Debt collection for TT order

[vivo]

Hi all,Similar situation as previous....have a TT order on which only $5 was ever paid or 0.5%!!Based on the previous thread it sounds like I am best to put in an OE (have also been advised to include an application for address info via TT which is now sourced from WINZ). Apparently this costs around $100 but can be added to the debt? My only hope is to have it paid directly from other parties income/WINZ really.I had passed it on to Baycorp but they don't seem to be very effectual at the moment as they just serve letters to ghosts?!Can anyone recommend either a better debt collection agency (Wgtn based) or relate your successful debt recovery stories and/or process?I'm over the substantial loss, which will never be recovered, but will endeavour to uphold the priciples at stake!Thanks

[Belinda]

TT orders and debt collectors

I too am in a very similar position to you - hold a TT order, which doesn't seem worth the paper it's written on. Applied to Collections (court) to track down these tenants. Evidently (?) their database is linked to WINZ. Both the tenants are winz clients, yet I got a letter back the other day saying they were unable to find these 2!!!????I too have placed the order with Baycorp but feel they do little more than record the debt and send 1 letter out into a black hole. Where to from here for us?? I don't know. Where are all the good debt collectors who actually track these people down? Any in Napier? It seems like a court order means zip. What this experience has said to me is that you can owe a substantial debt (proven) and not have to pay!!!!!! The whole process just cost ME a lot more$$$$.

[manic_mansions]

housing corporation

phone them and give the tenants name. they can privately pass it on to the collections dept. housing corp will know where the tenants are through them paying the bond for their new digs.

Drunk guys who steal a $2.60 pie from the 24hr dairy get hunted down, fined, convicted and publicly shamed. Sober tenants who trash a place, cause damage, walk away owing hundreds of dollars get very very little if any discouragement from the law.

[Ginny]

debt collection- or rather, lack of

We gave Baycorp a large debt to try and recover over two and a half years ago. They suggested we pursue both husband and wife separately (double costs but more chance of getting money back- so they said). We paid around $2000 in costs and back in Jan we were finally informed that they had served the debtor with the sealed judgement and were now trying to serve an Order of Examination. "Hurrah," we thought, "we might get $10 per week soon from them. In 30 years time they will be nearly paid up." Yup, its a big bill but what do you expect when you find walls removed, fittings gone, damage everywhere. They even came back one night after eviction and removed the veranda to sell the wood (that's what a neighbour informed us they wanted the wood for).

But that was it from Baycorp. They say, "The problem is the court could not serve the debtor as the address we have on file debtor has left, with no forwarding address
And we are still searching for an address. Once an address is obtained the courts can then serve the
Debtor and a hearing date will be set."
Baycorp say they cannot trace them. (In our naivety we thought that was what BC did.)

Baycorp tells us that if the Court bailiff goes to a house to look for Mr X and the person says he is not Mr X they cannot serve him, even if they think it is him. If they see Mr X run out the back door they won't do anything. mr X can run and hide and safely return when the bailiff goes.

So.......be warned. You can get all the way to the Order of Examination and then .......nothing. We were basically told (a few months ago- not at the beginning) that if they don't want to pay they can get away with it.

[drelly]

Personally, I don't use Baycorp for tenants as some tenants just don't care about their credit rating! Also, Baycorp put little effort into relatively small collections.

They are good when it comes to business clients though.

cheers,
Dave.

[karla]

Hello,

I have personally found CIA (Chase Investigations - Auckland), great for finding tenants, doing the OE, then administrating the money from source of income. They pay into your account the money received, less their fee once a month. Some tenants do take a lot longer to find, serve and have the orders attached, but they keep going until it's done. They have a few different options of payment plans, but it does not cost any where near around $2000!

[Ginny]

Hi
Thanks. Will investigate (sorry!) Chase Investigations. Wonder if they will "take over a case" given to another agency? Has anyone changed agencies mid case?

Will definitely not use BC next time. Communication is not one of their strengths;no updates given (is it really unreasonable to expect to be told that the Order of Examination could not be served when months had gone by??) and emails and letters going unanswered and the person you need to talk to frequently unavailable.

Re costs. Baycorp do not charge until they get some money from the debtor. The charges are for all the official bits, which they collect from you, and not for them personally, and I think all agencies would make you pay them before proceeding.

For anyone interested these are the charges payable in advance. When each stage is complete you pay for the next stage:-
1) Notice of Proceedings $410 plus service fee of $50-100 + GST.
2) Judgement $150 + GST
3) Order of Examination $135 plus attending fee of $60-90 + GST
These are per person so if it is husband and wife everything is doubled.
The problem- to me- seems to be that all goes well until the O of E (which you have paid for) and then the person cannot be found.

[essence]

Changing Debt collectors

Yes, you can change debt collectors if you are unhappy with the response you are getting.

BayCorp charge 5% closing fee ie $2000 debt x 5% = $100. BayCorp also require a letter of notice that you are transferring to another agency.

CIA have a web site (www.cia.co.nz ?) and have a variety of options available. Some mean that youdon't pay any money until the debt has been actioned and they are collecting money on your behalf.

Good luck.