I ended up in court after my car's license plates were stolen

In June, my car license plates were stolen. I reported it to the police, who confirmed they had been used on a vehicle that had been refueled at two garages and then driven away without payment. The second garage sent me photos and a request for payment, but withdrew it when I explained.

I then received another request, for £83, from a Shell garage in Harrogate. I answered by telephone – no one called me back – then in writing. When I didn't hear, I assumed the case was dropped. Now I have received a letter from the Registry Trust stating that a writ (a county court judgment in England and Wales) has been made against me by a sheriff's court. I had no prior contact from the court or from Shell; the decree appears to have been granted without any investigation.

The Registry Trust says it cannot remove my name without the court overturning that decision. The sheriff's court did not respond to my request to have this done. I find it outrageous that a large company like Shell or its operators can just walk into court unchallenged and get court orders against an innocent individual.AG, Stevenston, Ayrshire

< p class="dcr-18sg7f2">License plate thefts on the rise: 54,400 were stolen last year, according to figures obtained by motortrader.com, and your car was one of many targeted in the region this night. The implications can be serious for owners as criminals display the plates on similar vehicles so they can commit offenses undetected.

Harrogate garage is operated on behalf of Shell by Waugh Petroleum, which indicates that it has not received your responses to its request for payment. So I turned to the sheriff's court to ask why you didn't get a chance to mount a defense. This is where an unpleasant situation becomes alarming. The court found that the decree was issued in error after the Registry Trust was wrongly told that the claim against you had been confirmed. The case had, in fact, been dismissed. The court declined to comment, but blamed "human error".

It is not uncommon for county court orders and judgments to be issued in without the knowledge of the accused, but I never came across an issued by mistake. The potential impact is appalling. A judgment can affect your ability to get credit, including a mortgage, rental, cell phone contract or job, for up to six years. I advised you to get reports from the three major credit reference agencies and you say they are unaffected so far.

Sheriff signed an order dismissing the action at no cost to either party, and the Registry Trust has been updated. You received a bland apology from the court for "any inconvenience and distress". Five days after the court confirmed its error, you received a summons to a hearing with the same file number in March. It turned out that this too was a mistake. Shell says: “Retailers and concessionaires at our stations are responsible for collecting receivables. We cannot comment on the procedures they follow. Include an address and phone number. Submission and publication are subject to our terms and conditions