Hi,

I have been a sporadic user of payday lenders, primarily WDA for about 6 years now.

Anyway, my latest borrowing was £750... a repayment of £937.50.

Now I won't trouble you with the usual sob stories, I accept ultimately this is my own fault but...

This level of repayment is too much for me, indeed it is >50% of my income.

In the first instance, I have contacted my bank.

They said "unusually", in their words, it is a Direct Debit set up, not a CPA, so I can (and have) cancelled it by myself...I simply can't afford to have that amount of money to come off in a given month.

Where I need help...what should I do next?

I intended to write to WDA, inform them I have cancelled, advise of change of circumstances (with budget sheet) and offer some sort of repayment plan?

Does this sound right?

Can I insist they do not attempt to use a CPA, add further interest, etc.?

Also, what is the lowest £ value or % of my available funds would they likely accept as a minimum?

I'm not looking to blame the Lender but my living costs have spiked due to higher work related expenses and childcare recently so I would really like to stop the rot.

Many thanks for your help!

Get all transactions cancelled to them. They do and will use cpa if they have your card details.

You then need to work out how much you actually owe without all their bogus charges then work out a simple budget summary.

You can then offer them a repayment plan in writing and send the summary to prove your circumstances. They will likely decline but we can cross That bridge when we get to it.

The main thing is to secure your bank account

Thanks renegadeimp,

How can I secure my bank account against a CPA if they haven't previously used one, or can I only shut the stable door after the horse has bolted?

I don't mind paying them the loan capital plus the interest I agreed to over a period of time but I certainly don't want to indulge 'fees'.

You mentioned a repayment plan being declined, is this their typical first response to angle for the full amount as a single payment?

You secure it by writing a latter of instruction to them that states you want ALL transactions to them or their named merchants cancelled and any future transactions declined. Should they not follow your instructions you will seek legal advice as well as regulatory advice. Be aware that many banks completely ignore the law and say they will put a note on the account.

You dont want that. You want full written confirmation, signed and dated that states that no future transactions to that company or their merchant will happen.

With Repayment plans, PDL's are very reluctant to agree to one, and even when they do, they try and charge a bunch of unlawful/unenforceable charges to make even more profit off you. You need to be firm, stand your ground and leave them in no doubt that if they do not agree that you will take it further. Never take the soft approach with PDL's, to them, you are just a number, You need to play hardball with them. Every. Single. Time.

As part of my proposal, should I state an intent to attempt to pay even if they refuse to accept my offer?

They cannot refuse any payment towards an outstanding debt. So if they refuse to give their bank details and a reference number, youll have to use a postal order and deduct the cost of said postal order and stationary used to send it, from the total debt owed

But before we worry about that. Send the offer of repayment and the summary once you have secured your bank account. We can then see what their reply is.

Letters sent to bank and WDA, let's see what happens!

Got a text... "contact collections department...to avoid further action being taken". Not sure if I have a matching letter (away from home), instinct would tell me to avoid phone contact and keep everything written, would that be correct? They have obviously received my letter and I'm guessing are looking to bully me into some type of agreement/unfavourable repayment plan?

Correct

No phone, no texts

Only deal with things in written format through your letterbox, unless you specifically gave them an email to contact you on.

Repayment plans are easily sorted, and if they refuse, then you can force them to accept payment. If they tried to take legal action, it could be seen as vexatious.

So WDA have received my letter by now. No written response, just two missed calls ("sorry we missed you"). Also today a text saying "daily default" interest is being added to my account. I assume this isn't legitimate? Any suggestions on a next step... Should I write again and reiterate my intent to pay/proposed plan and insist account is frozen, or just wait until I'm in a position to make the first payment and contact them then? Cheers

If they keep adding interest despite your complaint, then we can take it further.

Was your complaint headed as such? if so, they have 56 days to resolve the complaint or you can take further action. Be it regulatory or legal. In my opinion, even though i wish all PDL's would be shut down, you should give them ample time to resolve the complaint and also ensure you follow the regulations/law yourself. Let them make the slip up.

Dont make further contact with them yet if the above applies to you. Just make a log of all calls/emails/texts to you to back up your case.

If they keep adding interest despite your complaint, then we can take it further.

 

Was your complaint headed as such? if so, they have 56 days to resolve the complaint or you can take further action. Be it regulatory or legal. In my opinion, even though i wish all PDL's would be shut down, you should give them ample time to resolve the complaint and also ensure you follow the regulations/law yourself. Let them make the slip up.

 

Dont make further contact with them yet if the above applies to you. Just make a log of all calls/emails/texts to you to back up your case.

It wasn't a complaint I sent, just notice I was in financial difficulties and a proposed payment plan.

If they ignore you, then make sure you get a formal complaint in. YOU are in charge of repayments if you are in difficulty. NOT them.

If you have details of the DD odds are you can get the account details

To be fair to WDA they easily accepted a payment plan from me and did not add any extra interest. Now maybe I am the only one who had no problems at that point I don't know. It was later when I wasn't working that I had problems.

So you have written to them and proposed a repayment plan and asked for their account details and ref No?

Maybe, just maybe , if they do catch you on the phone it is worth just saying " I have written to you and am awaiting a reply , I am not prepared to discuss this on the phone"

I would send a follow up email , with your proposals. I assume they have been emailing you ...make sure you use the same email address

One thing to add, after I had cancelled my DD they continued to re set it up until I told them in writing not to

Hi, just back looking for some more help. I have continued to receive emails and phone calls from WDA but no acknowledgement yet regarding my proposal re. a repayment plan. Can I attempt to force a repayment plan on them by making an s/o payments using their standardised details on this site (or any someone can provide)? I don't know whether I should formally complain re. their unresponsiveness pre- or post- payment. Thanks. I want to start making payments but i'm not entertaining the 'daily interest' they claim to be adding while all the while ignoring my clear letter.

Yep to all. Ignore the silly daily interest.

Has anyone used the bank details on the sticky on this site for WDA recently for a payment/ Standing order...are they correct? Thanks.

Jamezon,

Sorry your getting grief from this company.

You've made a reasonable attempt to mediate, they've refused it. This is their problem not yours. rene suggested on 2nd June you put a formal complaint in? Have you? You must report this shower, the FCA have been sniffing around PDL's and Wage Day Advance are already under scrutiny for -

• communications with customers including telephone calls, SMS, online, written and any other form of interaction with customers,

• the collection of payments including the use of continuous payment authorities,

• the application of fees and charges,

• the management of accounts in arrears, including the provision of appropriate forebearance to customers in financial difficulties, and

• complaints handling

http://www.fca.org.uk/your-fca/documents/requirement-notices/wageday-advance-limited-vreq

Don't be bullied, start fighting back.

Just an update...issued a formal complaint to their complaints address last week. They attempted to contact by phone regarding my 'correspondence'. I disregarded this as I'd specifically said "writing only" on my complain letter. Have promised to pay as per my offer on payday if I don't hear from them positively by then and ultimately complain to FOS if no response within 8 weeks.

Just an update...issued a formal complaint to their complaints address last week. They attempted to contact by phone regarding my 'correspondence'. I disregarded this as I'd specifically said "writing only" on my complain letter. Have promised to pay as per my offer on payday if I don't hear from them positively by then and ultimately complain to FOS if no response within 8 weeks.

A further mini-update...following me disregarding their telephone calls, they shortly afterwards sent a standard complaint holding letter (investigating, will issue full response, etc.). Have made a first payment directly to their bank today as laid out in my complaint.

Hi, back for some more help!

WDA have responded to my complaint saying they have partially upheld my complaint-

1) Yes, they will accept my payment offer, for 6 months, then to be reviewed and they require bank statements meantime

2) They are demanding proof of postage to justify not applying further interest

My thoughts...

1) It is not appropriate for them to request financial documents to establish I&E as is not a secured debt

2) Their claim is I sent the original letter to their 'old' address. This is patent nonsense as it was signed for and was their current address at the time.

I find this element completely unreasonable, even if I had sent this standard mail, surely that intent would be plenty for the Ombudsman?

How on earth can I predict companies' future addresses? I may/may not have the tracking number but either way, this will only show a squiggle and will be of no 'proof' other than someone signed it.

Any advice on the key issues above please?

In reality if I were to do a full I&E, I think I could justify offering even less!

P.S. The Skipton address (that I sent my original letter to) is the one on the original loan agreement.

Hissing snakes! Having 'partially upheld' my complaint and accepting my payment plan (at frozen interest), wageday advance in their wisdom have sent through a default notice. Surely that isn't cricket if there's an agreement in place?

I would say that it is perfectly legal and to be honest may be the best way of getting it stopped. 6years from now it will have vanished. Is the DN compliant btw