Hi Em, Yep, you count all days (exc bank hols) so your clock is a ticking fast And a VERY Merry Christmas to you too xx

Hey Darlin' I'm not going anywhere for a while - way too addictive in here x

Well . . every little helps as they say - well done and enjoy !! have a cool studenty christmas !!

It really is the left hand not having the foggiest idea what the right, middle upper and lower hands are up to !!! HSBC are so so typical of a giant corporate organisation that is in utter chaos - except of course when it come to spotting you have exceeded your overdraft limit by 1 PENCE, then the well oiled wheels of the fleecing department spring into action !!!!!

It's up to you, but I would't, but really depends on what the cash difference is ? It is a 'standard' delay - fob you off tactic though !!!!

Hi Em, Link to my own thread :- http://www.consumeractiongroup.co.uk/forum/hsbc-bank/38368-steve_n-hsbc.html It's all there, I have actually concluded my claim, literally this week Had a letter on Mon offering a full settlement, accepted and money in the bank (not HSBC) yesterday !!! - Yippee I may actually enjoy xmas this year !!! As far as BH's I know the courts close for public hols, I think you may have to, or it could be argued that your being unreasonible (if it ever got to court) !!!

Hi Cath, Try the Excel one, it's esier (unless you haven't actually got MS Excel that is) If your confident that the contractual interest is minimal - I agree probably not worth the extra work, but the choice is yours ! As far as I have seen, it makes no difference to their taking things seriously, after all the court claim is usually a sufficient wake up call !! Ok, thanks, and your welcome. Have a good Christmas and a 'prosperous' '07

Hi Dan, It the norm, they are snowed under (no pun intended) just carry on as per the advice, file your MCOL online is easiest - if you get stuck come back here and we'll help. make sure you have calculated your interest properly, inc the 8% at the MCOL stage and also add the court cost to the final total. You won't be able to attach your schedule of charges with the MCOL, so post 3 copies (recorded direct to the court - template letter in here) also as soon as you receive a copy of the court filing and your claim No from teh court send a 2 copies of the schedule of charges direct to the solicitors

Don't worry about deleting the 'confidentiality statement' I did, and they paid in full in 4 days !!!

I have read threads where they have closed everything I'm in the same boat now, I have a loan acc, a fexsaver acc and a mini isa, if they close that lot I'm in "serious brown sticky stuff" xx

Hi Catherine, 1, All days are calendar days ! 2, 14 is the 'accepted' norm, and generally you have to show that you have acted reasonibly at all times, 7 could be judged as 'short notice' 3, Your claim cannot go back for more than 6 years (on a personal account) so the date you submit is 'the' date, the bank will 'adjust your recovery' to these dates even if you don't Letter - absolutely fine, one constructive comment if I may, it's a little long winded, I would suggest something along these lines:- Dear Sir/Madam Refund of Bank Charges Sort Code: xx-xx-xx Account no: xxxxxxxx Over the past six years, you have charged me for, and in relation to direct debit refusals, exceeding overdraft limits and so forth. It has come to my attention that this is unlawful at common law, and under statute and recent consumer regulations. In the terms of the contract which you agreed to at the time that I opened my account, it is implied that you will conduct yourselves in a manner which complies with UK law. Unless you can prove by way of a full itemised breakdown that these charges merely cover your administrative costs, I require immediate and full repayment of these charges, which I calculate at £xxx.xx plus interest of £xxx.xx The total is £xxx.xx (see attched shedule of charges) If you do not comply fully within 14 days, I shall begin a claim against you for the full amount, plus any additional interest and incurred costs, Yours faithfully Of course it is entirely up to you as to how you compile your letter, but you do actually want someone to read it, so the shorter the better is usually a safe bet !! regarding the schedule of charges mentioned above, there is a 'template' here:- http://www.consumeractiongroup.co.uk/forum/bank-templates-library/182-6-interest-calculation-spreadsheets.html Best of luck !!!

HSBC and their 'appointed' solicitors 'DG' (who are actually HSBC staff) are experts in stalling - the longer they keep the money the more they can charge yo still further and make interest on the money as well . . . not nice, but who ever said they (banks) are 'nice' Unless you win the lottery . . then they'd be all over you like a rash !!

Hey, Clare, as far as the charges from may to present (assuming your going to be good from now on and not incurr any anymore) LOL you can commemnce a 2nd claim, however the general trait seems to be that this will pee HSBC off (more than you have already) and they may inform you that they will clos your account - usually with 30 days notice:- This is fine if you prepare for it, and open (if not already done so) another account . . . often known in here as a parachute account . Like Lattie, I'm closing down probably after Sat, but am back at work on Wed, so will be open as usual. have a great Christmas everyone, and a much more prosperous 2007 !!

Clare, I received my offer on Mon just gone, sent letter (and faxed) to accept (with conditions crossed out) money paid in to account yesterday Now we have all dowm what we set out - what we all gonna talk about now ?? LOL

Hi Catherine, Nope, that was my wording in my MCOL claim !

YEP, WELL DONE, and CONGRATULATIONS xxXxx

Hey, mammie Lattie (and Me) have been promoted to 'Gold Accounts' woo Hooooo This is a week to end all weeks - I just might actually 'enjoy' Christmas this year now

I agree with above comments:- Ignore the reply to your letter, especially as no offer has been made. Continue with your court claim, monitor the deadline, I know the waiting part is killing, but . . you WILL win !! HSBC's solicitors (which are all HSBC employees by the way) are swamped by all the claims - and use every way possible to delay to allow themselves as much time as possible to process all the claims

Hi Catherine, Yep, go for it with confidence, you WILL get it back, typically it takes around 2 months from start to finish !! Just bear in mind, if you think £5k is a lot, the UK banks reaped approx £3 BILLION in charges in 2005, so it really is a spit in the ocean !! Have a great Christmas

It makes absolutely NO difference WHAT they call them, they are still punitive charges and do not fairly represent their incurred costs

Hi, Your doing just fine, make sure you stick ridgedly to the timescales, always keep notes of what you do, and any post must be by recoreded delivery. Keep this thread updated, it allows others to help etc and also acts as a nice diary for you to keep a track as well. Above all, good luck, you WILL get the money back, typically in about 2 months from your first letter Prelim 14 days, LBA 14 days, 5 days to serve your claim, 28 days to respond = 61 days approx !!! Your already well on this road though !! Steve

Write to DG solicitors (HSBC inhouse solicitors) referring to the judgement and request immediate payment but not later that 7 days or you will commence recovery proceedings against them !!

Hi, You can claim ALL charges applied to your account for card missuse, unpaid items (cheques, SO's, DD's etc) and all the associated interest incurred as a result of those charges !! Can I suggest you read as much as you can in here inc the FAQ's

Netty, It can be done, here's how I managed it:- The Claimant has held account XXXXXX since 19XX. From Dec 00 to Aug 06, HSBC has made 82 charges (on average 27.50) for: Total Charges (when debit balance exceeded specified overdraft limit), Recall S/O-D/D (when cheque/direct debit payment was returned because the overdraft limit had been exceeded), plus interest charged on them. These charges represent a penalty and do not accurately reflect the Defendant's administration costs. Further, they are contrary to the Unfair (Contract) Terms Act 1977 s.4 and the Unfair Terms in Consumer Contracts Reg. 1999 para.8 and sch.2(1)(e). Further, they are unreasonable within the meaning of the Supply of Goods and Services Act 1982 s.15. Claimant claims from the Defendant a sum equivalent to the total amount unlawfully debited from the account, being XXXX.XX. Also claimed is interest under section 69 of the County Courts Act 1984 at 8%APR from date of each charge to date of the claim, total XXX.XX. Total with interest and court costs is XXXX.XX

WOO HOOOOO Clare baby - you HAVE got it, told you, told you, told you :D :D