Paid Members Stephanie Posted July 31, 2012 Paid Members Share Posted July 31, 2012 The first time it happened, I deleted the email and blocked the email address but today I got another one. This time from British Gas. It was legit, I cross-referenced the phone numbers with the actual British Gas site. I guess Collections are using email and the internet more these days. They are chasing a debt for someone I've never heard of that lives at an address in the UK I lived at almost 10 years ago. This is concerning to me, surely there are some kinda privacy violations? Either for me seeing that someone else is in debt and them using my email address. I did call them and asked that they remove my email address from their system. Â Wondered if anyone had any similar experiences? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators neil Posted July 31, 2012 Moderators Share Posted July 31, 2012 I would ignore it. Aren't you in the US anyway? Â Sounds very dodgy to me that they would send an email to chase this up. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paid Members Stephanie Posted July 31, 2012 Author Paid Members Share Posted July 31, 2012 Yup, I am in the US. Â Upon doing a little research it seems it's not uncommon for creditors/companies to chase people by email and even text messages. Â My email address must have been tied to that address somehow as I've had it for years. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paid Members PunkStep Posted July 31, 2012 Paid Members Share Posted July 31, 2012 They will try every address they can link to the property and person and any person who has lived at that property, just on the chance they find them, without having to refer onto a trace agent and incur costs. They're just trying every avenue to get their money. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
King Pitcos Posted July 31, 2012 Share Posted July 31, 2012 Is business booming for bailiffs in these dark times? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paid Members Stephanie Posted July 31, 2012 Author Paid Members Share Posted July 31, 2012 Well, they can balls. I just wondered where they could have possibly gotten my email address from. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paid Members PunkStep Posted July 31, 2012 Paid Members Share Posted July 31, 2012 Is business booming for bailiffs in these dark times? Yeah. A bit like when Michael Caine smugly looks up at Kermit the Frog and declares Christmas as 'harvest time for the money-lenders'- hard times means debt collectors are called in a lot more frequently and a lot quicker. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paid Members lambyUK Posted July 31, 2012 Paid Members Share Posted July 31, 2012 Just reply saying this isn't the persons debt, they will stop hassling you. I used to get loads of letters from someone who used to live at this address but just sent an email saying the person ain't here and it stopped. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thefallenangel Posted July 31, 2012 Share Posted July 31, 2012 Well, they can balls. I just wondered where they could have possibly gotten my email address from. Â Stick your name into google and see what comes up, you might be suprised. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Keith Houchen Posted July 31, 2012 Share Posted July 31, 2012 Well, they can balls. I just wondered where they could have possibly gotten my email address from. Â Stick your name into google and see what comes up, you might be suprised. This is true, Â Yours, Â Keith goatse lemonparty Houchen. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paid Members Your Fight Site Posted August 1, 2012 Paid Members Share Posted August 1, 2012 Just reply it's not you. Although it is bizarre they've tied your email address to the property. Â I keep getting 'final warning'-type letters meant for the previous tenant of where I'm living. Nothing's happened so far, and I've been there for three years. I just keep writing 'No longer at this address' and re-posting. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paid Members Big Benny HG Posted August 1, 2012 Paid Members Share Posted August 1, 2012 I've had this with British Gas - chasing me for unpaid bills for a property that I moved out of. They even took it upon themselves to open a brand new gas account for the property in my name and bill me for it, the cheeky bastards, then sent a bailiff round. Â It clearly wasn't my debt, since the period being billed was after I had moved and someone else had moved in, which was fairly easy to resolve since I just provided them with evidence of when I moved out. They put it right, apologised and gave me a compensatory credit to try to make up for it... which of course they applied to the incorrect account and wiped when they closed it down. Clowns. Â Similarly, again with British Gas, I've had bills addressed to me, chased, then passed onto debt collection services which do relate to the property I now live in, but relate to a period long before I moved in. Again, by giving them evidence of when I moved in (and, you know, when I actually set my account up with them for the property) it was quickly resolved. Â I've also had them try to bill me for about a year against the completely wrong meter, relating to next door (or possibly the brewery they had attempted to hold a knees-up in...). Â Conclusion - British Gas are bellends. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
simonworden Posted August 3, 2012 Share Posted August 3, 2012 I run my own debt advice company and you would be surprised how often this happens. I will be honest and say British Gas I have never heard of this happening with them before but it certainly doesn't surprise me  The problem is that a lot of these companies still do not check information. So for instance the house switches over but the records are not changed properly. In Stephanie's case her email address was left on. Other times a tracing company looks at all the recent information on behalf of the company and then sends out contact letters/ emails/ calls to see what shit sticks. Half the time innocent people will pay just down to fear. Simply provide evidence you did not live there at the time as stated should solve everything.  A friend of mine had it with a debt collector where they had contacted him for about Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CavemanLynn Posted August 25, 2012 Share Posted August 25, 2012 Hi, guys. I found this thread, because my wife has found herself in a similar situation re. debt collector harassment. Â For the past few months, my wife has been regularly receiving letters from a Cabot Financial, apparently chasing a Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Loki Posted August 25, 2012 Share Posted August 25, 2012 I'd report it to the police. I don't know if that's the absolute right course of action, but it'd be my next step under those circumstances.  I have to say I wouldn't have sent them all that personal info though! It's for them to prove you owe them money not the other way around.  Some links for you:  Protection from Harrassment Act  Office of Fair Trading guidelines Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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