Lodger left with debts
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Discussion

spikep

Original Poster:

500 posts

304 months

Friday 26th January 2024
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My son had a lodger who has now returned back to India. He is now getting debt letters from Vodafone named for the lodger which my son has returned as ‘no longer at this address’. Vodafone have also sent a letter addressed just to the house number which he opened and tried to call them about but they would not talk to him as it’s not his contract.

He’s now had a hand delivered letter through the door addressed to the lodger with no return details on it. I assume it’s from a debt agency.

What should he do next?

mikef

6,073 posts

273 months

Friday 26th January 2024
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Write “not at this address” on the envelope and stick it in a post box?

Anyone who has had tenants has probably had this. They give up chasing after about 5 or 6 years

Chainsaw Rebuild

2,111 posts

124 months

Friday 26th January 2024
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Just keep telling them that they no longer live there and can they please stop contacting him at that address.

Louis Balfour

28,176 posts

244 months

Friday 26th January 2024
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spikep said:
My son had a lodger who has now returned back to India. He is now getting debt letters from Vodafone named for the lodger which my son has returned as ‘no longer at this address’. Vodafone have also sent a letter addressed just to the house number which he opened and tried to call them about but they would not talk to him as it’s not his contract.

He’s now had a hand delivered letter through the door addressed to the lodger with no return details on it. I assume it’s from a debt agency.

What should he do next?
Nothing whatsoever. It is not his problem. It will stop soon enough.


Wackywoo105

428 posts

112 months

Friday 26th January 2024
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Years ago I rented a house where the previous tenants had done a runner leaving behind a trashed house and various debts. At first I sent the debt collecting mail back "no longer at this address" as I received it. I got fed up doing this, so started to save it up and send it all back in one go. I think I once posted nearly 100 letters. Many appeared to be from the same sender. This seemed to do the trick and letters started to dwindle off.

I also used to open junk mail and fill the enclosed free post envelope with junk mail, so it weighed a ton and was hopefully a large expensive package.

Edited by Wackywoo105 on Friday 26th January 14:43

Simpo Two

90,862 posts

287 months

Friday 26th January 2024
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Wackywoo105 said:
Years ago I rented a house where the previous tenants had done a runner leaving behind a trashed house and various debts. At first I sent the debt collecting mail back "no longer at this address" as I received it. I got fed up doing this, so started to save it up and send it all back in one go. I think I once posted nearly 100 letters. Many appeared to be from the same sender. This seemed to do the trick and letters started to dwindle off.
After writing a couple of polite replies to a debt collection agency, to no avail, my third letter said that if they bothered me again I'd charge them £50 admin fee for my time. They bothered me again so I invoiced them for £50. Stupendously, they paid!