervisor, she gave me ultimatums and told me she would be sending debt collectors round that evening if the account was not settled by 5.00pm.  I was in a real panic as we only had one income as my husband had to stop work for medical reasons, I do not own any property and have only been in the country for 4 years so have no credit rating at all. I will be seeking legal advice as I feel this is totally unfair having paid so much towards the car and being treated so badly and not advised of my rights, so any advice you are able to give me would be greatly appreciated.  I have also since found out that the according to the Consumer Credit Act creditors are NOT ALLOWED to charge for collecting goods – this advice is on the national debtline website.