Gandolfi v NatWest

[gandolfi]

Hello All - I'm new here and in need of some help.....with apologies for the long introductory thread that follows.

I'm so glad I found this site and am hoping that it will mark a turning point in my life, as I feel I have been a victim of unfair bank charging for too long and it has led to a huge mess in my financial affairs that I intend to reverse.

Last month, NatWest issued a County Court claim to me for my outstanding loan and business current accounts. My accounts were effectively closed in early 2005 after I was unable to meet payments and NatWest had been piling on penalty charge after penalty charge. While I have tried to make repayments over the last two years the bank have continued to charge 29.5% UAB interest rate (despite my requests to reduce it).

After years of being afraid to challenge the bank for fear of them demanding all of the money back through the court, they have now forced me to act and try to reclaim the years of excessive charges imposed on my accounts.

Following some of the advice given in another thread, I have submitted my defence to the court saying that the debt is in dispute because I believe it contains unlawful charges/penalties. I have also sent a S.A.R - (Subject Access Request) to the bank, informing them that in the meantime I will calculate my claim for penalty charges and interest on the basis of the information I already have. (I also sent a copy of this letter to the court)

I've kept most of my business bank statements - from the first one in 1989 (which has written at the top "thank you for opening this account") to the time when the account was terminated. I also have the majority of my personal current account statements (which has also been subject to charges), so the information provided by NatWest (if they send it) will fill in any gaps that might be missing.

I am in the process of working out exactly how much they owe me, but it will be very clear that the accumulation of their unfair charges and interest forms the very basis of my indebtedness to them. Periods of problematic cashflow were persistently met with disproportionate charges throughout my relationship with the bank over 18 years. I now realise that this deprived me of money which would have eliminated the need for expensive overdrafts and loans.

I'm already very grateful for all the information that I have gathered here. However, I am aware that I am doing this in a back-to-front way by responding defensively to their court action. I have missed out the usual steps of sending Prelim and LBA letters, and so I am unsure of what I do now.

To be clear, I intend to reclaim charges on both my business current and personal current accounts, plus interest. Can I do this within my defence of their claim, or do I make my own claim through the courts? If so, do I need to follow the timescale procedures of prelim/LBA refund requests? Or do I just go ahead with issuing a court claim? Also, do I need to issue separate claims for business and personal accounts?

Thanks in advance for any help and advice you can give.

To say that I am scared and feeling out of my depth would be a huge understatement, but I am determined to fight this.

Best wishes to all.

[Parkvale]

Welcome to the Nasty West forum:http://www.consumeractiongroup.co.uk...sic-guide.html
http://www.consumeractiongroup.co.uk...tml#post436526
It would be easier if you could post their defence. Then we can see if you have missed anything on your claim.

[gandolfi]

Hi Parkvale

Sorry, I should have been clearer. It is they (NatWest) who have issued a County Court Claim against me for outstanding debts on my accounts. I have submitted my defence against their claim on the grounds that the debt contains (was caused by) unlawful charges.

[Parkvale]

Gotcha,
Then ask them to hold any further action on your account

Ask your creditors to hold action on your account.

1 High Street,
Newtown,
Kent
R21 4RH

June 28, 2006

The Loan Company
Company House,
Church Street,
Newtown,
Kent,
R1 7HG

Dear Sir/Madam

Re:− Account/Reference Number

We are writing to inform you that we are seeking advice and assistance regarding our current financial difficulties.

To this end, we would appreciate if you could hold any action on the above account for a period of at least 28 days.

Also, during this period, could you please freeze interest and/or any other charges accruing on the above account.

We look forward to hearing from you as soon as possible.

Yours faithfully

[gandolfi]

Thanks Parkvale
So I write to NatWest to ask them to hold action on the accounts for at least 28 days. And while the account is on hold do I begin the procedure of demanding the penalty charges back by sending the preliminary letter?

[Parkvale]

Exactly, onwards and upwards for you now 3. Letter before action - Consumer version - asking for it back

[gandolfi]

Hi Everyone - hoping for some help on a couple of points. My head's hurting from reading and trying to work out the correct plan of action. I'm keen get it absolutely right from the very beginning.

On my business account, I'll be claiming £7200 of charges plus the interest incurred as a result of those charges (it will be substantial, but I'm still in the process of calculating it). The charges began in 1991 with several 'hot-spots' in 1994/95/96/97 and 2004/05 which NatWest encouraged me to put into a consolidating loan (more interest!). I'll also be making a similar claim for my Personal account for £1420 charges + incurred interest.

On both accounts I want to also claim contractual interest for their use of my money (for depriving me of the use of my money) over that period of time. However, I'm struggling to find a clear outline of what the contractual rate ought to be. They are currently charging me their UAB rate (29.5%?). If I apply that to the figures my claim will be very substantial indeed.

It would be a great help if someone could let me know what NatWest's current overdraft/borrowing rates are...? And advice on which to apply to my claim. I've read that it is wise to state the contractual interest from first Prelim letter, so I want to get it right and stick to it.

Also, if anyone can direct me to the most recent spreadsheet for calculating contractual compound interest, I'd be very grateful.

Thanks to all!

[Parkvale]

NatWest Charges- A guide, Good luck.

[gandolfi]

Thanks Parkvale - I'd missed the link that includes interest rates on Nattie's thread about charges.

The most recent rates shown on the thread are from Sept 2004:-

Agreed O/D 16.49% (Equiv 1.37%pm 17.8% EAR)
UAB 2.195%pm (29.69%EAR)

Do you know if these rates are still current on both business and personal current accounts?

Also, when applying the contractual interest to my claims can I calculate it on a monthly basis (@ 1.37% or 2.195%) on the accumulating total charges? Or is there a spreadsheet that will work out the contractual 'compound' interest, rather than the calculation of 8% 'simple' interest that the court will apply? (also confused about differences between 16.49% and 17.8%EAR and 1.37% equivalents and how to apply them).

Thanks again for your support!

[gandolfi]

An update on my first post which detailed how Nat West are taking ME to Court for debts on my Business O/D and loan accounts (totalling £15k)....and my defence that the debt is made up of their charges...

I submitted my defence to the Court last week on the grounds that the entire debt is made up of unlawful charges and subsequent interest incurred. I informed them that the debt is in dispute and that I would be claiming back all unlawful charges and interest.

At the same time I sent my S.A.R - (Subject Access Request) to the bank and a separate letter asking them to freeze interest and hold action on the accounts for at least 28 days (as advised above), while I seek help and advice (and prepare the figures for my claim).

Today I received a 'Notice That a Defence Has Been Filed' and a copy of the Allocation Questionnaire (which has to be returned by 30th April). I'm assuming that it is NatWest who must fill this in as it is THEY who are sueing ME. Is that right??

I am so scared that I will mess up my chances of claiming my charges back because I first have to defend myself in Court from NatWest's claim for the money I owe them. What is their response to my Defence likely to be?

I'm preparing the figures as fast as I can, but I want to make sure everything is watertight with my claim before I start. It is clear that by the time I've added it all up, it will be them that owe me money and not the other way around!

At what point should I let the moderators here know about this and how do I do that? I think I'm right in thinking that my case is unusual because NatWest have taken Court action AGAINST ME to recover a debt that I am now claiming (in my defence) is made up of unlawful charges.

I'm worried that by the time I have finished the calculations, sent my Prelim and LBA (at least 28 days), it will be too late to defend myself against NatWest's claim.

Everything feels so upside down.

Sorry for the panic. Any help appreciated.

[Parkvale]

Calm down or you will have a heart attack. The AQ is for Nat West to fill in. You will have to try and keep both cases seperate at the moment. Continue on with your bank charge claim. Keep us posted

[gandolfi]

Thanks Parkvale - seems you are the only one out there.

I'm taking deep breaths...

I can't stop thinking what their response to my defence will be. I imagine they will try to get my defence struck out won't they? - in which case I will have to pay up or get CCJ against me...

I want to be sure that my Defence is strong while I prepare my claim against them. What are they likely to throw at me?

Sorry to keep burdening you with questions Parkvale. All others welcome to chip in.

Thanks!

[Parkvale]

You might be surprised. If they know you are chasing them for the bank charges, It makes sense for both parties to come to some agreement. It quite clearly states in the civil procedure rules pre action protocol thatit is the aim of the courts to avoid the premature commencement of proceedingsby requiring the parties to exchange information as early as possible. It might be worth dropping them a line and reminding them of that.
CPR - Pre-Action Protocols

[GuidoT]

You are required to complete the AQ too, this to an extent is relevant:
http://www.consumeractiongroup.c o.uk/forum/bank-templates-library/11644-allocation-questionnaires-guide-completion.html

Say in section G/H that you require further time to particularise your defence and will be filing an amended defence as you are awaiting a response to your S.A.R - (Subject Access Request).

I see that you have issued a defence and I assume that this does not include any penalty charge calculations.

In your position I would dispense the prelim and LBA and issue an Amended Defence and Counterclaim once you have all the quantum calculations. You need to do this soonest, if you are unable to calculate all the charges estimate some and then issue a further Amended Defence and Counterclaim once you can accurately calculate.

Can you post up your Defence please or is it as per the site template?

Another option (although not one I would prefer) is you can start a separate claim yourself for the charges as Claimant. I would then ask that the court combine to two - I have no direct experience of this though and not even sure if it is possible, I have just seen it referred to on this site.

As you are probably realising your position is different to most here.

Did NatWest issue you a prelim and LBA?

[GuidoT]

Originally Posted by Parkvale

Calm down or you will have a heart attack. The AQ is for Nat West to fill in. You will have to try and keep both cases seperate at the moment. Continue on with your bank charge claim. Keep us posted

This is not correct, both parties are required to complete the AQ.

[gandolfi]

GuidoT - thanks so much for your response. That is a great help.

As you suggest, I would prefer to submit an amended defence and counterclaim with all of the calculations. I have until 30th April to submit the AQ to the Court, so hopefully that will be enough time to get that done.

You are right that my defence didn't include the calculations - I didn't want to submit inaccurate figures. My defence statement was as follows:

"Claimant: National Westminster Bank Plc
135 Bishopsgate
London
EC2M 3UR 10th April 2007

Claim ref: ********

Sort code: ******
Account Numbers:
******** (Business Current
******** (Loan)

I intend to defend this claim in full, including all outstanding debts on both of the accounts listed in the particulars of claim.

The debt is in dispute as I believe it contains unlawful penalty charges. Accumulated disproportionate penalty charges – which I believe to be unlawful – and the interest levied upon them throughout my relationship with Nat West are the very basis of my indebtedness to them. I intend to claim back all unlawfully applied charges and the interest levied upon them by the bank.

I now understand that the regime of penalties which Nat West have been applying to my accounts in relation to direct-debit refusals, exceeding overdraft limits and so forth are unlawful at Common Law and contrary to statute. Penalty charges are irrecoverable at common law. The precedent for this was Dunlop Pneumatic Tyre Co Ltd v. New Garage and Motor Co Ltd [1915] AC 79 along with Murray v. Leisure Play [2005] EWCA Civ 963. It was held that a contractual party can only recover damages for an actual loss or liquidated losses. It is clear that the penalties imposed on my accounts by Nat West do not reflect any actual or real loss.

I have written a Subject Access Request (Data Protection Act 199 to Nat West (copy enclosed) asking for full disclosure of all transactions and charges, as well as evidence of manual intervention on my account. I have kept the majority of my bank statements and will therefore, in the meantime, calculate my claim for repayment of charges and interest (plus contractual interest for the bank's use of my money), on the basis of the information that is available to me.

It will be clear that were it not for the bank's disproportionate and unfair penalties on my accounts – persistently applied over many years – the debt for which they are claiming would not exist."

Is that OK?

I haven't received Prelim/LBA from them recently (no written communication from them this year). They did send letters around the time the accounts went into meltdown (2005) threatening this I think. I haven't kept them as I thought I had got it under control by negotiating small repayments with them, which unfortunately I wasn't always able to make. They refused to lower the interest from 29.5% unless I made six consecutive monthly payments. The debt has just carried on increasing.

I know this probably doesn't count for anything with the bank or the courts, but since July 2005 I have also been trying to cope with personal loss and grief after the London bombings, as well as this huge weight of debt on my shoulders. If the bank only new how much pressure I have been under.

Thanks for your input Guido T. Much appreciated. I'll follow your advice re: the AQ and get on with my calculations.

All best wishes