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Contacted by Advantis - what to do?

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  • Contacted by Advantis - what to do?

    Advantis are a debt collection and tracing company who look after accounts for people like HMRC ( tax credit overpayment, late filing penalties etc), DVLA, some water companies, DWP benefit overpayments etc.

    If you receive a letter from them the first thing to do is to try and find out what the original 'debt' is.


    If you need help dealing with ADVANTIS please make a thread on the forum -> MAKE NEW THREAD

    If you receive a call from them you are under no obligation to speak to them or go through their data protection.

    Ask them to put anything in writing and end the call.

    Once you have details in writing you will be able to deal with it, whether to challenge it or sort out payments. Post on the forum if you need some guidance and support, or contact Citizens Advice if you need formal advice.

    An example call:
    You: Hello
    Advantis: Can I speak to Mr xxxx
    You: Speaking
    Advantis: My name is 'xxxxx' from Advantis. To confirm you are Mr xxxx for data protection can you please tell me the first line of your address and postcode?
    You: Im sorry but I dont give out my details to anyone that just calls. I have no idea who your company is. If there is any issue can you please put it in writing and send it to the address you have.
    Advantis:: We have already sent you letters on (he gives me three dates during last year).
    You: Right, can say that without going through data protection?
    Advantis:: If you dont confirm your address we will take you to court!
    You: Can you put that in writing?
    Advantis: Hangs up.
    You can visit their website www.advantiscredit.com


    LegalBeagles.info was founded in May 2007. We are a free forum offering support, discussion & advice to consumers from their peers.
    -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Hello,
    If anyone is able to offer advice on this I'd be most grateful.

    Last week while abroad I received a phone call to my mobile from somebody identifying themselves only as 'Advantis' and claming they need to speak to me on a 'personal business matter'.
    They then asked me to confirm my address and date of birth 'under the Data Protection Act'.
    I'd never heard of Advantis and assuming it was some kind of phishing scam told them that I wasn't interested in whatever they were selling, that if they had a legitimate reason for contacting me then they presumably would know my address and could write to me and that I wasn't confirming anything to anyone i'd never heard of or who was unable to tell me why they were calling and that my phone was registered with the TPS and that they were never to call me again.
    The next day I got a text asking me to contact them. I ignored it.
    When i got home, I found a letter from Advantis addressed to me, stating a former address and asking me to verify my current whereabouts.
    From what I've now read read on this forum I now understand who they are - a debt collection agency - and what they are up to. The thing is, I've no idea what they want as I have not been notified by anyone of any debts and don't believe I have any.
    My instinct is to write to them by recorded delivery asking who they are and to state why they are asking for this information - while making it clear that I will only deal with them in written correspondence.
    Is this the right course of action?
    Many thanks.
    Last edited by Amethyst; 29th November 2017, 14:20:PM.
    Tags: None

  • #2
    Re: Contacted by Advantis - what to do?

    Hi welcome to LB.

    This is a typical Advantis ploy to get you into a conversation
    over an alleged debt and you have done right thing by ignoring it.
    You do Not have to respond to the letter, Advantis should not be
    contacting you if they don't know if your are the person who is liable
    for the alleged debt.

    Check your credit reference files ( Noddle from Call Credit is free online) this a should
    show details of all your credit accounts and any that have been sold/assigned to Advantis.

    I would not contact them until you know what this is about then it will be much easier to deal
    with them.

    nem

    Comment


    • #3
      Re: Contacted by Advantis - what to do?

      Many thanks, Nemesis45.

      I've taken your advice and registered on Noddle. Everything is clear and all payments are up to date with no defaults. I cannot find anything anywhere about an assignment to Advantis.
      I won't reply to them - just wait and see what they have to say. I'll keep you posted when they do.
      Thanks again.

      Comment


      • #4
        Re: Contacted by Advantis - what to do?

        advantis collect for tax credits overpaymnent I found in the last year i.e. my daughter thru this address albeit she does not live here, they phoned = ignored, silly letters then nothing for a long time ignore!

        If you get treats of court cases then come back on here and report.

        Comment


        • #5
          Re: Contacted by Advantis - what to do?

          Originally posted by ComsatAngel View Post
          Many thanks, Nemesis45.

          I've taken your advice and registered on Noddle. Everything is clear and all payments are up to date with no defaults. I cannot find anything anywhere about an assignment to Advantis.
          I won't reply to them - just wait and see what they have to say. I'll keep you posted when they do.
          Thanks again.
          Possible then as Mike suggests DWP or HMCR chasing something, any TC or DWP problems?

          nem

          Comment


          • #6
            Re: Contacted by Advantis - what to do?

            They also collect for Severn Trent and Anglian water and have collected for payday loan companies although not very well:tinysmile_twink_t2:

            I do not think they are a debt purchaser so they will not show up on any credit file however looking at your credit file will show if there are any defaulted debts. Once you verify your address with a CRA a DCA can find out your new address or so it seems.
            If you are absolute sure that there is no valid debt you could write to them with a mixture of prove it, only in writing , this is my address.

            Just a thought, when you moved , could you hae left any utility bills unpaid?

            Comment


            • #7
              Re: Contacted by Advantis - what to do?

              Thanks, folks.
              Never had any dealings with DWP and am taxed PAYE.
              Never claimed tax credits as I have earned over the threshold for more than 20 years. Never had water from or lived in those areas. Council tax paid.
              It's a mystery.

              Comment


              • #8
                Re: Contacted by Advantis - what to do?

                They do sometimes get PAYE wrong but if you have not had a period of unemployment they would reclaim that through your tax code

                I wonder if it's a case of mistaken identity , if so best to get it sorted now

                Comment


                • #9
                  Re: Contacted by Advantis - what to do?

                  Originally posted by ComsatAngel View Post
                  Thanks, folks.
                  Never had any dealings with DWP and am taxed PAYE.
                  Never claimed tax credits as I have earned over the threshold for more than 20 years. Never had water from or lived in those areas. Council tax paid.
                  It's a mystery.
                  It would be safest to wait until Advantis actually states what they are chasing, if it should be a " government" problem there are so many phishing e-mails, texts and calls being, it could be an occurrence of the cock up that occurred when the government department
                  were first issuing contracts to DCA's. Name & and addresses unchecked before contact was made.

                  nem

                  Comment


                  • #10
                    Re: Contacted by Advantis - what to do?

                    It's quite easy to check the number of advantis I could check my records if you like. I think it is best to nip this in the bud. Easier to fix things now before they have progressed. I only ignore Dca,s if I have a good idea what it's about.

                    Comment


                    • #11
                      Re: Contacted by Advantis - what to do?

                      Advantis were one of the DCAs that were chasing me for an alleged tax credits overpayment. They got a brief letter saying I'd asked HMRC for a statement showing how they estimated the overpayment and that was all. Any further communications were ignored and they went away.

                      Comment


                      • #12
                        Re: Contacted by Advantis - what to do?

                        Originally posted by FlamingParrot View Post
                        Advantis were one of the DCAs that were chasing me for an alleged tax credits overpayment. They got a brief letter saying I'd asked HMRC for a statement showing how they estimated the overpayment and that was all. Any further communications were ignored and they went away.
                        I will say that I agree with this!!

                        Don't go rushing in to contact until at least you know exactly what Advantis want, they are known to just vanish.

                        nem

                        Comment


                        • #13
                          Re: Contacted by Advantis - what to do?

                          Another letter from Advantis, this time offering a little more detail.

                          'We are a debt collection agency and we have been appointed to collect an outstanding debt that you owe to HM Revenue & Customs. The outstanding sum of 2,641.24 must be paid to us immediately.'

                          And so forth.

                          Well, this is certainly news to me as I have not been contacted by HMRC.

                          About ten years or more ago I did have a dispute with HMRC. Hopefully I still have the paperwork somewhere. I was then with the same employer as I am now and, as I recall, they had previously switched me (for no apparent reason) to self-assessment tax returns (although I'm not sure if that is particularly relevant to the issue).

                          Anyhow, I started getting huge tax demands - always for different sums, the biggest for more than 20,000 - from different offices of HMRC. Perplexed, I went to my employer's payroll department who told me that I was up to date on tax and HMRC had failed to collect it from them at the correct time but had collected it later. This I then understood to have been resolved.

                          I continued to receive occasional demands for a lesser sum of around 2,000. My employer said HMRC's calculations were wrong, they now had the money and to dispute with them, which I did.

                          I asked for a formal investigation and eventually HMRC told me that it had decided it was right - despite my employer's calculations - and that I had to pay. I was then switched back to PAYE and my understanding was that the sum would be taken by them in my tax.

                          I have heard nothing further about this in years.

                          How the heck do I go about finding out from HMRC what this is all about?

                          And how on earth, when they are collecting tax from me by PAYE, can they have not only failed to take what they said was owed but assigned it to a DCA without telling me?

                          Your help most appreciated.

                          Comment


                          • #14
                            Re: Contacted by Advantis - what to do?

                            I'm just re-visiting my thread which is over a year old, no pointing in linking to it because it was posted in the VIP area (at the time I felt I was being 'stalked'). As it's been a while since then, I have no reason not to re-quote my posts out here:

                            Originally posted by FlamingParrot
                            I have received a couple of letters from Advantis, over an alleged debt to HMRC. This has been going on for a year, when HMRC sent me a letter saying there had been an overpayment of tax credits, dating back to a period ending in July 2011. I sent back the form to query it at around this time last year, it took them over 6 months to respond with another letter arguing overpayment, but no proper breakdown or calculations. A few months ago, they wrote again, threatening to pass on the debt to a DCA, and I sent the query form again. This time I didn't get a response from them at all, just a letter from Advantis. :confused2:

                            I wouldn't mind setting up a payment plan for the £600 something they are claiming I owe them, as long as I really do owe them that money, but I'd like to know how they arrived to that figure in the first place.

                            Any ideas? :noidea:
                            Originally posted by FlamingParrot
                            Have submitted my complaint to HMRC by post, didn't send RD but got proof of posting from the PO last week. Sent an email to Advantis with a letter telling them the account is in dispute with HMRC and attached a copy of my complaint.

                            Today I received a letter dated 12th November (therefore issued before they received my correspondence). It's the usual DCA bumpf about recommending to their clients that they issue legal proceedings and what would happen if they get a CCJ :blah: :blah: :blah: I know that by heart, I post it here every day! :grin: :grin: :grin:
                            Originally posted by FlamingParrot
                            Result! :grin:

                            Letter from Advantis dated 18th November just landed on my mat. My account has been put on hold for 30 days to allow HMRC to review my dispute. That means their next communication should be on Xmas Eve! :carolers:
                            This time a week ago, they were deciding whether to recommend legal proceedings to obtain a CCJ :incourt: or just send an Officer of HMRC :mod: to demand payment right there and then, followed by my belongings being seized and taken away to be sold at auction, without bothering with the CCJ.

                            Sometimes, a letter from a DCA can make your day! :lol: :lol: :lol:
                            The post above (dated Nov 23rd 2013) is the end of the thread and the end of Advantis communications. I did hear from a couple more DCAs acting on behalf of HMRC but they all went their merry way around this time last year.

                            Although in theory HMRC can enforce debts in much the same way creditors can enforce a judgment debt (CCJ), without having to take you to court and obtain a CCJ to start with, i.e. sending bailiffs round, etc., in reality they also unleash DCAs like other creditors. Unlike HMRC itself, DCAs don't have any special powers to enforce. :grin: :grin: :grin:

                            Comment


                            • #15
                              Re: Contacted by Advantis - what to do?

                              Originally posted by ComsatAngel View Post
                              Another letter from Advantis, this time offering a little more detail.

                              'We are a debt collection agency and we have been appointed to collect an outstanding debt that you owe to HM Revenue & Customs. The outstanding sum of 2,641.24 must be paid to us immediately.'

                              And so forth.

                              Well, this is certainly news to me as I have not been contacted by HMRC.

                              About ten years or more ago I did have a dispute with HMRC. Hopefully I still have the paperwork somewhere. I was then with the same employer as I am now and, as I recall, they had previously switched me (for no apparent reason) to self-assessment tax returns (although I'm not sure if that is particularly relevant to the issue).

                              Anyhow, I started getting huge tax demands - always for different sums, the biggest for more than 20,000 - from different offices of HMRC. Perplexed, I went to my employer's payroll department who told me that I was up to date on tax and HMRC had failed to collect it from them at the correct time but had collected it later. This I then understood to have been resolved.

                              I continued to receive occasional demands for a lesser sum of around 2,000. My employer said HMRC's calculations were wrong, they now had the money and to dispute with them, which I did.

                              I asked for a formal investigation and eventually HMRC told me that it had decided it was right - despite my employer's calculations - and that I had to pay. I was then switched back to PAYE and my understanding was that the sum would be taken by them in my tax.

                              I have heard nothing further about this in years.

                              How the heck do I go about finding out from HMRC what this is all about?

                              And how on earth, when they are collecting tax from me by PAYE, can they have not only failed to take what they said was owed but assigned it to a DCA without telling me?

                              Your help most appreciated.
                              Hi,

                              Sounds like a typical HMRC foul up.
                              You will I think have to refer to your employers payroll department again
                              and ask for a summary of your pay and tax deducted.

                              In the mean time a Subject Access Request to HMRC debt management requiring it to
                              provide you with all the "personal" data it hold on you. Which may bring to light why
                              your now being chased a gain.

                              Advantis cannot take any " legal action" this can only be started by HMRC.

                              You can inform Advantis that you are dealing directly with their client as you have
                              no knowledge of any such debt.

                              nem

                              - - - Updated - - -

                              Originally posted by ComsatAngel View Post
                              Another letter from Advantis, this time offering a little more detail.

                              'We are a debt collection agency and we have been appointed to collect an outstanding debt that you owe to HM Revenue & Customs. The outstanding sum of 2,641.24 must be paid to us immediately.'

                              And so forth.

                              Well, this is certainly news to me as I have not been contacted by HMRC.

                              About ten years or more ago I did have a dispute with HMRC. Hopefully I still have the paperwork somewhere. I was then with the same employer as I am now and, as I recall, they had previously switched me (for no apparent reason) to self-assessment tax returns (although I'm not sure if that is particularly relevant to the issue).

                              Anyhow, I started getting huge tax demands - always for different sums, the biggest for more than 20,000 - from different offices of HMRC. Perplexed, I went to my employer's payroll department who told me that I was up to date on tax and HMRC had failed to collect it from them at the correct time but had collected it later. This I then understood to have been resolved.

                              I continued to receive occasional demands for a lesser sum of around 2,000. My employer said HMRC's calculations were wrong, they now had the money and to dispute with them, which I did.

                              I asked for a formal investigation and eventually HMRC told me that it had decided it was right - despite my employer's calculations - and that I had to pay. I was then switched back to PAYE and my understanding was that the sum would be taken by them in my tax.

                              I have heard nothing further about this in years.

                              How the heck do I go about finding out from HMRC what this is all about?

                              And how on earth, when they are collecting tax from me by PAYE, can they have not only failed to take what they said was owed but assigned it to a DCA without telling me?

                              Your help most appreciated.
                              Hi,

                              Sounds like a typical HMRC foul up.
                              You will I think have to refer to your employers payroll department again
                              and ask for a summary of your pay and tax deducted.

                              In the mean time a Subject Access Request to HMRC debt management requiring it to
                              provide you with all the "personal" data it hold on you. Which may bring to light why
                              your now being chased a gain.

                              Advantis cannot take any " legal action" this can only be started by HMRC.

                              You can inform Advantis that you are dealing directly with their client as you have
                              no knowledge of any such debt.

                              nem

                              Comment

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