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Debt collectors pursue me over a stranger's bills

The Guardian

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September 13, 2025

For 10 years I've been harassed by letters from debt collecting agents claiming I owe money to companies I have had no dealings with.

- Anna Tims

Debt collectors pursue me over a stranger's bills

I even found a county court judgment (CCJ) had been issued against me without my knowledge.

It turns out I shared my maiden name with the person who does own the debt, although we have different middle names and live in different counties. I've repeatedly asked the debt collectors to remove me from their records. I've involved a solicitor, and even reported it to the police but nothing works.

The latest letter insists I owe £146 to a telecoms company I've never been with.

My credit score has been affected and I was refused a mortgage. When will it end? KS, Wolverhampton

The sense of stress and impotence caused by a threatening demand for a stranger's debt is incalculable. Some of those you have received over the years threaten bailiff visits and legal action. When the CCJ was taken out in your name, fines were added to the sum you were said to owe.

You have now successfully applied for the CCJ to be set aside.

Your namesake, who was identified to you by one of the collection agents, in itself a breach of general data protection regulation rules, appears to owe money to payday lenders and a telecoms company, among others.

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