Thread: angry me again - default and charges after account closure

Hi, Sorry this is long winded and I'll be cross posting this in the default section of the site, but if anyone has any alliance and leicester specific experience, particularly as regards how sucsessful they have been in combining credit file issues with the small claim for bank charges I'd be really grateful to hear it.
If you can't be bothered to read it in short: I want to get a default and non payment info removed from my credit file (want to get a mortgage in the next year or so, dammit!) and make sure that I do not have to repay bank charges which are additional to those I have been refunded.

As expected Alliance and Leicester shut my account after I reclaimed my bank charges. They did not say I did not agree with their terms and conditions but cited the fact that I was overdrawn as the reason.

When I claimed the charges bank the last statement I saw had me £272 OD so this is what I would expect to have to repay. I would also add that £100 of this was an authorised overdraft. It had gone over my overdraft limit purely because of a bank charge on a cheque for £10 or something when there was only £8 or something left on the authorised overdraft limit.

However, when they wrote asking for the money back they asked for about £370. So from this I surmise that further charges to those I had reclaimed have been added to the account. As the letter threatened to default me I also checked my credit file. Lo and behold they have overdue payments showing for 6 months - that is going back to the original cheque charge and the period in which I was claiming bank charges back and when I had clearly told them that the debt was disputed and they should stop passing data to credit reference agencies.

I have subsequently written to them telling them that I want to clear the debt up and asking them, as as far as I was aware I owed them £272 what the rest of the debt is composed of. As I don't trust them I enclosed a formal DPA request for that data and again reminded them of the Banking Code that they will not pass data about disputed amounts to credit reference agencies. I also paid them £50 to show good intent to pay the debt. For good measure I also added that they had not addressed an earlier written complaint and ponted out that should I have to contact the Ombudsman about that I would also make a complaint about the account closure. Having sent that I phoned them to check it had been recieved and was being dealt with. I spoke to someone on the phone who explained what had happened as regards the complaint that I had mentioned with regard to the ombudsman. I explained that I thought both parties really just wanted shot of each other without recourse to legal action and if A&L would remove the adverse info on the credit file and just show me that the additional money they wanted was legitimate that I would pay the £272 I owed them as soon as I could, and I offered to pay this in two monthly instalments beginning at the end of the month when I get paid (this is in addition to the £50 I had paid). She could not answer this questions but seemed to non comittally agree that this seemed sensible and said she was responding to the whol complaint in writing at the time. This was a week or so ago.

Today I recieved a letter asking for an oustanding balance of £320 (so the higher amount - the £50 I have paid). "Our records show that we have been unable to come to an arrangement to clear the outstanding balance". It says they will make a repayment plan if I cannot pay in full or else an agent will call in 10 days time. Someone visiting doesn't particularly trouble me, I either won't be in or they won't be able to get in because I live in a flat with a door buzzer. However, I am absolutely hopping mad that they have failed again to tell me where the additional money they want has come from. It gets worse. I looked on my credit file today and they have now marked it with a default. I had just got everything cleared off it as I wanted to start building it up again with a view to getting a mortgage in the next year or so. I really need this removed.

My plan is as follows:

* To pay in instalments as I originally set out up to £272 that I think I owe.
* When I get the DPA info back, assuming this is further charges, to reclaim this amount through small claims but adding the removal of the adverse information from my file as a condition. Has this been sucsessful for others?
* To pursue this via the ombudsman, assuming they fail to bother to respond to the points I made in the last letter I wrote. I will also repor the account closure

Beofre I do this I need more advice. I have been looking at wider information on the site on section 10 notices and other data protection and credit file issues, but I cannot make much sense of them.

* Should I send a section 10 notice or is it too late?
* What other action can I take to get this dealt with. I do not understand, as the default is composed of £100 of authorised overdraft, but the remainder due to charges if I can use that to get shot of this.

ANY ADVICE GRATEFULLY RECIEVED.

One last try. Anyone had luck getting late payment and default info removed via a small claims procedure for bank charges? They have responded to my letter now and I could really do with some help as regards the credit file information. I think I have the rest in hand in some way. Please!

I am bumping up your thread to try and get you a reply.

Under FAQ -the section under guide there is a piece on defaults - and linking them in with your claim - I think basically it is saying that if the charges you are claiming back are about the same as the amount the bank are citing as your reason for default you should have a valid claim.

Keep reading other bank threads as well and try putting defaults in as a search.

I am not and expert so I hope someone else will help as well.But if it goes to court if you have written evidence and keep copies of all your letters stating that you have made every effort to resolve this matter and made payment offers that you have kept to I am sure the sympathies will be with you.

Jansus

Thanks, it looks like they have removed the default now at least, but I think I will still try to get the late payment information removed too.

huggles have you issued a SAR to them or got your statements detailing charges if so the easiest way would be to start a charges claim and add default removal as a condition of settlement they will remove default before they go to court and disclose how much it costs them in real life to send a cheque back

if you havent got statments issue a dpa SAR (cost £10) wait for statements
then go through usual stages ie prelim/lba/then court action but remember to put default removal as a condition
voyager9

sorry didnt notice they had already removed default
voyager9