Well the ruling by the SC certainly livened things up again. The OFT got it wrong in pursuing the "unfair" bit of the T&C Personally I think the whole banking crisis has led to the decision to find in favour of the banks, Government is pouring in Billions, making another hole in the system to let it out again now would look bad. Anyone who thinks the House of Lords would have come to a different conclusion is delusionary, where do most of them work or keep their cash huh? The main victory was the lifting of the hold on claims, the banks WILL NOT want to get into court any more now than 2 years ago & press coverage that "the banks have won" is designed to blow away any more interest in future reclaims. There is still a case to prove on this & some way to go, but from the start the banks have been obdurate, stubborn & downright nasty, every peice of literature is bullying to get YOU the consumer to back down. Not me, no chance.

I know, I know, but people should care. In my case they were regulated by the FSA when I took it out, in yours the FLA, i don't know how much joy anyone will get from the FLA, sounds like a members association, self regulation etc. Consumers need to be aware of these things, if the company is outside the FSA your options are limited. Andrew

I suppose its a bit of a tangle in itself, When I took out the loan with First National in 2002 they were part of Abbey National & it would seem were regulated by the FSA. GE Money bought FN in Feb 2003 & it looks as if they went outside the fsa. I can't have it both ways i suppose, but neither can they, they were regulated when i took it out.

My claim stems from an agreement dated January 2002, pre Abbey selling FN off to GE Money in 2003, also found this from 2001 on wayback:- "The Company This Site is made available by First National Bank Plc, a company registered in England (Company Registration No: 592986) whose registered office is at First National House, College Road, Harrow, Middlesex, HA1 1FB, United Kingdom. First National is an authorised institution under the Banking Act 1987 and is regulated by the Financial Services Authority."

Hi, Don't know if it makes any difference but in small print at the bottom of First National's paperwork it declares:- A member of the Abbey National Group Pursuing similar claim myself & getting similar results. Andrew

Further quick question, why do they state on a letter that my claim is NOT covered by the financial ombudsman service, when lots of other threads indicates it is.... Simple Question IS IT?

Hi All, I have had a credit card with A&L since 2004, recently (April) decided to look into charges on the account & found £700 in charges for late payments/over limit borrowing durind 05/06, card subsequently cleared & account dormant. They sent me a new card in December which I activated & stuck in a drawer. Just found out m account has been closed (present financial climate etc, responsible lender etc) would you believe them... Is this legitimate, couldn't give a toss about the card but if I could nail them for something else I will. On the claims front I claimed all charges back, they've replied with a cheque (banked) for the difference between the £25 & new £12 agreed fee, no interest or anything, so I intend to pursue for at least the £25 charges +interest due to date. I will let you know how it plays out. Andrew

Thanks, nothing to loose then. I will continue this thread to the conclusion. Andrew

Hi All, I am in need of a little advice please. We took out a loan via Purple Loans in 2002 with First National, now GE money. At the time of taking it out we were told we had to have insurance, both of us were in reliable jobs with good benefits so I tried to cancel & was told we had to have at least cover for one of us, so it was arranged for me. The loan was settled in 2004 with no return of any part of the £2662 premium. I have complained to GE but they are saying as it was taken out more than six years ago they do not have to consider my complaint. Is this true or because it is less than six years since it was cancelled am I in the right to pursue??

Hey slick, still around then? this reclaiming has decended into a shambles & the FSA look like nincompoops

Progress on world peace may be swifter, especially as bank shares are low(!) & profits taking a battering, who's fault is that then Mr Rip Off?? Might move to the middle east & sort out Gazza in the mean time, or stop taking the p*ss & see this through, they still owe me & interest is making it bigger everyday, unlike my hairline which retreats, but like my wiastline which expands, coud do with the cash to out the kids through college. Enough.

Any one know where we currently stand on these issues, people have grown old waiting for the FSA to sort this out, some will have died, i hope their ghosts come back to haunt the bastar*s, the world has moved on, banks have been revealed as money grabbing (doh) profiteering (double doh) rip off merchants & because their profits have fallen, guess who's gonna pay, YOU (& me if we dont keep squeaky clean & beat them at their own game)

Banks will always post debits against an account before credits, it's an internal (revenue raising) policy it has happened on my accounts, but we have never been charged due to debits taking us overdrawn on the day a salary was posted, cannot understand how this is justified?

I'm in the same spot as electric lemon, but I am hugely encouraged by yesterdays news, I really thought they'd let them off the hook. Come on Barclays play fair & pay up (waiting for the sound falling on deaf ears) Hi to all still claiming, not been on much in last 6 months but I feel the pendulum has swung back to the consumer again. Andrew

Got back from hols, letter from Barclays telling me that "It's going to be stayed because the charges are legal & in line with blah blah...." also letter from court that in light of the test case it has been stayed, no need to attend court tomorrow, etc,. If I'm honest at the moment I cannot see me getting it back, may feel more positive as things progress, should have done it sooner though. Andrew

Ref ongoing cases, those with court dates in particular. If my undestanding is correct the judge should rule in the claimants favour if the defendent offers no defence, ie does not submit his paperwork/bundle? It will be interesting to see what happens, my date is the 22nd, I am submitting my bundle this week as we are then away until the 21st. I am not going to spend two weeks winding myself up about it, what will be will be, but do we have a valid argument for persuading the judges that by not complying with court orders the defendents should have the defence struck out & so a judgement in our favour. Fingers crossed, so near but yet so far.................. Andrew

Received a reply from the FSA, will assign my case to an ombudsman, wait to hear from them & the A&L

They do like to keep us waiting, it seems they made a quick decision to pay up once the FOS were involved but are now dragging it out, did the FOS pass any comment on it? Andrew

barney, when in August, they told me they were only dealing with cases the week before they got to court.

Previous threads from a mod suggested that B's defend every case with C I, & that no judge has granted it, make up your own mind after reading plenty.

I will be out of the office until Monday 23 July. My emails will not be read during my absence. If your email is urgent please contact my colleague, Greg Thomas, at [email protected] Best Regards Dino Papaevripides At least you get an out of office from Dino? PQ Doh

Congrats on getting (some) of your cash, don't settle untill your claim has been dealt with to your satisfaction. I've resigned myself to going to court due to the holidays, but am fully prepared for it anyway. To the others out there don't let them get you down or wind you up. Andrew

The short term solution, if you can get to one is to visit a branch & enquire about the account, take some ID, drivers licence, passport & a gas or elect bill usually suffice. It would be a shame for the money to be sat in an account & you worrying about the next developments. Anybody else reccomend some action.......

This is not directed at you dave but holding someone to ransome, even B's is not a good idea, if you have received (or are going to) all you have been charged then that should be the end of it. At the moment the consumers have the law & the moral high ground, if we start acting as badly as the banks have then it could change. Just my honest opinion.

Did you really think they'd settle on that!! Wait until the 14 days are up, then hit them with court. Be prepared, read through some success stories & if you've done it correctly you will get the cash back. Good Luck Andrew