Lloyds Business 'debt' & Westcot

[tiaposy]

We have an ongoing problem with Lloyds and our business account. We have a business loan, which we have never missed payments and also an o/drawn account which is made up of charges. We have since switched banks and I wrote to claim the charges back, but didn't get a reply. In December we had a letter saying the whole debt (inc loan) is being handled by the recovery dept. To be honest I haven't done anything since the letter and it has now come back to bite me on the bum.
This morning, I got a letter from Westcot demanding payment of £5642.86 by 13/2/08! This includes loan (which we are still paying monthly) and the bank charges which are about £3,5k.
I really need help now. How can I get this transfered back to Lloyds? This is in my husbands name (as a director) and we cannot afford a CCJ. I want to claim the charges back and we were paying the loan back, monthly, as agreed so not sure why they are being such A-holes about it.
Any help much appreciated as I told my husband I could sort this out and now it might ruin everything

[andrew1]

Joe, don't worry, we'll sort it... Can you tell me what the letter says from Wescot, does it say they have bought the debt or are they just acting as an agent?

Next thing I would do is write and send in a letter stating that the account is in dispute and you do not acknowledge any debt to Wescot. Then quote the OFT Guidlines http://www.oft.gov.uk/shared_oft/bus...dit/oft664.pdf


Take a read through these and you can find a few examples to quote to them about unfair practices in chasing debts which are in dispute. Suggest they should not have the debt in the first place and will they kindly refer back to Lloyds who are being asked to refund the charges on the account which are a breach of common law on penalties.

Remind them that they should not contact you (hubby) and if they do you will report them to Trading Standards and the OFT in relation to breaching the above guidelines.

Make sure your charges claim gets into them asap and make sure the dispute is logged with Lloyds.

That'll get rid of Wescot for the time being

Come back if you need more... most of all - don't worry, they can't get a ccj whilst the account is in dispute.

[tiaposy]

Andrew, Thanks for this,
Couple for questions:
I am missing some statements from Lloyds - and they have removed all account statements from online banking
how do I work out the interest on the charges?
Shall I just keep paying the loan (which we have been doing)
Thanks

[andrew1]

Which spreadsheet are you using to calculate?

[tiaposy]

i was using the same one as the normal account. I'll have a proper look on here tomorrow and use the correct one

[tiaposy]

Andrew
Do you have the link for the spreadsheet?
I have read the letter and it says they are collecting on behalf of Lloyds.
Thanks

[Goldlady]

We got our LTSB Ltd Co overdraft written off just two weeks ago. We had reduced it until it matched the amount of the charges on the account. Like you we were no longer using the account.

I don't have anything in writing about it other than the letter I sent them.

Best of luck

[andrew1]

Originally Posted by tiaposy

Andrew
Do you have the link for the spreadsheet?
I have read the letter and it says they are collecting on behalf of Lloyds.
Thanks

6. Interest calculation spreadsheets


Chose the one applicable to you Tiaposy if you have trouble come back.. they are fairly straightforward once you get to grips with them. If you have a couple of missing statements take the balance from the end of the previous statements and the opening balances of the following one and guestimate what the average might have been and add the charges you think you might have had - it won't make much difference and once your claim is in it's up to the bank to dispute the amount thereafter.

[tiaposy]

Andrew
This was the one I was using (for general bank/credit card accounts). Is it the same for Ltd business accounts.

[andrew1]

Originally Posted by tiaposy

Andrew
This was the one I was using (for general bank/credit card accounts). Is it the same for Ltd business accounts.

Yes, the fact it is for a limited company makes no odds. You change the interest rates to suit your needs, if you go for contractual for example, just change the interest rate to 29% or whatever, see the difference, but you have to know what you are asking for then.

The bank account spreadsheet is different from the Credit cards one if memory serves me right, make sure you use the right one.

[tiaposy]

Hi Andrew
Sorry if I am being thick, but how do I work out what rate of interest to charge them?
Thanks

[andrew1]

Originally Posted by tiaposy

Hi Andrew
Sorry if I am being thick, but how do I work out what rate of interest to charge them?
Thanks

you use the interest they charge you each month on your statements. That usually gets charged for the previous month so look onto your statements and you'll see when the account went overdrawn there is a charge made usually on the same day each month 1) for transactions like Direct debit processing which you cannot claim back and the other is for Interest they charge you for going overdrawn. On the spreadsheet it asks you for the bank balance overdrawn I think, take the highest figure it went over and then add the interest in the column for interest. The spreadsheet should work it out for you.

You''ll see also the interest rate that they were charging you, you can change the interest rate at the top of the worksheet to reflect that % - then see the balance they owe you shoot up!


also keep an eye on this thread tiaoposy Claiming on a Business account? Lets join forces?