Hiya Thanks for the response, I am claiming for total charges, and the interest, nothing else, exactly as i did for my personal account, which was settled very soon after the LBA, however this whole claim has taken a very different tackmwith it being a business account and seems to be on slightly more uncertain ground (judging by the non-existant feedback I have had in response to my concerns). It appears that I am liable for certain charges on a business contract. This would have been nice to know a while ago, but my experience may be of benefit to others in the future. I'm gonna bite the bullet:o x

Sorry to be so dramatic I got a letter on saturday from DG Solicitors that spooked me a little (for little read LOT) bit. I am claiming on a business account, I have filled in my allocation questionnaire, the bank had to get theirs in by the 24th, on the 25th I received this letter: "We are dissapointed not to have received the courtesy of a response and will bring this matter to the attention of the courts given our clear attempt to resolve this matter without further intervention of the courts." etc etc..... On the same day I received this letter: "We refer to our letter of even date and more particularly our letter dated the 19th October 2006. We note that you have not respnded to us in relation to this letter and we invite you to do so. (I replied to the first with the usual no thanks I'll have the lot, but not the second) "In the event the content of our afforementioned letter was not clear, we wish to confirm that the money tranfer charges are specifically excluded from this type of claim. Money transfer fees are applied to your account in accordance its terms and conditions governing your account and which represent a fee for a service undertaken by our client at your request. For this reason, we repeat our cients without predjudice offer of settlement in the sum of 2,287.40 which we consider represents a true reflection of the charges applied, together with interest and court fee. At this juncture, we wish to reiterate that HSBC is entirely confident that its charges are reasonable, are properly and fully disclosed in its terms and conditions, and that it would successfully resist any challenge in the courts in relation to them. If you accept this proposdal etc......." My little purple starfish is pumping and much as I need the 2,287.40, I also feel I should go all the way for a thousand pounds more. so the questions are: Deal or no deal????????? When I opened a business account, did I aggree to cetain charges? ( if not, why are they taking this far?) Any feedback would be fantastic, Thankyou Russell

Phoenix Thankyou, I was hedging my bets a little to be honest. I hadn't had much response in my own thread for a while and was panicking, so decided to ask someone directly that had or was having a similar experience. My apologies if I butted in in any way:-) . I am currently going through my statements as i type to check details. I am right in assuming (I hope!!) that I can claim back "Total charges", "recall so/dd", "unpaid items" and 8% interest on these amounts. I have not included overdraft interest (although I could have done, but it seemed like a minefield), arrangement fees, or overdraft fees. Did I make it clear that this was a business account? and do you think this would make an difference? Thankyou for your patience Russell

Phoenix Thankyou, I was hedging my bets a little to be honest. I hadn't had much response in my own thread for a while and was panicking, so decided to ask someone directly that had or was having a similar experience. My apologies if I butted in in any way:-) . I am currently going through my statements as i type to check details. I am right in assuming (I hope!!) that I can claim back "Total charges", "recall so/dd", "unpaid items" and 8% interest on these amounts. I have not included overdraft interest (although I could have done, but it seemed like a minefield), arrangement fees, or overdraft fees. Did I make it clear that this was a business account? and do you think this would make an difference? Thankyou for your patience Russell

Hello......anybody there? Its been a week since my last confession...etc etc No reply to my last couple of posts a couple of questions if thats ok, I received a Notice of transfer of proceedings to my local court on the 3rd October, with an allocation questionnaire that I duly filled in and hand delivered on the 4th of October (the AQ didn't have to be returned until the 21st October). I had an offer of two thirds on the 9th which I politely accepted as part payment etc, I then got a letter back dated the 19th still offering two thirds explaining how the figure was calculated. "We do not consider that the claim for all debit interest charged to the account or the money transmission charges, which relate to specific account transactions that you authorised, have any merit as they have no relevance to your claim which is stated to be a refund of alleged "penalty charges". We are therefore instructed to repeat the offer of......" My questions are: From your experience, how long was it between Notice of transfer of proceedings/deadline for allocation questionairre to hearing a court date? Are there deadlines at this stage? Am I being dim here or do I just wait to hear from my local court? How much longer can this go on, every where I look, and believe me I've looked, say that it is unlikely that it will get to this stage. I'd really appreciate any help, advice or feedback on my situation, It's starting to do my head in. Thanks Russell

Hi Phoenix, a couple of questions if thats ok, I received a Notice of transfer of proceedings to my local court on the 3rd October, with an allocation questionnaire that I duly filled in and hand delivered on the 4th of October (the AQ didn't have to be returned until the 21st October). I had an offer of two thirds on the 9th which I politely accepted as part payment etc, I then got a letter back dated the 19th still offering two thirds explaining how the figure was calculated. "We do not consider that the claim for all debit interest charged to the account or the money transmission charges, which relate to specific account transactions that you authorised, have any merit as they have no relevance to your claim which is stated to be a refund of alleged "penalty charges". We are therefore instructed to repeat the offer of......" My questions are: From your experience, how long was it between Notice of transfer of proceedings/deadline for allocation questionairre to hearing a court date? Are there deadlines at this stage? Am I being dim here or do I just wait to hear from my local court? How much longer can this go on, every where I look, and believe me I've looked, say that it is unlikely that it will get to this stage. I'd really appreciate any help, advice or feedback on my situation, It's starting to do my head in. Thanks Russell

Well no response to that so I'll take it that I'm being a bit of a wuss, anyway its gone to another level for me and my situation, and I really could do with either advice or reassurance, I'm not sure which! but either would do. Anyway, this is what i got today: "We beleive it may be helpful for us to explain how the figure offered was calculated. As per your schedule HSBC is offering to refund the excess charges of £1...,00, Unpaid charges £5..,00, and interest on those sums of 8% per annum of £1..,40 , plus the court fee of £120, totalling £2287.40, We do not consider that the claim for all debit interest charged to the account or the money transmission charges, which relate to specific account transactions that you authorised, have any merit as they have no relevance to your claim which is stated to be for an alleged "penalty charges". We are therefore instructed to repeat the offer of £2287.40 in full and final settlement of your claim.........blah!" My dilemma is that the figue on my spreadsheet is £3291.15, I'll tell you what!! 2 and a quarter would get me out of the poo for 2 weeks big style, 3 and a quarter would mean i could pay a couple of friends as well who were good to me when it mattered. some advice please???

Hi folks latest development in the saga of my business account saga.....this morning I got a "Notice of transfer of proceedings" along with an "allocation questionnaire":o. I can deal with these I think, with the comprehensive notes of help in the forum. looks like we're going to the wire with this one.....don't tell em yer name pike!! seriously though anybody got any thoughts please?

:D Excellent news peeps:D Full settlement of my personal account!!! waited for me to issue and then caved in, fantastic!! Thats my private life sorted for a couple of weeks. They're not so keen to pay up on the business side of things though, DG want a breakdown of the charges, and so they shall x x x x x x x

Thanks Angela x

Carly, Thanks you're a star , Forms all filled in and ready to hit the button on tuesday morning after I've re-read it all a thousand times I expect. I'll keep you posted. Thanks again Russell

Hi Carly, Sorry to be a pest but what did you put in the box of "particulars of claim" on the MCOL form? Russell

Hiy Carly, Thanks for the reply and the reassurance, starting to fill in the MCOL makes my ass twitch a bit, I'm not a big fan any sort of confrontation with a suit, but in for a penny and all that. Did you claim in the name of the business or the individual on the Money claim online form? Russell

Congratulations Angela:D :D Sounds like you've spent it twice over already!! I hope you don't mind but could I run my latest letter from the bank past you? "Thank you for your further letter dated 12th August 2006 requesting a refund of your overdraft charges of £2762.39. I am sorry that you have found it necessary to write again on this matter. Our position has not changed however since we last wrote to you and I have set out policy again for you below. The bank does not agree with your contention that the charges that have been imposed constitute a penalty and are therefore unenforceable. The contract between the bank and its customer is governed by it's Business banking terms and conditions. In respect of overdrafts, I would refer you specifically to clause 8.12. If you authorise a payment that would, if met by us, lead to your account going overdrawn or over an agreed overdraft limit the bank considers whether or not to make this payment and a fee is payable for this service. Our fees and charges are clearly stated in our published pricelist and the circumstances in which these charges will apply are clearly set out in our terms and conditions, a copy was provided to you when you opened your account. Whilst I accept that this letter will not provide the response that you hoped for, I trust that I have been able to clarify the Banks position. If you are not satisfied with the banks response you should now refer your complaint to the Financial Ombudsman Service, as this represents our final response on this matter. Yours sincerely pp'd by somebody who looks like Birch Colin Langdale I do have concerns about this being a claim on a business account, but as i remember your dealings were with a business account? Regards Russell

A Quick question please. I note from my internet banking that HSBC are going to debit £50.00 from my account on the 30th August for going over my overdraft by £6, can i add this £50.00 to my list of charges i am about to send an LBA for or should I wait until they take it and then send the LBA??

Thanks angela, I will keep to the timetable and let you know how I get on. Thanks Wendy for your reply, this whole thing is putting the willys up me a bit but the support network here is fantastic!! and if I can help in any way at all just ask. ps clear a space for the statements! when they start arriving you think they're never gonna stop!! x

Hiya, I'm still holding fire on the lba on my personal account while I add charges that I have received recently, however today I received a letter from HSBC in relation to my business account. The letter is a total refusal and contains several passages that concern me a little and may be of some interest: "The bank does not agree with your contention that the charges which have been applied to your account constitute a penalty and are therefore irrecoverable". Is this a problem? "You have refered to the office of fair trading investigations into the level of default charges made by HSBC.......The OFT statement to which you refer is the view of the OFT and relates solely to credit cards not business overdrafts". Is this a problem? "The contract between the bank and its customer is governed by its business banking terms and conditions. In respect of overdrafts, I would refer you specifically to clause 8. Our fees and charges are stated in our published pricelist and the circumstances in which these charges apply are clearly set out in our terms and conditions.........." Is this a problem? "We are therefore unable to agree to your request.If you wish to escalate your concerns to the next stage, you can write to our customer relations department.....enclosing a copy of this letter". Should I just carry on with the LBA as planned? I do feel I'm being a bit "Woosey" about this but any advice or support would be very much appreciated at this stage. Thanks

Yabbadabbadoo!!!! I came to the computer tonight to print off my letters before action for both my personal and business accounts, checked the mail and lo and behold I have a letter from HSBC offering me £40 short of what I'm claiming back on my personal account, sorely tempting to be honest!!!! No feedback for the business account from the bank yet but as these 2 claims are running concurrently I expect an offer for that in the next day or so. I'll keep you posted. Thanks again all for all your help

Thanks Carley for such a speedy response and the advice, I have jumped the gun a bit here i know, as you say though i would have been sending it out eventually anyway, I'll give it a day or so until monday (my post office will be open here again by then and wait and see what feedback i get from the site. Thanks again. I havn't used e-mail at any stage so far, do you think that might be a problem? Russell

pps I think i've made a mistake and could do with some reassurance:confused: In my haste and attempt to avoid stress levels reaching bursting levels I've sent the "request for repayment" template letter for my personal account and the "letter before action" template letter for my sole trader business account. Have i messed up????? any advice would be most welcome

Thanks Carly and lookinforinfo ;-) , very much appreciated. Both letters in the post recorded delivery 5 minutes ago. 14 days and counting. I must admit this is the first time i've felt a little nervous, threatening a bank!!! what the f**k am i playing at, but on the other hand.....why not, it's my money:roll: Thanks again and I'll keep you posted xx Ps would a mod please change the title of my thread to Russell v HSBC, (I'm a bit of a forum virgin and don't want to break anything) Thanks pps I think i've made a mistake and could do with some reassurance:confused: In my haste and attempt to avoid stress levels reaching bursting levels I've sent the "request for repayment" template letter for my personal account and the "letter before action" template letter for my sole trader business account. Have i messed up????? any advice would be most welcome

Hi, Thankyou for all the help i've recieved over the last few weeks much appreciated. I have had 6 years worth of statements for 2 accounts, one personal and one business (sole trader) delivered to my door, 114 envelopes to be precise!! duplicates of duplicates of duplicates but hey. I've done the relevant sorting, putting in order and higlighting. £427.50p on the personal and £2664.67p on the business. Now i want to go to the spreadsheet stage and have a couple of questions. I apologise if these questions are answered elsewhere, i have read extensively on the site, beautifully complete and comprehensive but: 1) Has anybody out there had problems with claiming charges back on a business account? are there any foreseeable problems claiming back charges for them processing cheques payed in by me? paying dd's etc,,,, to cut my question short, should i treat my claim any differently to my personal account claim?? 2) Should i put my 2 claims together or should i treat them seperately? I've read of people having accounts closed after a second claim. 3) Can I claim back "arrangement fees" and/or renewal fees Thankyou in advance for any advice you may have Russell

No replies to my earlier questions yet but another question....... can i claim back "renewal charges" and "arrangement fees" ??

Hi anyone, Thankyou for all the help i've recieved over the last few weeks much appreciated. I have had 6 years worth of statements for 2 accounts, one personal and one business (sole trader) delivered to my door, 114 envelopes to be precise!! duplicates of duplicates of duplicates but hey. I've done the relevant sorting, putting in order and higlighting. £427.50p on the personal and £2664.67p on the business. Now i want to go to the spreadsheet stage and have a couple of questions. I apologise if these questions are answered elsewhere, i have read extensively on the site, beautifully complete and comprehensive but: 1) Has anybody out there had problems with claiming charges back on a business account? are there any foreseeable problems claiming back charges for them processing cheques payed in by me? paying dd's etc,,,, to cut my question short, should i treat my claim any differently to my personal account claim?? 2) Should i put my 2 claims together or should i treat them seperately? I've read of people having accounts closed after a second claim. Thankyou in advance for any advice you may have Russell

Hi, just thought i'd share my most recent contact with my bank with you. I got two of these on the same day for two different accounts (one business and one personal). The letters are identical, right down to the centre managers stamped signiature apart from the account number. I do hope i'm posting it in the right place. "Thankyou for your letter....." etc. "We will forward to you copies of statements covering the period in question......"etc. "We are happy to waive any fees for the production of this information and we return your payment" "Although many of our systems are automated, "a manual intervention" by bank staff may be required in a variety of situations including; account opening, dealing with correspondence or telephone calls, when deposits or withdrawals are made over the counter at our branches and from time to time during account administration." I presume the last paragraph is there to justify something and wondered if anyone had any thoughts. Great site by the way, all for one and one for all. I'm looking forward to my 5% day!! Russell