CCJ from Mortimer Clarke on behalf of Cabot (OPUS Credit Card Debt sold to them)

[Pos1tive]

Hello,

My father has recently received a CCJ and is rather worried about it and was wondering if anyone can advise what to do and how to proceed.

Issue Date: 02 July 2015 (Received on Saturday 3^rd July 2015)

Court Address:
County Court Business Centre
Northampton

Claimant:
Cabot Financial (UK) Limited

Solicitor:
Mortimer Clarke Solicitors LTD

Particulars of Claim:
By an agreement between OPUS CREDIT CARD (OPUS) & the Defendant on or around XX/XX/2008 (“the Agreement”) OPUS agreed to issue the Defendant with a credit card. The Defendant failed to make the minimum payments due & the Agreement was terminated. The Agreement was assigned to the Claimant. THE CLAIMANT THEREFORE CLAIMS 3XXX.XX

My Father is elderly and lives in rental accommodation. This Credit Card was taken out at a previously rented address some years ago as mentioned - in 2008 and it seems that Cabot Financial (UK) Limited have found there way to his place of residence now.

He has received numerous letters from Cabot in the Post regarding this claim by Cabot and has never acknowledged any so I find it strange for them to issue a CCJ without ever proving he lives where he does. For all they known he could be a previous tenant?

He has no money, no job and cannot afford to pay for this whatsoever.

He lives a quiet life and possibly no one knows he lives where he does, and was considering returning the CCJ as “Unknown”. He is not worried about his future credit status whatsoever as he never intends to get credit but more worried that the CCJ will pass automatic judgment In favour of the Claimant if he does not address this CCJ. If he returns the CCJ as Unknown – would this escalate to Bailiffs?

Having joined Legal Beagles today, I was anticipating what advice anyone on here could offer to him to precede this and get them of his back for once and all.

I have read so many threads in the last few days regarding CCJ’s and Cabot. It is quite worrying how much harassing they do and how there associate Solicitors (Mortimer Clarke) Tag Team with them anticipating for the Debt they probably paid very little for, try and get the full amount.

I am in the process of finding out when he made a last payment to suggest if this an Statue Barred Case or not and will update this Thread possibly this evening once I find out.

If it is in Statue Barred circumstances – what do I do?

Please help and Many Thanks in Advance :tinysmile_hmm_t2:

[nemesis45]

Re: CCJ from Mortimer Clarke on behalf of Cabot (OPUS Credit Card Debt sold to them)

Hi Welcome to LB

This is just the claim form not a CCJ. " County Court Judgement comes only if the claimant wins the case.

It would be wise not to ignore the claim it may cause difficulties later.

We can / should go through the procedures now,

1. A CCA request to Cabot to get a copy of the agreement pertaining to the Alleged Debt, there is a Ł1 statutory fee to pay
use a cheque or postal order for this endorsed " For Statutory Fee Only" Cabot has 12+ 2 Working Days to Comply. use the template from the forum library.
2. A request made under CPR31.14 to the solicitors this is for the documents mentioned on the statement of claim in this case the agreement and the Notice of Assignment. No fee for this, a nominal 7 days to comply. A template is available in the forum library.

Without wishing to pry is your father dependant on benefits? Is he in good health?
If he has no assets , no income, is elderly and has no prospect of repaying the debt we
may be able to stop Cabot quite quickly if you think this may help just let me know.

The Service of the Claim needs to be acknowledged this can be done at Money Claim On Line (MCOL)
A quick check on credit files (Noddle is Free online) may give some indication of the age of the debt and
the default date

nem

[FlamingParrot]

Re: CCJ from Mortimer Clarke on behalf of Cabot (OPUS Credit Card Debt sold to them)

Hello,

He has no money, no job and cannot afford to pay for this whatsoever.

He lives a quiet life and possibly no one knows he lives where he does, and was considering returning the CCJ as “Unknown”. He is not worried about his future credit status whatsoever as he never intends to get credit but more worried that the CCJ will pass automatic judgment In favour of the Claimant if he does not address this CCJ. If he returns the CCJ as Unknown – would this escalate to Bailiffs?

Although what he's received is just a claim and not a CCJ (which is when judgment has been obtained), the claimant is entitled to use the last known address for service and, if the claim form was returned and the claim not acknowledged, the claimant would request default judgment. :scared:

Judgments can be enforced in various ways, including a warrant of control to send enforcement agents (bailiffs) to seize goods.

Instead of returning it as 'unknown', he should follow the steps set out below:

So, first steps (within 14 days of receiving the claim)

1: ACKNOWLEDGE THE CLAIM - you can do this online usually at www.moneyclaim.gov.uk
You'll need your claim reference and password from the front of the claim form - this will extend the time you have to respond to the claim to 28 days from when you received it

2: Send A CCA REQUEST to the CLAIMANT ( see here )
This applies to all credit cards / loans / hire purchase / store cards type debt. It doesn't apply to Mobile Phones / Utilities or Overdrafts.

3: Send a CPR request to the CLAIMANT'S SOLICITORS ( see here )

Full instructions for acknowledging online can be found here: http://www.legalbeagles.info/forums/...313#post499313

- - - Updated - - -

I am in the process of finding out when he made a last payment to suggest if this an Statue Barred Case or not and will update this Thread possibly this evening once I find out.

If it is in Statue Barred circumstances – what do I do?

Please help and Many Thanks in Advance :tinysmile_hmm_t2:

If there's been no payments or written acknowledgment in more than six years, it would be SBd. :grin:

If that was the case, the fact would be mentioned in his defence and SBd is an absolute defence. :thumb:

[nemesis45]

Re: CCJ from Mortimer Clarke on behalf of Cabot (OPUS Credit Card Debt sold to them)

An after thought as the claimant has your fathers current address, it would be very unwise to ignore the claim.

If there is no response then Cabot could seek judgement by default it's not as if the claim was sent elsewhere.
It's easy to fined people these days I'm afraid.

nem

[Pos1tive]

Re: CCJ from Mortimer Clarke on behalf of Cabot (OPUS Credit Card Debt sold to them)

Hello Nem,

Many thanks for replying, I really appreciate this advise.

In response to your advice:

1. I will request a CCA from Cabot.

2. A request made under CPR31.14 to the solicitors

I will acknowledge The service of the Claim.

And with regard to your other questions - that's ok, Yes my father is on Benefits - Housing Benefit and Income Support, has no assets, has no prospect of repaying and is in reasonable health though I consider a Heart Patient. He lives with my mother whom similarly is ill and suffers from Renal Cancer.

As per Noodle - do you suggest I register under his name or mine, if mine, can I search for him?

Just to add, I have just had a look at his paper work. Seems that prior to Cabot - a company called Clarity was looking after this Debt and he had an arrangement with them to pay Ł5 a month.

Last Direct Debit taken was round January 2010 and last Payment to Clarity was around early 2011.

I was wondering though I have this information, it would also be necessary for Cabot to prove this I guess?

Many thanks,
Pos1tive :tinysmile_twink_t2:

[nemesis45]

Re: CCJ from Mortimer Clarke on behalf of Cabot (OPUS Credit Card Debt sold to them)

Hello Nem,

Many thanks for replying, I really appreciate this advise.

In response to your advice:

1. I will request a CCA from Cabot.

2. A request made under CPR31.14 to the solicitors

I will acknowledge The service of the Claim.

And with regard to your other questions - that's ok, Yes my father is on Benefits - Housing Benefit and Income Support, has no assets, has no prospect of repaying and is in reasonable health though I consider a Heart Patient. He lives with my mother whom similarly is ill and suffers from Renal Cancer.

As per Noodle - do you suggest I register under his name or mine, if mine, can I search for him?

Many thanks,
Pos1tive :tinysmile_twink_t2:

Hi positive it will have to be his name, and ID a debit card registered at his current address is usually OK. otherwise the statutory Ł2 report by post can be done.

I think if your father agrees of course I could draft a version of a letter I've used for others with success to see if we can get Crabot to drop the claim.

Just let me know by PM or mention @nemesis45 in the post.

nem

[FlamingParrot]

Re: CCJ from Mortimer Clarke on behalf of Cabot (OPUS Credit Card Debt sold to them)

Just to add, I have just had a look at his paper work. Seems that prior to Cabot - a company called Clarity was looking after this Debt and he had an arrangement with them to pay Ł5 a month.

Last Direct Debit taken was round January 2010 and last Payment to Clarity was around early 2011.

I was wondering though I have this information, it would also be necessary for Cabot to prove this I guess?

That would mean the debt is not statute barred.

[Pos1tive]

Re: CCJ from Mortimer Clarke on behalf of Cabot (OPUS Credit Card Debt sold to them)

Having looked further into the Paper work, it was a credit card with another Card not Opus, though Claim Form states Opus - is this a basis of contest?

- - - Updated - - -

Thanks @nemesis45 I have PM you.

[FlamingParrot]

Re: CCJ from Mortimer Clarke on behalf of Cabot (OPUS Credit Card Debt sold to them)

Having looked further into the Paper work, it was a credit card with Citi not Opus, though Claim Form states Opus - is this a basis of contest?

Uhmmm... I recall another post with a similar issue on the particulars of claim where PT made some comments about it, I'll see if I can find it.

I also had a Citi card, they were all sold to Opus, however, in 2008 the agreement wouldn't have been with Opus, they only sold them in 2010.

[FlamingParrot]

Re: CCJ from Mortimer Clarke on behalf of Cabot (OPUS Credit Card Debt sold to them)

Got it!

Ive been fighting Cabot in their various guises for a number of years, right back when they were represented by Hodsons, Morgan Solicitors etc. I note they are now farming out their work to more mainstream firms such as Mortimer Clarke, Shoosmiths, Restons etc, who all face the same problem. Now its worth pointing out, […]
Ive been fighting Cabot in their various guises for a number of years, right back when they were represented by Hodsons, Morgan Solicitors etc. I note they are now farming out their work to more mainstream firms such as Mortimer Clarke, Shoosmiths, Restons etc, who all face the same problem.
Now its worth pointing out, that Cabot have not as yet succeeded in a litigation that i have been the fee earner on, not one case.
The reasons they lose isnt because of their great lawyers, it isnt because the banks sold them duff accounts, well not always, the reason they lose is because they fail to do their due diligence, they fail to review their case before litigation, they fail to get their house in order.
As a consequence, they snatch defeat from the jaws of victory on many* occasions.
The good thing for consumers it seems is that this pattern hasnt changed. In a recent case Cabot instructed Restons, they issued proceedings on a credit agreement which was alleged to be from Opus, only one problem, Opus didnt exist back in 1990s so the client couldnt have entered into such an agreement.
As a result the pleadings were simply incapable of being proven, ever, without amendment they were as dead as a dead bloke from deadsville. So, a request was made to inspect a copy of the alleged credit agreement, if Cabot were so sure it existed they must surely have a copy, after all only a fool would sign their name to a statement of truth if they hadnt seen all the core documents.
Restons refused to provide the agreement, instead making thinly veiled attempts to deflect attention back at the client with comments like “your client would have had a copy of the agreement when he opened the account so he should check his records” . Sadly for them though, CPR 31.14 does not say, the Claimant does not have to allow inspection if the document was sent to the Defendant about 20 years ago, nice try Restons.
So, considering the very helpful ruling of Rix LJ in Expandable v Rubin, a firm reply was sent reasserting our clients right to inspect this document. If they refused then an application to strike out would follow, firstly on the grounds the pleadings were so sparse they didnt comply with CPR 16, secondly the pleadings were an abuse of process and did not have a real prospect of success because they were incapable of proof and lastly because the breach of CPR 31.14 fell within CPR 3.4(2)(c) and therefore was a breach of a rule!!
An application was made to the Court, but before it could be heard Cabot appeared to run out of imodium and therefore had to discontinue. They will say it was a commercial decision im sure, but lets look at this shall we, you buy a debt for around 2-5%, in this case the debt was over Ł20,000 plus interest and costs if they won at trial, so instead of fighting this case they run away and pay all legal fees???? is that the actions of someone so sure of winning? is that really a commercial decision? cant see a business lasting that long on such commercial principals.
Perhaps, in another universe, there is an alternate reason why they abandoned a good claim?? that may be because the credit agreement wasnt with Opus? it wasnt signed by the Debtor? it wasnt enforceable? it was a citi agreement which citi failed to ensure contained all of the prescribed terms? now theres a thought for another day, however on this occasion we will just have to believe the reason why they threw Ł20k in the bin and paid ALL legal costs was simply because of a commercial decision huh



More...

[Pos1tive]

Re: CCJ from Mortimer Clarke on behalf of Cabot (OPUS Credit Card Debt sold to them)

That's my exact thoughts to dispute this @FlamingParrot.

@nemesis45 - looks like my father has defaulted since May 2011 - so just over 4 years now. Great!

[FlamingParrot]

Re: CCJ from Mortimer Clarke on behalf of Cabot (OPUS Credit Card Debt sold to them)

And this one:

If youve never had an Opus card, and the particulars of claim are incapable of proof then the claim is doomed from the start, id be tempted to put the Claimant to proof and require production of the signed agreement in my pleading along with a clear denial over ever entering into an Opus agreement

- - - Updated - - -

...and there's more:

Another day passes and another notice of discontinuance arrives. This most recent notice was as a result to a strike out application which was made after it became clear that not only did the Claimant not have any idea who the original creditor was, their pleaded case was soo incoherent and so poorly pleaded that […]
Another day passes and another notice of discontinuance arrives. This most recent notice was as a result to a strike out application which was made after it became clear that not only did the Claimant not have any idea who the original creditor was, their pleaded case was soo incoherent and so poorly pleaded that it was simply in-capable of ever being proven in Court.
The case was pleaded that the client entered into an “Opus” account in 1998, first mistake, Opus werent issuing these cards back then. Secondly, whatever this card was, it is clear that the pleaded case made no mention of the chain of assignment that took it from the original creditor through to the current claimant.
Now you would have thought with a firm like Restons on the other side they would have realised, but you would have thought wrong!!!!!!!
Anyway, a request for discovery was made per CPR 31, it was met with the most bonkers reply i have ever seen, basically it said the client must have had the documents when the account was opened so they should check their records????? WTF How is this possible i asked myself, it was a simple case of how can you have something which never existed in the first place????? anyway, they wouldnt disclose so after looking at the whole picture, we decided that this sick puppy should be put down with a swift application under CPR 3. In fact the case was soo shockingly bad, i managed to get in each limb of CPR 3.4(2) in my application!!!
Anyway, they have now abandoned the case, but i cant help thinking there will be more of this type of case out there begging for the same treatment…………….



More...

[Pos1tive]

Re: CCJ from Mortimer Clarke on behalf of Cabot (OPUS Credit Card Debt sold to them)

This is what I'm talking about - great find and share [MENTION=37786]FlamingParrot[/MENTION]. I guess I should go down the process yourself and Nem have advised:

1. I will request a CCA from Cabot.

2. A request made under CPR31.14 to the solicitors

I will acknowledge The service of the Claim.

[pt2537]

Re: CCJ from Mortimer Clarke on behalf of Cabot (OPUS Credit Card Debt sold to them)

This is what I'm talking about - great find and share @FlamingParrot. I guess I should go down the process yourself and Nem have advised:

1. I will request a CCA from Cabot.

2. A request made under CPR31.14 to the solicitors

I will acknowledge The service of the Claim.

be sure to ask for the true copy of the executed agreement between yourself and opus, as this is quite an important point.

Also make sure under rule 31.14 you ask for a copy of the agreement mentioned in the particulars of claim, vitally important.

They cannot say it was an agreement with X and produce an agreement with Y.

Ive hammered many of these opus cases as they get it so plainly wrong.

[nemesis45]

Re: CCJ from Mortimer Clarke on behalf of Cabot (OPUS Credit Card Debt sold to them)

That's my exact thoughts to dispute this @FlamingParrot.

@nemesis45 - looks like my father has defaulted since May 2011 - so just over 4 years now. Great!

g

Ok, The important things are the CCA request & CPR31,14 requests,
I 'll PM you some thoughts as promised later today.

nem