Dober

In December 2016 I acted as a guarantor on a loan so my grandson could purchase a car. He maintained the payments until November last year when tragically he was killed in a car accident and his car that only had 3rd party insurance was a write off. The Finance company who provided the loan have failed to show any compassion or accept a reduced payment offer from me for the outstanding balance and have appointed bailiffs who are threatening to enforce payment or seize goods to the value of the balance plus their costs that has increased the amount to nearly as much as the sum borrowed. I no longer have any property in the UK, so if I refuse to pay, can they pursue their claim here in Spain.

Rosemary

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Dober

I have received a private message but am unable to open it?

Rosemary

You will not be able to open it until you have sufficient posts. The system is set up in this manner to stop spammers sending unwanted PM´s to members.

Rosemary

uk_grenada

Yes they can, the important thing is not to place your head in the sand, but to be aware of the potential for it giving you problems later, and to what extent you can protect yourself legally if needed. I suspect the EU isnt a good place to be in terms of hiding/avoiding.

In time they may sell the debt which will make it grow, to a spanish collection agency. There are plenty, just google debt collection eu or spain, then things go down hill from there. Problem is, the more its worth, the more work they will do to get it and you end up paying for the enforcement.

Of course on the bright side they may never find you in which case there may be a civil court case against you and your credit rating will get stuffed wherever you are. If you later come back to the uk to live, there is a drop dead age for debt but not for your credit.

There are options like bankruptcy or making an agreed arrangement, but none are ideal.

uk_grenada

NB if you have uk assets it isnt just bailiffs, if its a big debt it may be upgraded, its also the crown court enforcers - sheriffs - who have greater powers.

Dober

Thank you uk-grenada for your advice. I had suspected that they would pursue it and as I had initially agreed to pay in the very unlikely event that my grandson failed to do so. I suppose I will have to now do so.

moneypenny20

Sympathies for the loss of your grandson. Terrible when you have to deal with legal/financial issues when you should simply be concentrating on the family's loss.

KieronF

Unlike the normal, unsecured debts of the deceased that 'die' on their death, secured debts or the liability of a guarantor can still be pursued after someone passes away. Secured loans can be chased through the estate of a deceased whereas the liability of a guarantor can be upheld by any court, in any country, that is prepared to hear the case. Obviously, seeking to have a court to uphold a liability costs money, so depending on the amounts owed, the lender may take a pragmatic approach and not chase the liability.

Dober

Thank you Moneypenny for your condolences. I will not mention the name of the Financial institution involved as I may end up owing them more money as they will probably sue me but their intransigence and lack of compassion has been unbelievable especially as my grandson had completed a loan with them previously.

Dober

Thank you KieronF for your comments. Unfortunately the lender has already obtained a court order in the UK and bailiffs are now acting on that order and pursuing me for the outstanding balance plus their costs.

mikelincs

It may well be a good idea to contact one of the debt people in the UK, National Debtline would be a good one, they are a charity set up by the UK government to help with just this sort of scenario.

https://www.nationaldebtline.org/

Please be aware there are other firms with similar names that will charge you for help, these people do not.

spouse of scouse

Excellent advice, Mike. There are many unscrupulous people/businesses who would try to take advantage of this sad situation.

Dober, please accept my condolences also for the tragic loss of your grandson. That the finance company wouldn't waive the debt in such circumstances is disgusting.

moneypenny20

They're a business not a charity. They are still owed money, regardless of what happened. Fact of life however sad the circumstances.

spouse of scouse

It's pretty obvious that they're not a charity and they're not expected to be. That shouldn't and doesn't prevent them from making a charitable gesture occasionally though.