Key Post Court procedure for debt cases

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Hi Time

I also sent off a put up or shut up letter politely asking MBNA to start proceedings against me because I don't want to have more interest added to my account.

They responded quite quickly, telling me that I am not long enough in arrears and by law they couldn't really deal with my case as yet.

They said they would either write the debt off and pass it on to a debt collection company they use or possibly hold onto it themselves and deal with my case accordingly.

Have you had experience of their debt collection process?
 
Hi All
Thought it only fair that i report back after getting such good advise here.
Had appearance of debtor case heard recently and for anyone in a similar position one MUST is BE THERE. I had to sit and wait for most of the day and the one thing I noticed is the judge was alwasy sympathetic to a reasonable level if you were there and just told the truth.

I was sought out by plaintiffs solicitor who asked me if I would like to make a better offer (than my last letter based one). I offered slightly more, they contacted theoir client and no dice. after lunch i offered then a one off payment in full settlement OR the previously mentioned installment - again they said no. This amazed me as I could pretty much tell what the judge was going to fix as an installment based on all the other cases before me, and they turned more down.

So to sum up if you are in this position, don't be nervous, as I was, as the judges are realistic and once you dont try pull the wool over their eyes they will be fair. Make sure you bring documentation to back up all you figures for income and expenditures etc.

JJ
 
I was sought out by plaintiffs solicitor who asked me if I would like to make a better offer (than my last letter based one). I offered slightly more, they contacted theoir client and no dice. after lunch i offered then a one off payment in full settlement OR the previously mentioned installment - again they said no. This amazed me as I could pretty much tell what the judge was going to fix as an installment based on all the other cases before me, and they turned more down
Sadly this is typical. They will seek what are unrealistic amounts until a judge tells them to back off. They really should be penalised for taking such cases where they get less than what they sought. A prime example being a SW claimant where a judge will make no order.

Well done by the way. :)
 
thanks for all the help Time....

Yeah I was very suprised they didn't except it as I even said they could review my finances every 3 months....
 
actually Time you may know this - at end of hearing, judge assigned amount to be repaid monthly...then as had been the case all day on similar cases he said something along the lines of "7 days after serving" or "after notice" - I have heard nothing, do the plaintiffs solicitor serve you with the judgement and tell you how to pay etc?

Thanks again
 
The first instalment is due 7 days after you receive the order. You will be sent a copy of the order by registered post when they are ready to send it to you.
 
Hi Time, I sent off the put up or shut up letter and got a relatively quick response from one of my debtors. The said they will get the sheriff involved and my name will be printed in stubbs gazett. I'm not too bothered by being printed in the gazette but I'm concerned that my home will be cleared out by the sheriff to clear some of the debt. I don't believe I have anything of great value so what will they take?


Creditors dont control the sheriff - they cant speak for him/her or say that he/she will do X, Y or Z. A Sheriff is an impartial State employee who does not answer to commerical companies or take orders from them. The Courts often take a very dim view of creditors who make, what amount to unauthorised threats, against debtors. All a creditor can really say is that they will obtain a Judgement against you.
 
Hi i have been burying my head in the sand for months. have a debtors case in court really don't feel like i will be able to go. Just wondering what will happen to me if I don't attend...

Feel like I have ruined everything can't sleep or eat. Have not told any of my family my situation they just wouldn't understand.
 
If you don't attend they will award judgement in default.

What stage are you at? Initial summons or further down the line?
 
Further down the line. So scared don't know what to do. They are looking at obtaining an instalment order against me.
 
OK. If you don't go they will get an order for some ridiculous amount. You are best to go and get the best deal for yourself. Judges are human and sympathetic and will treat you with respect for showing up in court.
 
Thanks Time for your reply. I really don't think I can face going. Could they get an order looking for the full amt
 
They could in theory, but it is highly unlikely. Usually they look for €400 to €500 per month where someone does not show up.
 
So great to have all this information. Have a question. if you owe money in Ireland, can you be issued with proceedings to attend the irish district court, if you are living in France? I owe 3000 euro which I have been trying to pay off and have had to emmigrate to try to find work, but my income won't allow me to pay off the debt any faster. I've been threatened repeatedly with legal proceedings, but the cost of coming back to Ireland to go to a district court is pointless, given that I can't afford to pay the loan itself. The cost of the travel and accommodation will be as much as the loan, so very worried. I have given the company I owe the money to my address in France, and just wondering if the case will be heard in France or Ireland? Can someone help?
 
What happens when the debt collector gets it wrong?

Q re incorrect information.

Been ignoring the hassle attempts from an organisation that I had to deal with 20 years ago as a result of some bad information they had, after a lot of hassles, and way too much work by me, they had to admit they had no entitlement to collect anything from me or my daughter.

As a result, I decided then that I would never again engage with such incompetent bottom sucking scum, especially this particular debt collection company.

Anyway, they have excelled themselves again. Way too many phone calls, sometimes at illegal times, Indian call centres, the whole 9 yards, and despite them being told that I am earning less than €150 per week, and my wife is on social welfare, they have persisited, and I have done my best to blank them on the basis that their attitude, manner and methods have verged on immoral. Things like refusing to give their company name when they ring, and when you ring them back they still refuse to give their name, there's all manner of things.

Anyway, they have reached the court judgement seeking stage, and guess what, they've proved they are completely incompetent now. The registered letter arrived this morning at our correct address, and it was only after it was signed for that we discovered that they've got my Surname COMPLETELY wrong. Not mis spelled, or anything like that, completely and utterly the wrong name.

So, if I follow the guidelines here, and let them get an uncontested judgement, what then happens if they seek to get it attached to our property deeds? Will the land registry reject the judgement, and does that then involve them in a load of work to get the original judgement set aside and corrected, or where does it go?

At the end of the line, yes, I owe the creditor just over 22K for this debt, there are others that push the final total to over 50K, as a result of trying to keep things going for too long we have zero savings, our only asset is our unmortgaged primary residence, and right now, we're stuggling to even pay utilities and the like, let alone debts of this magnitude, and there's no sign of anything getting even a little better for a long time to come, and at the age of 60, I'm not sure that I'm prepared to get even more stressed than I already am by the situation by engaging in any way with a debt collector and solicitor that is so incompetent.

Anyone got any thoughts or comments on the implications of the error by the relevant debt collectors etc? My humour at the moment is to do nothing, in that even if they eventually get their judgement against our property, it's going to be probably 10 years before we can even consider selling with the present lack of a property market, and by that time, who knows what will or will not be happening, and the harsh reality is that if I get too stressed by trying to deal with these morons, they may well end up being paid out of the insurance pay out from my death policy!!!



Thanks

Steve
 
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A judgement in the wrong name is useless and unenforceable. They may very well get a correct judgement when they realise their error.

Don't sign for any more letters for the wrong name. Just refuse them. Any normal letters can be also returned on the same basis.
 
Thanks Time for your reply. I really don't think I can face going. Could they get an order looking for the full amt

Josie you really must go to court. Try and get someone to support you. Go there early and have your figures prepared (how much you earn, how much your house hold bills are and how much your loans are). Do not be intimidated by the courts. Judges are being very kind to people in your situation so do not be afraid. If you show up the Judge will only make an order for you based on what you can realistically repay and not based on on a bank's unrealistic idea of what you can repay. If you don't go to court you risk a judgment for an amount you cannot afford.
 
Thanks Time, we will indeed be looking much more carefully at anything that arrives in future, in one respect, I'd prefer not to even alert them to their incompetence by returning any future letters, let them make the mistakes. If it ever comes to seeking a payment order, I will appear then and dispute their costs, and prove their incompetence :D
 
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