A widower has been left terrified after debt collectors have tried to repossess her Spanish dream home. Anita Mozley, 74, says her ideal retirement move had turned into a nightmare as she faces a bizarre legal dispute.
Derbyshire Live reports that the 74-year-old moved to Alicante back in 2012 with her husband, Geoff. However, she sadly lost him aged, 69, after a battle with leukaemia.
Now her woes have been added to as claims that she doesn't own her home have been rekindled. Anita says representatives from BC Grupo, a property registrar in the country, have been knocking on her door informing her that the house is not hers.
The 74-year-old says these claims are unjust as she claims to have a court order from 2018 that certifies her purchase of the property. The dispute began well before then, however, as the couple originally purchased the property back in the early 2000's via a company called Atlas which has since dissolved.
The widower says the pair at the time paid a deposit of £2,121.57 and more instalments over the next nine months to Atlas and solicitors Aroca Seiquer & Asociado, who arranged the purchase. In February 2006, she claims she and her husband then signed for the purchase of the property, paying €57,711.25 to the builder.
However, Anita says she then had to go to court - claiming it cost her €20,000 - to attain the court order, as the builder of her home aimed to repossess the house. The 74-year-old alleges that four neighbouring properties whose owners did not go to court have since been repossessed.
Anita says despite the order she has been visited by debt collectors, who have made her feel “scared” and “harassed”. She said: "I've double locked all my doors, they are locked now even though it's not dark yet.
"I still feel so anxious." The widower now claims she has not had a representative knocking on her door since November 28, 2022 and hopes the streak continues.
Anita added: "This week it's the holidays here in Spain, for the New Year and the three kings. I don't think anybody is working as much as they normally do.
"I'm trying to be positive it's no good being anything other. I fear I'll have to go back to the UK, but I don't have anywhere else to go.
"Here I'll get less support than in the UK. Hopefully, I won't get rehoused, it's just a waiting game, unfortunately. I'm hoping to come back to Derby in January but I discovered recently that my passport was up in April.
"I'm trying to get online to get my new passport sorted. I've asked BC Grupo to contact my old solicitor to get any paperwork that they could reference.
"I just hope they do, I've been talking to people but nobody has been in the situation that I am in. I've also written to the judge who declared that I own the property.
"The people knocking on the door are saying that doesn't stand anymore. I've written to him [the judge] asking if it does still stand."
Derbyshire Live contacted BC Grupo's branch in Murcia for comment on the situation. A spokesperson claims they "do not look at this type of operation, you need to contact [the firm's office in] Madrid".
The publication attempted to call the company's HQ but it could not be reached using the phone number given on the firm's website. An email address was also not included on BC Grupo's site.
A spokesperson from Aroca Seiquer & Asociados told Derbyshire Live in November 2022: “We are unable to make any comment about any potential clients, current or past, in accordance with the Data Protection Act."
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