Demands for money - but for a previous occupant

[Vroomparrot]

A previous occupant at my address owes several thousands pounds - I know because I accidently opened mail meant for him. I do not know his address, and I have sent back many other letters from the same people asking for the money with "not known at this address" on them - this has not stoppped them sending the letters.

The easiest thing might be to ring them and explain - but where would I stand legally with regards to opening mail not addressed to me (even though it was not intentional)?

Is there anything else I could do to resolve this before I get the bailiffs knocking on my door?

Cheers

[matty-hodgson]

well.. i'd try and get this sorted as quickly as possible pal..
just give them a ring.. tell them you opened the mail early on a morning when you were still tired and it was an accident..

[burtie]

Give the letters to the postie next time and say to him he no longer lives here.The post office will then send the mail back to the sender.

[Behemoth]

Don' get in contact with the people wh opwes money to. I remember there being a similar thread like this on another forum and the guy who opened the letter got in contact with the people who the other person owed money to.

They assumed that he was the same person and sent bailiffs and everything over, the guy had a right nightmare trying to sort it out, took him months to resolve the issue.

Just do what Burtie says.

[sammyc]

don't think they can touch you for opening mail accidentally, i've done it before (& even on purpose if i suspect the people will never get it otherwise) - why not see if you can find the previous occupant on electoral roll &c at least you could forward post on... (seeing as you've been 'returning to sender' already, & that hasn't helped)

[toolsong]

I answered the door to bailiffs at a share house. Explained the person had moved out over a year before. They took my name and left.

[matty-hodgson]

I answered the door to bailiffs at a share house. Explained the person had moved out over a year before. They took my name and left.

did you hear back from them?

[Blitzen]

A previous occupant at my address owes several thousands pounds - I know because I accidently opened mail meant for him. I do not know his address, and I have sent back many other letters from the same people asking for the money with "not known at this address" on them - this has not stoppped them sending the letters.

The easiest thing might be to ring them and explain - but where would I stand legally with regards to opening mail not addressed to me (even though it was not intentional)?

Is there anything else I could do to resolve this before I get the bailiffs knocking on my door?

Cheers

Call the Office of Fair Trading......they are very heavy on Debt Collectors that get a bit naughty!
The will tell the debt collects to bugger off.

[chrestomanci]

This happened to my Sister in Law. She moved into a new house and found that the previous owners have done a runner owing many thousands of pounds. Some of the debt collection agencies got quite insistent and needed serous convincing that she had nothing to do with the previous owners, and had no idea where they had gone to.

The debt collectors might believe you, but if it is a lot of money they might take some convincing. I would make photocopies of any documents you have proving when you moved in and when the previous occupants moved out such as a tenancy agreement or paperwork from the land registry.

I would say it is fairly unlikely that anyone will send actual bailiffs, so long as you answer all letters addressed to you, and make it clear that you have nothing to do with the previous occupants, but it would not hurt to make sure that you have photo ID on you at all times so that if bailiffs arrive, you can show them your ID to prove to them that your are not the debtor they are looking for.

[BlackDwarf]

are not the debtor they are looking for.

How about these guys?

[Theo]

I went through the exact same situation 2 months ago. Accidentally opened a letter meant for the previous occupant, around that time we received a few phone calls from people asking for the previous occupant, followed by a few visits from bailliffs (who I actually wanted to talk to, but I could never get to the buzzer in time to talk to them).

Anyway, the bailliff visits became quite regular - Mondays at 4.30pm, so I decided to wait for them - with my passport, letting contract and a council tax bill for the address (the bailliffs were actually collecting money for the council). When the buzz finally came, I told the bailliff that I'd meet him outside for a chat, which I did, and I showed him the documents. He took my name and went off on his merry way.

If you're having visits, try to talk to them (outside, of course). They're just people with a job to do.

[santa claus]

I wouldn't get involved. His debts are not your business nor do you have a responsibility to do anything. If bailiffs come, call the Police if they will not leave after you explain you are not the person they are looking for after they tell you why they have come. You risk unpleasantness if the previous occupier perceives you have done anything to help locate him. Keep out is my advice.

[Butcher]

I've had bailiffs round trying to collect from the previous occupants, I just called the company (they posted a card through the door as I was at work) and never heard from them again. Most bailiff companies seem pretty reasonable really.
Don't forget they can't legally force entry, so if you don't let them in, they can't take anything.

[Nick]

You have three options;

1) Give the letters back to he postman, or just post them back into the post box marked with "No longer living at this address"

2) Open them and call the companies concerned. Tell them you've opened the letters because you've seen several arrive and the person on the address no longer lives there.

3) Throw them away.

I went for option 2 with a previous owner who moved and owed £15,000 in car payments. We had a stack of mail, all final demand stuff, so I just opened it and started calling.

Everyone was fine and the letters stopped, except for British Gas who got all pissy and insisted HIS unpaid bills were our issue. So I got the solicitor who did our conveyancing to write to BG and explain when we'd moved in and that we were not responsible for any bills before that date... BG backed off and even paid the £50 it cost me to get the proof from the solicitor.

At our lsat house a debt collector turned up one day asking for some bloke who'd lived there TWO occupants before... he asked to see ID to prove I was who I said I was, so I asked him to prove I was who he was chasing instead... never heard from them again.

[Saracen]

Don't forget they can't legally force entry,....

That's not necessarily true. It depends whether they really are bailiffs (i.e. court appointed and acting on behalf of the court) as opposed to private debt collectors, and if they are proper bailiffs, exactly what they're collecting for. Section 27 and Schedule 4A of the Domestic Violence, Crime and Victims Act 2004 authorises bailiffs collecting unpaid court fines to force entry, but that power doesn't apply to all fines under other legislation and certainly doesn't apply to private debt collectors.

Also, the activities of ANYONE trying to collect a debt have legal restraints on them. There's a fairly lengthy list of things they must not do, and that includes harassing people. That is a criminal offence under Section 40 of the Administration of Justice Act 1970. They are, however, able to take reasonable and legal action against anyone that does, or that they reasonably believe does, owe the money.

So .... when faced with letters from creditors for previous tenants, or worse yet, a bailiff at the door, it's best to keep in mind that they ARE entitled to do their job. It might be satisfying to be bloody-minded and refuse to cooperate, but you can be letting yourself in for hassle that is generally fairly easy to avoid.

If I received letters I knew to be a creditor chasing payment for a previous occupier, I would return that letter with a covering letter explaining that the person was not resident at the address and not known to me. I would keep a record of the date sent and a copy of that letter. If further letters arrived, still pursuing the debt, I would write again, this time sent recorded delivery, and point out that they have already been informed that the debtor no longer lives at the address, and that I was fully aware of the provisions of the Administration of Justice Act relating to harassment, and that if such letters continue, I will be forced to take further action, such as court action under that law, or complaints to Trading Standards, or complaints to the Debt Collection Enforcement Team at the Office of Fair Trading.

It is conceivable that creditors, who may well be operating under a licence, will have that credit licence revoked if the OFT get a sufficient volume of complaints. The creditor themselves may not be the one sending letters, and is quite likely to not be the one actually sending debt collectors, and they likely won't want complaints to the OFT putting black marks against their name because of the actions of a collection agency .... and the collection agencies know that.

But, as I said, these firms are allowed to pursue debts legally and reasonably. So, rather than go through the hassle, the best bet is to provide them with evidence that you are not the person with the debt. Do that, and they should leave you alone. If you provide that evidence and they don't leave you alone, it's harassment, because they have no cause to be chasing you!

[Vroomparrot]

Thanks for all the advice guys. Saracen, you sound as though you know what you're talking about so I think I'll follow your advice. I really want to avoid the situation of having debt collectors coming to the door - especially as it is more likely that it will be my Wife answering the door.