01782401123

these crooks called me as well and l told them to get lost

Have been ringing my mobile for a number of days now, an automated message is left saying that it is advantis and to hold the line to speak to an advisor. I don't have any debt etc. I never have held on as i have no interest in speaking to them. It's annoying though as I blocked their number and today it blocked their call, but they left a voicemail. I'm on pay as you go, so I didn't know who had left the voicemail so had to retrieve it at a cost to me, only to find out it was them!!!!!!

i keep getting phone callls from thses people they need locking up scamming gitts

It is a company called Advantis, they are a debt collection agency. They have been harassing me by letter for months, they have even have the cheek to try and contact me at my mother's address, where I haven't lived for years. Worse still I do not owe any money, the debt in question was in fact paid years and years ago!! They are rude, harassing and very unprofessional and threatening both in letter and over the telephone, so good luck to anyone who is unfortunate enough to deal with them.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/money/2007/sep/15/moneysupplement.debt

Another letter drops through the letterbox. This one, like many of the rest, states that money is owed to the Royal Bank of Scotland Group and that unless the debt is settled within days "possible legal action may be instigated." It's one of at least 30 debt-chasing letters I've received since July last year. But none of them are aimed at me.

All the threatening letters have been addressed to two people (neither known to me) who used to live at my address - a man who owes £372.13 to NatWest Bank and a woman who owes £3,384.14 to the Royal Bank of Scotland.

The letters keep coming almost weekly, varying only in their level of threat - from nicey-nicey to apocalyptic - and their shade of red and black type. The woman has had the lion's share of the letters: 17. In my time here, five different firms have been on her tail and she's had numerous "final demands", threats of court action and warnings of visits by debt collectors.

The latest epistle is dated September 3. Clearly, the Royal Bank of Scotland is still owed £3,384.14. And on the basis of this useless paper chase, I would recommend that they begin a review of their debt recovery operations, since none of the agencies they've employed seem to have bothered to establish that she no longer lives here.

Some of them claim to have actually come to my address. If they had done so, they would have quickly found out I am the current tenant, and a man - not a woman. What's more, there's an unmissable sign outside the property bearing the name and phone number of the lettings agency.

The moral of the story? It appears all too easy to escape your debt; all you have to do is switch address and count on the debt collection agencies being too stupid or lazy to make the most basic of checks.

But to rewind. When I rented the property last summer, I got into the habit of opening mail addressed to former tenants. Why? I'd found, from previous experience, that a bad credit rating can attach to an address as well as a name. It therefore seemed prudent to find out what the possible credit rating would be on my new address if I ever came to buy items on credit.

Things didn't look good from the start. Debt letters were arriving for the two former tenants as soon as I moved in. After a few months, when the letters kept coming, I decided to keep them in order to get a small insight how the debt-chasing business looks from the business end.

As of November last year, the man who owes £372.13 - let's call him Fred - was being chased by a firm of solicitors in Weybridge, Surrey. It threatened him with court proceedings after six days. But by the end of July - the last time Fred received a letter - he was still being chased, now by Equidebt Limited in Warwickshire. For a time between these dates, the debt was handled by a third agency, ScotCall Debt Collecting Services, in Glasgow.

The woman's debt story is more convoluted. Let's call her Thelma. The first letter, from Buchanan Clark and Wells, of Stratford-upon-Avon, told her she was being pursued by Thames Credit Limited and that she was on a "final notice". This meant legal proceedings would be taken against her unless payment was made immediately.

By February 2007, the pursuer was Wescot Credit Service Ltd., of Hull. Wescot was conciliatory in tone and merely reminded Thelma that her debt was unpaid and she should get in contact. The next letter from Wescot, the same month, was anything but conciliatory. This time it threatened that her case would be turned over to "a door-to-door debt collector for recovery."

In fact, over the next few months, Thelma would be specifically threatened with such visits on two other occasions. One letter even told her that "our Agent" had made "several visits" to my address and "left calling cards."

I work from home and I think I'd have been in for at least one of these "several visits." What's more, I collect the mail as soon as it arrives and it has never contained any "calling cards." Conclusion? No debt collectors turned up; these were idle threats.

By March, Thelma was being chased by Buchanan Clark and Wells for £3,864.14 and for a further £643.50 by a third agency, Credit Security, of Aylesbury, Buckinghamshire. In fact, she received five letters from agencies in March alone. The last one came from a fourth company, a law firm called Geoffrey Parker Bourne, of Stratford-upon-Avon. More threats of "pending legal action" and "legal notification".

A further two letters arrived in April and one of these introduced a fifth name, Robinson, Way & Company Limited, of Salford, which issued a "formal demand for payment". May brought four demands; this time both Credit Security Limited and Buchanan Clark and Wells told Thelma they would accept reduced payments. In the latter case, Thelma was offered a settlement of £2,511.69 - it was willing to knock more than £1,350 off her debt. Obviously, it pays to put these people off as long as possible.

The next month two more demands arrived from Credit Security and Buchanan Clark and Wells. She was still being chased this month.

I have not printed the real names of the two debtors because I don't want to embarrass them. I have no idea who Fred and Thelma are or where they live. Indeed, I harbour slight feelings of admiration for them. They've taken the money and run, for whatever reason.

The banks presumably spend a lot of money trying to recover debts but it's clearly easy to evade the demands. If the debt collectors can't do their job properly then perhaps Fred and Thelma deserve to get away with it. The merry-go-round continues as debt collection companies sell on debts, sometimes for as little as 1p in the pound. Each time the debt is sold, it prompts another pointless round of letters. As for my credit rating: it's no problem, because I make sure I don't get into debt.

What you can do if the bailiffs threaten to call

You receive a letter from a mobile phone company reminding you that you are late with this month's payment. The only problem - you don't belong to that network provider and never have. Time passes, and you hear nothing more.

Imagine the shock when you receive a letter from a bailiff giving you just days to pay the bill (plus their charges, of course) or they will come round to confiscate your property to make good the debt.

Why did this happen, and what can you do about it? It may be sheer bad luck that you share the same, or a similar, name as someone else that leads to the problems.

When a bill-payer falls into arrears and then moves away, many debt chasers adopt "fuzzy matching". The idea is, debtors tend to stay in the same geographical area but sometimes slightly change their names - so William becomes Bill, or Eleanor becomes Ellie.

Debt firms search anything from the electoral roll to the local phone book for the name of the person, and where they find a name that matches (or is close), they will serve notice of the debt at the given address. As a result, an innocent person with a name like the absconder may be hassled for the payment. The fear of ignoring these letters is an adverse credit rating.

Contact rating agencies such as Experian, Equifax and Callcredit and tell them about the error. You have the legal right to put a notice of correction against the entry.

If you receive threatening phone calls after you have informed the collectors of the mistaken identity, tell your local trading standards - harassment is an offence.

Write - never phone - to the company threatening you. And keep a copy. For however threatening the letters, and however much they ignore your protestations, bailiffs cannot seize property for debt without firstly a county court judgment and then further legal action.

The bailiff has to prove the debt is personally owed by you, as opposed to another person with your name. If it goes this far, you may be asked to complete and return a Defence and Counterclaim.

At this stage, you should highlight the evidence as to why the debt is not yours. In such proceedings it is not normally necessary to instruct a solicitor, and even if you do, you should win your costs against the other side.

But generally a successful court dismissal will lead to the entry being voluntarily removed.
Kayode Akinola

this number calls me several times a day ,I have no dealings/debts  with them and I have a new exdirectory number that I have given to no one .If they did want me (they have no reason to whatsoever)  wouldnt they write as well as call ( i think they may be after someone who used my phone before I realised the number wasnt auto witheld)

Just had a call from Advantis saying it was an "urgent call" and to hit 1 (which I declined to do), followed by a message saying that since they couldn't reach me I should dial some number, which they repeated but I didn't have a pen handy so missed.  08 something.

I have no debts (other than mortgage) and I assume they are scammers, cold-calling me.

Can Ofcom or someone like that not stop Advantis from doing this?

got a call from them pretending i had entered a competition for a mini cooper, i never have! tried to get my bank detail & other personal info'...ignore, put the phone down on them!!!!!

Dear  Sirs

Re: Telephone calls to
I am writing to express my serious concerns regarding the telephone calls that I have received  from your company today.

I am now formally requesting that all further correspondence to me is made in writing only.

I demand that these phone calls stop immediately and to any other telephone number assigned to me on your data base. I am familiar with the terms of Section 40 of the Administration of Justice Act 1970, and the Protection from Harassment Act 1970

If you continue to call, you will also be in breach of the Wireless Telegraphy Act (1949) and, as such, I will report you to both Trading Standards, The Office of Fair Trading, the police with an insistence via the duty inspector of the reporting police station that a crime report is initiated against your company and subsequently the individual making the call. With an additional posting on the internet for the media and public’s attention to add to the hundreds of complaints about your company’s modus operandi.

Take further note that continued telephone calls after the receipt of a this formal demand ‘not to call’ will constitute a criminal offence under Section 127 of the Communications Act 2003 and you will have been in de facto breach of the Telecommunication act 1984 (as amended) (cf: Section 43. 1 (b), and are committing a prima facie criminal offence attracting a £5000 fine or 6 months imprisonment), on the grounds that it is unnecessary, causes anxiety and is a pointless waste of time.


You will be deemed to have been served notice of my request and I will deem it served by

<< DATE >>.30/05/2012

I am advising you that any calls received after this date will be recorded with the intention of them being used as evidence against you and your company.

I have nothing to say or add – other than my letter that needs a reply .

This is the legislation you will be breaching with calls when asked NOT to call

1.    Wireless Telegraphy Act (1949)
2.    Section 40 of the Administration of Justice Act 1970
3.    Harassment Act 1970 (As amended)
4.    Telecommunication act 1984 (As amended)
5.    Harassment Act 2000 (As amended) additions
6.    Section 127 of the Communications Act 2003
7.    Privacy & Electronic Communications 2004 ( EC Directive ) (As amended)
8.    Behaviour likely to cause a Breach of the Peace

Yours faithfully

Try this letter it usually works also get in touch with your telephone company and see if they will bar their no

Dear  Sirs

Re: Telephone calls to
I am writing to express my serious concerns regarding the telephone calls that I have received  from your company today.

I am now formally requesting that all further correspondence to me is made in writing only.

I demand that these phone calls stop immediately and to any other telephone number assigned to me on your data base. I am familiar with the terms of Section 40 of the Administration of Justice Act 1970, and the Protection from Harassment Act 1970

If you continue to call, you will also be in breach of the Wireless Telegraphy Act (1949) and, as such, I will report you to both Trading Standards, The Office of Fair Trading, the police with an insistence via the duty inspector of the reporting police station that a crime report is initiated against your company and subsequently the individual making the call. With an additional posting on the internet for the media and public’s attention to add to the hundreds of complaints about your company’s modus operandi.

Take further note that continued telephone calls after the receipt of a this formal demand ‘not to call’ will constitute a criminal offence under Section 127 of the Communications Act 2003 and you will have been in de facto breach of the Telecommunication act 1984 (as amended) (cf: Section 43. 1 (b), and are committing a prima facie criminal offence attracting a £5000 fine or 6 months imprisonment), on the grounds that it is unnecessary, causes anxiety and is a pointless waste of time.


You will be deemed to have been served notice of my request and I will deem it served by

<< DATE >>.

I am advising you that any calls received after this date will be recorded with the intention of them being used as evidence against you and your company.

I have nothing to say or add – other than my letter that needs a reply .

This is the legislation you will be breaching with calls when asked NOT to call

1.    Wireless Telegraphy Act (1949)
2.    Section 40 of the Administration of Justice Act 1970
3.    Harassment Act 1970 (As amended)
4.    Telecommunication act 1984 (As amended)
5.    Harassment Act 2000 (As amended) additions
6.    Section 127 of the Communications Act 2003
7.    Privacy & Electronic Communications 2004 ( EC Directive ) (As amended)
8.    Behaviour likely to cause a Breach of the Peace

Yours faithfully

These pests have been harassing me on an ex-directory number for three weeks now, using their ACS to leave messages, silent calls and abandoned calls, once or twice every weekday.

Ofcom wrote to all AMD technology users in December 2010 reminding them of new rules in force from February 2011 for silent and abandoned calls.  The maximum fine is raised to £2 Million.
http://stakeholders.ofcom.org.uk/binaries/con ... s/acs_users.pdf

I'm a student, just moved into a house so i'm a bit suprised to get a call about debt collection.

Didn't speak to anyone, thank god.

I had a call from this number, stating they were Advantis, and I should press 1 to hear an urgent message.  Never press a number like this, just hang up!

This is obviously a computer bot or something making these calls only advice i can offer phone 08450700707 its tp services they can stop cold calling calls even this type of call getting threw to your number and its a gov backed service. if you try this and it fails get in touch with your phone services provider most companys will offer you advice about blocking this number even offering ppl free number changes at times when nothing can be done

http://www.mpsonline.org.uk

The Telephone Preference Service (TPS) is a free service. It is the official central opt out register on which you can record your preference not to receive unsolicited sales or marketing calls. It is a legal requirement that all organisations (including charities, voluntary organisations and political parties) do not make such calls to numbers registered on the TPS unless they have your consent to do so.

Organisations with which you have an ongoing relationship, for example those who regard you as a customer, (or in the case of charities - a donor) may well gather your consent during the early stages of your relationship with them and will therefore be entitled to call you even if your number is registered on TPS, unless you have previously told them specifically that you object to them calling you for marketing purposes.

The TPS can accept the registration of mobile telephone numbers, however it is important to note that this will prevent the receipt of marketing voice calls but not SMS (text) messages. If you wish to stop receiving SMS marketing messages, please send an 'opt-out' request to the company involved.

As TPS registration only prevents marketing calls, organisations will still be able to call you for the purposes of genuine market research.

I keep phonecalls that give me an automated message when I answer. I am asked to press 1 to speak to someone from Advantis. I have never pressed 1, because I was always worried it could be a scam and I could be charged the earth if I did press 1.

On looking at this website, I have just discovered that Advantis are a debt collecting agency. How this company has found my number, I do not know, because not only is my telephone number exdirectory, I am debt free and I live alone.

Today I was expecting an important telephone call as soon as the phone rang, I rushed to answer it, to find out that it was yet another nuisance call from Advantis. This company should be fined heavily, for making these type of calls.

I too have been receiving calls from this number and so as my sister neither one of us are behind with payments all my bills are up to date and if you did owe money the company would contact you first

I've had several of these the last few days to a work phone asking for Mr J.Smith (!) the first time without stating who they were or what they wanted.  They are now blocked.  Scammers

I recently purchased a Panasonic phone with caller block on it.i just wait for call to stop ringing Google the missed call number find out who it is and block it

I've had calls from this number, they just want your bank details, so don't speak to me or call them back