Quick update! I have posted all of the documents off to the Financial Services Ombudsman now; I wrote to HSBC last Thursday (1 week ago now) telling them that I was going to do this and warning them about putting stuff onto my credit file. Since then I received a letter hurriedly pushed out (I think they sent it on Tuesday but dated it 13th July!) saying that they had received the documentation I sent (which was on 27th June) and would look into the matter within the next 30 days!! So I've copied that letter and sent it to the FSO too. They'll hopefully get the message soon that I am fed up. My friend tells me that the FSO will charge HSBC about £800 for the privilege of investigating their behaviour which is roughly about what they say I owe them now. So I think that serves them jolly well right!

Have just spent ages photocopying all of the letters in readiness to send to the Financial Ombudsman, this is all so stressful, but I can't afford to lose my reputation over this, especially as I don't think I've done anything wrong. Sandra x

Oh - I didn't know that you could get it removed! I'd read somewhere that once it was on your file the best you could do was add a note to say that you thought it was inaccurate! Thanks so much for the support guys, I really need some support right now... Sandra x

Have just spoken to the Financial Ombudsman, they have advised me to say that they will write to HSBC today telling them that they are now involved and will tell them to suspend any further action on my account, and I am also to reply to this really nasty letter with a two-liner telling them that FSO are now investigating and asking them to suspend any further action until the matter is resolved. The FSO say HSBC cannot be forced to suspend, but that they would regard it as very bad form if they don't. So I am just hoping that FSO intervention will resolve this matter once and for all. I am now feeling sick with worry.

In my post today - a really stroppy letter from HSBC Credit card services saying that "due to the way I have conducted my bank account" I am now no longer allowed to use my credit card and to cut it up now!! I had paid the balance off in full, never missed a payment on it, ok I didn't owe anything but I did want to keep it as a line of credit!!!! And this is a bank I banked with for 30 years.. As well as making me really angry, at the same time I feel sad that they are being like this. When I had a proper local branch where I knew the people I could have sorted this all out in a week.

Hi - sorry ODC, does that mean I can or cannot complain, sorry I'm confused as this has been going on so long? The first complaint I made was in Nov 2006 but the first of this round of letters was sent to them on April 13th 2007. That was the first letter I actually received an acknowledgment of but it was a letter I sent in May which they appear to be investigating now.... I hate them. I've had a lousy night worrying about this. Thanks for your help.

My first complaint in writing went to them in November 2006 but they never replied to this. I wrote to them again on April 13th, complaining and again asking for a copy of their complaints procedure, but didn't receive one, just a letter saying "go away", I have now written six letters asking for a review of the case and got absolutely nowhere, the last letter I had from them said that if I wasn't satisfied I could write to a Senior Investigator, which I did, but even this added an extra stage into their own procedure which should have been complete at that time. But thanks for the information - I will go to the FOS tomorrow, I thought I had to wait for this last stage to be answered by them.

Oh, and I forgot to say, no there are no "charges" as such because it is an agreed authorised overdraft, but they have added about £400 in interest since this began as every fraudulant transaction increased my overdraft...

Hi Hi, thanks for your reply - this was my original post, at the beginning of the saga... Hi everyone, just joined today.. wish I hadn't had to but hey ho I stopped using my current account with HSBC two years ago because I moved my mortgage to an offset one with NatWest which required me to use current account with them.. fine I thought, I'll just keep my old HSBC one (which has a £3.5k overdraft) in case I don't like this offsetting business. So for a few months, I just spent time adjusting to the new account and didn't bother to look at my HSBC account, just "filed" the statements in a plastic wallet as they arrived. Big mistake! When I did get round to putting them away properly I noticed some activity on the account - nothing huge, but 20 transactions for amounts varying from £4.99 - 19.99 going through my account - internet transactions, from 3 different retailers - none of whom I have ever had any dealings with - between April 2004 and November 2004. As soon as I spotted these (in about May or June 2005) I hot footed it down to my local branch of HSBC who told me to go down to the Police Station and report it, get a crime number and let them have it. Did this the same day and took it back in. Since then I have heard nothing from HSBC. I have called in on several occasions to ask what is happening and in the meantime my account is being debited with interest charges every month, to the point where my HSBC account is now £700 in debit instead of the £200 I started with! I got a bit shirty with them the last time I went in (about a month ago) and they said they would follow it up. I have now received two letters from them saying "disputed transactions, thank you for your recent enquiry... blah blah.. under the Maestro scheme rules, there is a time limit within which the bank can raise a claim or request a copy of the transaction voucher with the retailer involved in the transaction. Unfortunately, as this time limit has now passed, we are unable to assist you any further with your enquiry. You are of course still entitled to continue your enquiry directly with the retailer" I am gob smacked at this! Firstly - the transactions stopped in November 2004, coincidentally this is exactly the same time that they issued my new debit card - clearly the transactions weren't from me or why would they have stopped then? Time limit - what time limit? Why don't they specify this? Was it passed when I raised the query with them in about May 2005? Is this my recent enquiry? How do HSBC define recent? Do they speak a different language to me? How can I raise it with the retailers when I've never heard of them, and have no information as to who/how/why these transactions have ended up in my account!!! GGGGGRRRRRRRR :evil: Has anyone else been in this position, and if so how have you progressed? Should I be thinking of a Small Claims action? Any advice, comments, etc. would be gratefully received... Thanks, Sandra This has been going on for so long, it's a nightmare. I have gone through the official complaints procedure, even though they haven't followed their own procedures, and am now at the last stage before going to the Financial Ombudsman. I expected that they would put a hold on any further action until the complaints procedure had been exhausted - that's why I was so shocked to get this letter today, as I am currently in receipt of their latest "holding" letter saying they are investigating further.... I may need to get a new mortgage soon, and that's why I'm frightened about being put on the bad payers list... Thanks, any advice will be very very welcome... Sandra

Hi! The good news is that HSBC have stopped phoning me. The bad news is that despite my raising the whole issue as an official complaint, which is now on Senior Investigation (which I believe is the last stage of their complaints procedure) - they have sent a holding letter to say they are investigating fully, but today I have received a "Final Demand" in writing from HSBC Centre Manager (they don't give a department name). It says: a. Despite our previous communication concerning your debt we have received no reply (I have written six letters to them since November, and have received acknowledgment for most of them) b. They now Demand immediate repayment; c. If I do not I repay the lot in full within 7 days or let them have satisfactory proposals for repayment I must complete a Statement of Means form, d. And they will take action via debt collectors or solicitors if I fail to comply, and I may also be taken to court e. If they have not received satisfactory response within 28 days they will pass details of the debt to Experian, Equifax and Call Credit to ensure I can't get credit from elsewhere in future. I need help with this!! Can anyone advise me please as to what to do next? I do dispute that I owe the whole amount (£900) - I have offered to negotiate a settlement figure with them, I have made a formal complaint and they have told me they are investigating it.. but now they want to get me blacklisted. Can they blacklist me? The money I owe them is on an agreed overdraft, and they have not written and withdrawn that facility. They haven't got a court judgment against me so how can they blacklist me as a debtor especially as it is a disputed amount? Please advise. Should I just pay it and forget the complaint even though I think they have been very unfair about all of this, this is nearly £900 now owed on transactions they paid, which I disputed, and which they then failed to do anything about, and kept me waiting over 18 months for a reply, which then just said "out of time, we can't do anything".... Help!! Please????

And First Direct are owned by????............ oh yes, HSBC

Should have known it was too good to be true! Despite the letter, two more calls last night, one today (so far).. And it's been a week now since I wrote my complaint (I think they have a five day response target?) not even a holding letter! I hate HSBC

Don't know whether it's a coincidence or what - I sent my really long letter out to them on Thursday but because of the postal strike on Friday didn't expect them to receive it until Saturday... However I have not had a call from HSBC since Thursday. It's spooky now. Mind you, they did stop for a couple of weeks when I wrote before asking them not to phone me, but then it all started up again So, I won't hold my breath!

I certainly feel like sticking something on them. This is driving me mad...

Hi - I've written a huge long letter now as a last resort to HSBC senior complaints department and have asked them to deduct all of the unauthorised transactions plus all of the interest charged through these transactions. Well, nothing ventured, nothing gained! The first time I wrote to complain, now I've got all my correspondence out, was on 16th November 2006 so they are well outside their 8 week target to resolve complaints! I've given them 21 days to respond so we'll see what happens, i'm logging all of the calls I receive (I counted 26 in 6 days!). Thanks everybody! Just wondering BankFodder, does the above apply to me as well or is that just for Chris W? Thanks!

Hi - when I rang the number given on the TS website, I was automatically redirected to the Consumer Direct number, I didn't get a chance to talk to Trading Standards - and Consumer Direct told me that it wasn't a matter for TS anyway... but OFCOM were very helpful even though they can't do anything on an individual basis. I will try and get through to the FO today, as their website doesn't really lend itself to my sort of complaint, they seem more geared to bank charges, and this instance isn't really a bank charges one I don't think... so I'll phone them and see what they say. Thank you for the advice, I don't know why I got such a different response from Consumer Direct. Guess it depends who you speak to!

Just a quick update - I contacted Trading Standards this afternoon - they didn't want to know, suggested I try the Financial Ombudsman; then I rang Ofcom and spoke to a really helpful man there - he told me that it wasn't their thing, but he did take a note of my concerns, including name & address etc. and said that he would flag up HSBC's actions. He gave me a phone number for the Information & Commissioners Office and advised me to ask them about the "Right to Privacy" legislation, so I'll ring the FO and the ICO tomorrow and see what they have to say. Latest update on phone calls - none on home phone but 6 calls between 6.00 p.m. and 7.00 p.m. this evening on my mobile.

Thanks, I will see what response I get from trading standards. Is the Financial Ombudsman another option does anyone know?

Hi - the last time I spoke to them, I asked them not to call again, but as the guy on the other end barely spoke English, and I have a broad Brummie accent, I'm not at all sure he understood what I said. This is why I gave up on talking on the phone, but I have written and copied all of the letters explicitly saying that I am not prepared to talk to them on the phone any more and that I will only answer written correspondence in future. I do have an answer machine that clicks in after a few minutes, not sure if I could actually get a photo of the phone first though as it's relatively quick and there isn't the option with Bulldog as there is with BT to amend the number of rings. It's been about 4 weeks now since I sent the big batches of copied correspondence to all of the addresses I have for HSBC but apart from a couple of days break they have continued to call. Should I be able to get phone records out of Bulldog, or is this something only the police can do? Thanks for your help guys.

Thanks for the information, I know it's them, I've got their number, and they do display it when they call me. They rang at ten past eleven the other night!! Should I look to get this into Court? I don't know whether harassment is a civil or a criminal action even? Thanks!!

Can't find the complaint form! The link above says "Error" and I've searched the OFT website to no avail.. can anyone help?? please!!

I am still having major problems with HSBC despite using the CAG template threatening Court Action and quoting the relevant Acts. I just don't answer the phone to them any more. They ring from an 0800 number so I have bought a caller ID phone, and just don't answer, but I am still getting calls from them at any time from 7.00 a.m. - 11.00 p.m. 7 days a week! I am not with BT any more, as I got a cheaper deal from Bulldog. I rang them up to ask if I could bar the number from calling me, but they were a bit non-plussed and not too helpful. I wold reallly like some proof from them as to when this number has called, but I'm not sure Bulldog records are up to this. Has anyone else had a similar problem. I have started to log calls, can't record anything as I can't answer the phone to them any more, I am so fed up with this. Thanks for reading - any advice will be very gratefully received!!

Hi! Thanks both for your advice, I will do the DP letter and see where that goes. Is it worth pursuing HSBC's own Complaints Procedure do you think? Thanks!!

B.U.M.P. !!!! Can no-one give me any advice?? I knew this was a difficult one!

Hi everyone, just joined today.. wish I hadn't had to but hey ho I stopped using my current account with HSBC two years ago because I moved my mortgage to an offset one with NatWest which required me to use current account with them.. fine I thought, I'll just keep my old HSBC one (which has a £3.5k overdraft) in case I don't like this offsetting business. So for a few months, I just spent time adjusting to the new account and didn't bother to look at my HSBC account, just "filed" the statements in a plastic wallet as they arrived. Big mistake! When I did get round to putting them away properly I noticed some activity on the account - nothing huge, but 20 transactions for amounts varying from £4.99 - 19.99 going through my account - internet transactions, from 3 different retailers - none of whom I have ever had any dealings with - between April 2004 and November 2004. As soon as I spotted these (in about May or June 2005) I hot footed it down to my local branch of HSBC who told me to go down to the Police Station and report it, get a crime number and let them have it. Did this the same day and took it back in. Since then I have heard nothing from HSBC. I have called in on several occasions to ask what is happening and in the meantime my account is being debited with interest charges every month, to the point where my HSBC account is now £700 in debit instead of the £200 I started with! I got a bit shirty with them the last time I went in (about a month ago) and they said they would follow it up. I have now received two letters from them saying "disputed transactions, thank you for your recent enquiry... blah blah.. under the Maestro scheme rules, there is a time limit within which the bank can raise a claim or request a copy of the transaction voucher with the retailer involved in the transaction. Unfortunately, as this time limit has now passed, we are unable to assist you any further with your enquiry. You are of course still entitled to continue your enquiry directly with the retailer" I am gob smacked at this! Firstly - the transactions stopped in November 2004, coincidentally this is exactly the same time that they issued my new debit card - clearly the transactions weren't from me or why would they have stopped then? Time limit - what time limit? Why don't they specify this? Was it passed when I raised the query with them in about May 2005? Is this my recent enquiry? How do HSBC define recent? Do they speak a different language to me? How can I raise it with the retailers when I've never heard of them, and have no information as to who/how/why these transactions have ended up in my account!!! GGGGGRRRRRRRR :mad: Has anyone else been in this position, and if so how have you progressed? Should I be thinking of a Small Claims action? Any advice, comments, etc. would be gratefully received... Thanks, Sandra