How to Get Barclaycard Debt Settlement or Written Off

Barclaycard have a dent in their reputation for not getting things right when it comes to borrowing money to people. This is why they’re currently refunding debtors an average of £300 to fix their mistake. 

If you have a new or old Barclaycard debt, you’ll probably be contacted by a Barclaycard debt collection agency wanting payment. But you might be able to write off some or all of the debt. Here’s how…

Do you have to pay Barclaycard?

You might not have to pay Barclaycard.

If you genuinely can’t afford your debt repayments then looking into whether you could have your written off might be just what you need. 

If you want to find out whether you qualify for having debt written off or payments lowered then fill out the short form below.

What happens if I don’t pay my Barclaycard?

If you don’t meet your Barclaycard monthly repayments as agreed in the credit agreement, Barclaycard will contact you to ask you to pay. You may also be charged late payment fees. 

If you know you’ll miss a payment, it’s best to let Barclaycard know in advance as you might avoid the additional fees. 

If you don’t pay and ignore further payment requests, Barclaycard may decide to chase you for payment using a debt collection agency. 

What collection agency does Barclaycard use?

Central Debt Collection Services is the most well-known debt collection agency that works to recover unpaid Barclaycard debt. But there could be others. 

This Barclaycard debt collection agency will trace debtors and ask them to pay over the phone and in writing when possible. They will usually make legal threats if you don’t pay. 

It’s important to realise that debt collection agencies like this are not bailiffs. They can come to your home to discuss the debt, but this is unlikely. 

It’s unlikely because they have no legal powers to make you pay at your door and cannot take your goods if you don’t pay. They can’t even give the impression that they have these additional powers. 

Can you lower your repayments?

If you’re struggling to pay back your debt, then you might qualify for a debt solution.

Some solutions lower your monthly payments while others write off a portion of your debt. 

To find out whether they could work in your situation, hit the button below.

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In-house Barclaycard debt recovery team

Barclaycard also has an in-house team that will contact debtors and ask them to pay, namely the Barclaycard debt recovery team. They might also contact you when the account hasn’t yet been transferred to an external Barclaycard debt collection agency. 

What happens if you ignore Barclaycard debt collection agencies?

If you ignore a debt collection agency, the agency could recommend to their client (Barclaycard) that they take legal action to make you obligated to pay. 

To do this, Barclaycard would need to apply for a court order to make your pay, which is formally called a County Court Judgment (CCJ). Once a CCJ has been issued you must pay as the judge has told you to. 

Otherwise, you could end up having to face real bailiffs or even have money deducted from your wages and sent to court. 

So, do you have to pay the Barclaycard debt collection agency?

With the threat of court action looming, you probably want to deal with the matter quickly. But that doesn’t mean you have to pay instantly unless that is your preference. 

There are different ways to respond to a Barclaycard debt collections agency. You may even be able to have some or all of the debt written off. 

How to respond to Barclaycard debt letters

The best way to respond to Barclaycard debt letters and payment requests depends on your situation. If you’re being chased for an old Barclaycard debt, you may be able to fight back differently to how you would fight a recent Barclaycard debt. I explain each response below. 

Dealing with old Barclaycard debt

If your Barclaycard debt is more than six years old, and you haven’t acknowledged the debt in writing or paid towards the debt during the last six years, you might be able to use the statute-barred loophole.

Statute-barred debt, known as prescribed debt in Scotland, is when the debt is too old to be escalated to court action. Without a judge being able to issue a court order, you are never obligated to pay the debt legally. 

Credit card debts become statute-barred after six years in England and Wales. They aren’t technically written off, but you can tell Barclaycard you won’t be paying and that has to be the end of the matter, 

In Scotland, things are even better. After five years, the credit card debt becomes prescribed which means they no longer exist automatically. 

I can’t stress enough how important it is to get advice from a debt charity first to make sure the time limit has already passed. If not, you might accidentally acknowledge the debt and reset the clock. Free letter templates are available online to help you reply with a statute-barred notice. 

Dealing with more recent Barclaycard arrears

If you don’t qualify to use the statute-barred loophole, you can instead ask Barclaycard or the Barclaycard debt collection agency to prove you owe the debt. 

This is beneficial if you dispute owing the debt, but it might also be worthwhile to make them work and buy yourself some more time. 

You can request proof of any debt owed that is covered by the Consumer Credit Act before paying, which includes credit card debts. Barclaycard will need to send you a copy of the signed agreement you entered into when taking out the credit card to make you pay. 

If they don’t or can’t supply this, you’re not obligated to pay the debt!

I have to pay, what now?

But what if a Barclaycard debt collection agency proves the debt? In this case, you need to take action to prevent the matter from escalating to court and a CCJ. The good news is you still have options. 

You could:

• Pay the debt in full

• Agree on a payment plan directly with Barclaycard or their debt collection agency

• Speak to a debt charity and use a different debt solution, which could be more beneficial than agreeing to a payment plan with Barclaycard if you have multiple debts

Can you get Barclaycard debt written off?

Yes, there are debt solutions that can write off some or all of your debt.

For example, debtors on a low income with no significant assets could use a Debt Relief Order to write off all of their debt, provided their financial situation doesn’t improve within one year. 

An Individual Voluntary Arrangement may write off some of the debt at the end of the IVA if it’s quite a big debt, and bankruptcy is also an option which could end up writing off some of the debt. 

It’s best to get tailored debt advice from a debt charity so you know which solution is most applicable and beneficial to you. The debt charity may also apply for the debt respite scheme which will stop Barclaycard debt collection agency from contacting you for many weeks while you assess your options. 

Another way to write off some of the debt is by making a Barclaycard debt settlement offer. 

Consider a Barclaycard debt settlement offer

A Barclaycard debt settlement offer is when you offer to make a lump sum payment for less than the total amount of debt, but in return, the remainder of the debt is written off. 

You can make an offer to Barclaycard and write off some of the debt in the process. There is evidence online that Barclaycard will entertain debt settlement offers, and there is even evidence they make these offers to debtors themselves:

Source: https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/1394263/barclaycard-debt 

You should only ever agree to a Barclaycard debt settlement offer in writing. And you must wait to get confirmation of the offer being accepted in writing before you make the lump sum payment. 

If you don’t, the creditor could argue that the payment was simply a payment towards the debt and may not write off the remainder of the debt. 

One of the downsides to making a debt settlement offer and writing off some of the debt is that it gets recorded on your credit history. 

Your credit file will show that the debt was only partially repaid, which could make it more difficult to get approved for credit in the future. The forum poster appears to have had this issue as well. 

How do I contact Barclays debt collection?

There are three ways to discuss a Barclaycard debt and missed payments.

More Barclaycard debt help is available!

For more information on the different debt solutions that could write off some of your debt, speak to a UK debt charity like National Debtline or StepChange. 

These groups provide unrivalled debt advice that is completely confidential and always personalised. 

You can get an idea of some of the solutions you could use by heading to my How to Beat Debt page. 

“It will only get worse” 😩

It’s cliché to say, but with debt it’s true; the longer you leave it, the worse the problem gets. 

There are straightforward and effective ways to deal with debt, but you have to know your options. 

Fill out the short form to find out about the debt solutions that could reduce your monthly payments or even write off some of your debt.

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