Getting Abbey to remove default

[redsheep]

Me and my partner were were trying to get a mortgage together but couldnt becuase my fiancee had a £400 default notice (which was settled).

 

I have written to Abbey (copy of second letter i sent letter pasted after this ) but the reply I got back was nothing to do with the letter I sent. I got a reply that started off with something along the lines of "I note that you have asked for a copy of your bank statements and we assume this is in relation to a request to make a claim against bank charges...".

 

I have emailed 3 times (including sending an email to Sheena Small) with just a reply saying that the email will be passed on to a team to look into this. This was 2 weeks ago.

 

What can be done now?

 

Thank you,

Martin

 

Letter to Abbey;

Antony Turbitt

Manager, Banking Services

Customer Services (Banking)

PO Box 297

Bradford

BD1 4YR

 

18 October 2007

 

ACCOUNT NUMBERS: ******** and ******** (Sort Code: ** ** **)

 

Dear Sir/ Madam

 

After recently obtaining a copy of my credit file, I was concerned to note that a "Default" notice had been placed against my account.

 

I sent a letter (recorded delivery) on 5th September to which I didn’t receive a response. I then sent a follow up email to which I received a reply (TRACKING NUMBER: ) asking me to phone 0845 9 724724 to resolve my query.

 

I called this number on Saturday morning (13th October) and spoke to a Customer Advisor who tried to help but we didn’t really get anywhere. She couldn’t find any record of myself being notified about a default in the first place and then suggested that I pay £10 to have all my bank statements sent to me, which I don’t need as I already have my bank statements.

 

As I said in my original letter and email. I would just like to get this resolved as although I am paying half towards the mortgage my fiancé has we need to move somewhere bigger but can’t unless this default is removed. I would still like to bank with Abbey but all I ask is that this default is removed please.

 

I know at the time the credit report says the default was placed on my account I was overdrawn. That was at a time when I had just finished college and wasn’t working. I have now been working full time at Hampshire County Council for over 2 years and my accounts have been fine.

 

I have no recollection of ever receiving a default notice and if you are unable to remove it I would then ask that you please substantiate this information.

 

1. You must supply me with a true copy of the alleged agreement to which you refer. This is my right under your obligation to supply a copy of the agreement under the legislation contained within s.78 (1) Consumer Credit Act 1974 (s.77 (1) for fixed sum credit). Your obligation also extends to providing a statement of account. I enclose a £1 postal order in payment of the statutory fee.

 

2. You must supply me with a signed true and certified copy of the original default notice

 

3. Any deed of assignment if the debt was sold on.

 

If you are unable to remove the default I would request that this data is provided to myself within the next 14 days, if you are unable to provide this data then I must insist that the default notice is removed from my files as unsubstantiated.

 

Yours sincerely

[Lula]

Right, ok, now, did she claim bank charges, or is this just a general default? if it is just a general default and you have paid it off it will be marked satisfied, that should help you. In this instance, you will not be able to get the default removed, only marked satisfied and it will be there for 6 years from the date of the default.

 

If she claimed back charges and she claimed back the same amount as the default, she might be able to get it removed.

 

Her first step is to get a copy of her credit report and see what it says. she can have a free trial at Experian and then just cancel it before the trial ends.

 

Hope this helps

[redsheep]

Thanks for the reply Lula.

 

She did originally claim bank charges but that was put on hold because of the trial case etc.

 

What is more imprtant to us than the bank charges is the default as this is stopping us from getting a bigger mortgage.

 

Withe regards to the default this was noted on a credit report received from Experian (but the report didnt say which of her Abbey accounts it referred to) and this was pursued as a comepletely separate matter from the bank charges.

 

I understood (from other threads) that if Abbbey had no proof of sending a default notice they had to remove it so i purused this as somethin. Is there an alternative way to pursue this as we have also claimed for bank charges?

 

The main thing is that after 2 recorded delivery letters, several phone calls and emails we are getting nowhere.

 

Any further advice will be appreciated. Thank you.

[Lula]

In that case, they are not allowed to default her at all as this is against the banking code, I have asked for someone to come and take a look at this

[redsheep]

Sorry Lula. I didnt make this clear. The default was placed on the account in 2005.

[Robertxc]

You should have made the default removal a condition of settling your original bank charges claim. The only thing really to do now issue them again for compensation for the loss you have suffered as a result of their incorrect default notice. The loss can be quantified as the difference between the interest rate you currently pay and the rate you could have if not for their default. The claim is quite straightforward and is basically a normal bank chrges claim modified to ask for compensation rather than bank charges. It's important that you specify a time period that you are claiming compensation for, with a start date and an end date.

[Lula]

In that case, I am afraid there is nothing that can be done except to check that it is marked settled on your credit report. I dont think that retrospectively getting a court to remove a default is a road that is feasible to go down and even if you did start proceedings it would take months and months EVEN if a judge would hear it before the OFT case. Sorry there isnt better news on this.

[Robertxc]

I'm not sure if a judge would hear it or not. Although not technically a bank charges claim it does rely on the same arguments. You could give the Financial Ombudsman Service a call and ask for their view. They won't handle a bank charges complaint, but they may look at this, especially if you emphasise the fact that Abbey have already given you your money back

[redsheep]

Thanks for the replies.

 

We made the default removal a condition of settling the original bank charges claim but when we got the letter back saying about the trial we continued to pursue asking for the default to be removed (see letter in original post). I got part of the template for this letter somewhere off this site (the bit with the legal wording etc) so I was hoping it would be something that someone has done before.

 

We haven't lost anything in the way of interest it has just meant that we've only been able to get a mortgage on the basis of my salary and not both our salaries which means we own somewehre that doesnt really meet our needs and what we should be able to afford.

 

Thank you.

[jcaps]

forget the ombudsman redsheep. I was in the exactly the same position, fos spent months looking at my case only to tell me there was nothing they could do.