John asked how was he traced to his current address.

I heard recently of someone else who was traced to a new address after many, many years and does not in fact now live at the 'new address' but had lived at that 'new address' temporarily.

The Debt Collectors claimed that they had a 'trace' placed on the person to discover the 'new address'.

The only thing this person had done whilst at that 'new address', was make a Benefits Claim, albeit a temporary claim and eventually found work and moved on to an even newer address. The person did not even enter their name on the Register of Electors for that address!!

Part of the Register of Electors for any area is available for sale to any person and there have been complaints recently about this, disclosure of addresses, although the Register is a Public Record.

This then makes me think that someone at one of the Benefits Agencies must be UNLAWFULLY providing or selling private and personal identification information and addresses to these Debt Collection companies?

John said he had a wife and child. If Child Benefit is being claimed, the Child Benefits Agency may be the leaky agency, one or more of whose personnel is/are UNLAWFULLY providing, or more likely 'selling for profit', Claimant addresses and details.

I agree with Conmankiller's advice, but an alternative course of action would be to put the letter back into it's envelope, re-seal it and write on the envelope, RETURN TO SENDER, NOT AT THIS ADDRESS, OPENED IN ERROR and post it back to the Sender. The Sender will then be charged double postage for an unstamped letter and eventually may just get the message that whatever they write is going to be returned to them and not result in any unfair, con-artist trick being successful. And in future try to recognise similar letters from this Company and don't even bother to open them, just R-T-S, N-A-T-A.

And do not telephone anybody in or connected to these dodgy letters!!!!