MBNA won't accept written correspondence only...

[lexis200]

Hello again all:)

 

I've been a bit manic over the last few days so haven't kept up on posts, but thanks for the emails Hopeful1, and the luck SG:D.

 

I should just point out my colouring in fact entailed sitting with a felt tip next to the colouring book, and only colouring exactly where told. Apparently I did it wrong a lot. A little like when my eldest was 2 and used to want to play cars with you. That meant sitting with a car of his choice watching him play, and then having to give said car up when he felt you'd had it for too long - and woe betide you if you actually tried to put your car on the track!

 

I did send the second CCA off - the 12 working days is up a week tomorrow, but in the meantime OH has had a letter from Aegis - can anyone enlighten me on them?

 

We also had 3 more calls on the 1st, which OH picked up on one (it was showing as International). He said he wasn't in , but did get the name of the woman who called and the manager who asked her to. Irritatingly she stated that there was no record of letters asking for no phone contact. OH did state this was now harassment and any further calls would be reported, and to date they have stopped:eek:

 

What I'm a bit miffed with now is this International business. Basically, the call was from overseas, and both ladies hubbie spoke to were very Indian so I don't think it's a great leap to assume it came from India. Then we get a letter from this Aegis company who are registered in Mumbai. Since the first call from them we've started getting calls from the US saying that we've won a holiday (super). We used to get these but after telling all of them to naff off repeatedly, they did eventually stop. I'm of the mind now that his details have been shipped off to India where they don't have the same data protection laws and our number is now on their lists again. Is this likely or am I going a bit far down the paranoid route with this one:confused:

 

Anyway, the upshot of all this is that I've done another letter (I'm starting to get pretty good at being snotty and yet very polite:-D), asking for the details that weren't answered from my last letter. I also asked why OH had this letter from Aegis saying he's ignoring MBNA, when in fact they haven't given an answer to 3 letters and 2 (mistakenly answered) phone calls. I'm aware I probably won't get anywhere with this, but I figured if it ends up getting nasty I can show I've done everything possible to sort it out and they are just not helping in any way.

 

With this Aegis lot, should I write to them too to say I'm trying to sort it out with MBNA? Their letter arrived on the 6th, so it's been a few days already, but I was unsure of what to do with them. Is it worth waiting to see if the CCA turns up before next week or is it likely they'll start being gits before then?

 

Thanks all

 

L x

[lexis200]

Just bumping for a bit of advice about this Aegis lot and whether to write to them now or wait for the 12 days on the CCA?

[lexis200]

Hello all

 

I started a post a while ago as MBNA refused to correspond with me by letter only when I needed to set up a payment plan for my OH (all letters sent in his name obviously). Since that thread was started, I have just received a letter from them and could do with some help with where to go from here.

 

The bones of what's been going on are (sorry, it's still going to be lengthy):

 

End of June - sent them an I/E form with letter explaining circumstances and a pro-rata offer of payment as has been done for other creditors. Also stated very clearly no phone contact.

 

10th July - received letter from MBNA, informing OH of his account now being restricted, card needing to be cut up and phone us to discuss. I replied same day stating the same as in the first letter, but still very politely as I didn't see any point being snotty at this point. Also, at around this time I got OH to cancel his direct debit instructions and set up a standing order for the amount we could afford (I had stated in the 2nd letter he would be doing this as we couldn't afford the minimums).

 

17th July - had 3 phone calls, including 2 recorded 'please phone us' and one actual person. OH spoke to him and was told he obviously didn't want to be helped as he wouldn't discuss over the phone, and that they would only arrange p/p by phone. Oh, he also discussed all this without going through any sort of security.

 

21st July - sent CCA and another letter again explaining circs. and stating further phone calls would be regarded as harrassment. A little less polite now if I'm being honest:rolleyes:

 

22nd July - received standard 'you have missed a payment' letter. Obviously the lower amount isn't going down too well.

 

29th July - 3 more recorded 'phone to discuss' calls.

 

31st July - received letter saying they're looking into the complaint. What complaint????

 

1st August - 3 more calls (they like their 3's don't they!). 2 recorded and one International. OH picked up the International and informed them he wasn't in, but Mr Lexis200 had definitely written requesting no phone contact. They had no record of any letters.

 

4th August - Having realised I may have left the £1 out of the CCA, gave them the benefit of the doubt about their lack of response and re-sent, checking P/O was enclosed about 20 times:D

 

6th August - received letter from Aegis BPO Services Ltd, informing us that 'MBNA has instructed us to contact you urgently. Apparently OH has not made any effort to contact them:rolleyes: Slightly concerned now as Aegis are registered in India, and the International call was we think from India (spoke to 2 Indian women so not a great jump to assume that). Anyway, since receiving that call, we've been having American companies trying to sell us stuff. I'm not sure how well data is protected overseas, and the timing of these sales calls seems far to coincidental.

 

13th August - sent 4th letter. Rather less polite now, and demanding some answers as we've had nothing of any use and charges etc still being applied despite them being told several times we can't pay more than is being offered.

 

18th August - received reply answering some questions, which I'll post below (hopefully!) to try and break this up a little.

[lexis200]

Right, I've scanned the letter and just commented in red. Any miss-spellings or punctuation errors in black are theirs not mine! Please ignore any you spot in red:D

 

--------------------------------------

 

Thank you for your letter dated 21 July 2008. 1 would like to apologise for not responding sooner but I’m not going to.

 

As a responsible lender (hmm), MBNA strives to keep its customers informed of the situation on their account by telephone calls and letters. Not according to your phone jockeys you don’t – phone only is their mantra. Whilst an account is operating outside of our terms and conditions, we have a responsibility to try to agree a payment arrangement with our customers (so why have you been so obstructive over the last 6 weeks?). and to make them aware of the serious effect that any missing payments may have on their future ability to obtain credit.

 

I note that you have requested that we only communicate with you in writing in the future. Great, you were only told that in four letter and two phone calls, well done for finally acknowledging it! We should consider our obligation under the Banking Code guidance, which states that where a customer requests that we communicate with them in writing, we must do so, on the condition that they continue to work with us. Where the relationship breaks down and the customer is no longer co-operating with us then telephone calls to the usual numbers may recommence and for this reason, your contact numbers will remain on record.

 

The specialist (!!!!) who called you on 17 July was Andrew, he called as we had received a financial statement from you and was simply attempting to assist you by speeding up our process in order that we can assess ho’ best to help you . Right, so you have ‘specialists’ whose job it is to assist you by breaking the Data Protection Act, get ar*y when you tell them they have, and tell you you obviously don’t want to help yourself as you won’t talk over the phone. Oh, and that they absolutely positively in no circumstances whatsoever can arrange a payment plan over the phone. And then hang up on you. As a telephone bank we rely on speaking to our customers to resolve queries speedily, as you are aware, corresponding by letter can prolong the process if not all the information is available. Only when you don’t sodding answer!

 

It may be helpful to explain the regulatory environment within which we operate and how this may cause our procedures to be different from other UK credit card issuers. Is this them trying to use the ‘we’re bound by American guidelines’ bit, or is the following actually correct within the UK?

One of the regulations that we must adhere to is that a credit card account must default at seven payments in arrears, and a loan account must default at five payments in arrears. In addition to this regulation, we must ensure that an account is cleared over a reasonable period of time when a customer has made an application for reduced payments (payments must be of a sufficient amount to ensure the balance is paid in full within 125 months i.e. £what you can’t afford). OK, but you’ve had the I/E form which clearly shows this isn’t possible, so now what?

 

Due to the time constraints within which we operate (what, the ones that have let you take over 6 weeks to answer a basic request but have your customers running round like headless chickens?), it is vital that we obtain a complete and accurate Common Financial Statement (CFS) – isn’t this exactly what you’ve received??. It is also important that we fully understand the customer’s circumstances in order to determine the best way to provide assistance – so having it explained at length in writing on two occasions doesn’t quite do this?. This CFS must be based on the rules of equitable distribution and must only include essential expenditure. Gosh, this sounds eerily similar to the letters and I/E form you’ve received, but obviously they must be completely different. Or you can’t be bothered to read them.

 

After the receipt of a financial statement and confirmation that a customer is experiencing genuine long-term financial hardship aarrggghhhh – you’ve had it!!!!!!!!. we may take steps to suppress interest and fees. irrespective of the payment amount offered.

Your offer of £what we can afford will not he sufficient to repay your debt within the maximum period of 125 months, however, we will place your account in to a “severe hardship” classification and suppress the fees and interest (you’ve just said you won’t unless we send in more stuff that we’ve already sent!) but regrettably when your arrears reach seven payments behind the account will register a default on your credit file and the account may be sold to a third party for recovery. Therefore it is extremely important for you to notify us as soon as possible if you have any changes in your finances or circumstances. The account is currently two payments in arrears and over the agreed credit limit. It’s only over the limit as you added charges well after being told we couldn’t pay minimums, and it’s only in arrears as you won’t accept the amount we can afford.

 

A letter will be sent to you directly from the Debt Management team under separate cover advising you of the terms and conditions and consequences of making a reduced payment. Had this letter. It stated (I’m paraphrasing here before everyone goes to sleep) ‘you have offered to pay £what you can afford, but this is not enough to prevent a Default being registered. If at all possible’ (like it’s a choice!) ‘we recommend that you maintain payments of £what we want but know you can’t pay to prevent this from happening. In the meantime we recommend you continue to make the payments you can afford’. So what we can afford isn’t enough and we have to pay more, but we should continue with what we can afford:confused: My brain hurts.

 

An alternative option that may be available to you is if you are able to make a partial settlement of the account. Love to! Would you like the pot or what goes in it? Hang on, we don’t have the pot, you’ll have to accept the contents I’m afraid. We would be happy to consider an offer as a partial settlement upon receipt of an up to date financial statement and a review of your credit file. If this offer was accepted, following the receipt of the agreed payment, we would not pursue you for any further payment. However, a partial settlement indicator would be recorded on your credit file.

 

I hope that you find my response acceptable (not really, where’s the information about how my data is being processed and protected overseas, and why haven’t you told me exactly why charges were added after you knew our position. I did ask these questions specifically. I even bulleted them so you wouldn’t miss them. Perhaps I’ll be getting another letter telling me all this…) and I regret any inconvenience that this matter has caused you. We have now exhausted our complaint process; therefore I must inform you that this is our final response on the matter. If you remain dissatisfied with the response, you may refer your complaint to the Financial Ombudsman Service, within six months of the date of this final response.

 

 

I have enclosed the Financial Ombudsman’s leaflet for your information. I regret that we will not enter into any further correspondence regarding this matter, unless instructed to do so by the Financial Ombudsman Service. Doesn’t this rather negate the point of you wanting a ‘CFS’ and our circumstances. For a third time.

Yours sincerely

Gail Powell

Vice President I’m quite honoured, normally it’s a head of something or other

[lexis200]

So, after all that, if anyone's still awake I could do with some advice!

 

The second CCA has it's 12 working days up tomorrow, and we've not had a response of any kind to this. I've also not contacted this Aegis lot yet about their letter.

 

Should I continue with the letters to MBNA trying to get them to agree to the lower payments and just hang on until (hopefully) the CCA goes past the 30 extra days, or should I get onto them when the 12 days is up and tell them to find the agreement or leave us alone?

 

If they do come up with the CCA and it's enforceable (which I'm guessing it won't be as OH took out the card at least 6/7years ago), what's the likelihood of getting them to agree to the payments we can offer? We genuinely can't do what they're asking at the moment so what they've said is a complete no-go for us.

 

Also, I hadn't mentioned to them how the phone call with their 'specialist' actually went (ie the vague threats, the disregard for the Data Protection Act and the hanging up on OH), so is it worth doing that as a formal complaint to either them or someone like the FOS, TS etc? (not sure who it would be).

 

Can anyone give me hand with this please, as I'm quite new to the whole CCA/telling the banks I do have a few rights thing and I don't know how to proceed now!

 

Thanks in advance:)

[lexis200]

Just bumping up - the CCA has now passed it's 12 days and I'm not sure how to respond to their last letter. They didn't answer all my queries and aren't exactly jumping at the prospect of the payment plan.

 

Any thoughts from anyone?

 

Thanks:)

[lexis200]

Hello again

 

I've started up a new thread on this as it seems to have evolved a bit, but I'm not having much luck with responses. I'm hoping someone may have this on watch and can have a look at the other one to give me some pointers...

 

Any help as always much appreciated.

 

The thread is http://www.consumeractiongroup.co.uk/forum/mbna/156409-lexis200-mbna-just-starting.html

 

Thanks!

[Jipdog7]

You don't have to wait for 30 days now, they are already in default after 12. If they haven't provided you with a valid agreement via your CCA request then I'd be inclined to stop paying them. That always focusses their attention!

 

If you do wish to carry on paying then send what you can afford, they cannot get more out of you if you don't have it!

[lexis200]

Thanks for that Jipdog. I've read that the 30 days no longer applies but could n't find anything definitive about it (prolly looking in all the wrong places:))

 

So should I write and tell them they're in default and they really need to stump up the agreement or accept my offer? (Although quite frankly, despite my moral misgivings about it, after the way we've been treated by them I'm more inclined to tell them to stick it if they can't produce it.)

 

And what should I do regarding the Aegis lot? They contacted hubby before the CCA was out of time, but since they wrote we had the letter from MBNA. Do I reply to them and tell them it's now in dispute and to go away, or can I not do that as they wrote before it was in dispute?

 

Also, I'm really hacked off about this bloke who phoned, was mildly threatening, and didn't bother checking who hubby was before disclosing account details. Especially as their letter deigns to say he was only trying to help! Is there any point in me S.A.R - (Subject Access Request)'ing them for the phone conversation so that I can prove it, or is this likely to have gone missing from the notes?

 

Thanks:)

[Hopeful1]

Hi ya Lexis.

 

Just stick to this thread now otherwise it will get (more) confusing!!

 

Here's a CCA non-compliance letter written by Curlyben *click*

 

I would ignore Ageis for now, see if they get in touch again.

 

I would ask for the complaints procedure and follow that to make a complaint about the call.

 

Keep firing stuff at 'em and keep 'em busy

 

Have you sent a S.A.R? I can't remember, sorry!

[lexis200]

Hi again Hopeful1 - nice to see you:)

 

I was intending settling down with this thread, I just thought seeing as I'd moved away from it being a problem with correspondence the other one wasn't right. Well, that and I don't know how to change a title (which was my first choice of how to make it more appropriate)

 

Thanks for the letter, that's great - I've tried looking for Curlyben letters but it's nigh on impossible to find them when you want them! My only question is do I include the 30 days bit now, as I've been told that no longer applies? If so, have they now gone into both a dispute and a default state, or is it just a disputed account:confused: I'm getting very confused on this point.

 

I haven't contacted Aegis yet so I'll leave them be and see what happens.

 

They were SAR'd about 18mths/2yrs ago, before our problems started in earnest, but I thought maybe if I re-did it they'd have proof of the conversation OH had with their blokey. Or maybe that's just wishful thinking:rolleyes:

[Hopeful1]

My only question is do I include the 30 days bit now, as I've been told that no longer applies? If so, have they now gone into both a dispute and a default state, or is it just a disputed account:confused: I'm getting very confused on this point.

 

No don't include the 30 days. After 12 they are in default and you are well and truly in dispute with them!!

 

Have a look at this thread here, it's long but there's lots of interesting discussion. Grab yourself a glass of wine or a coffee, whichever suits you best

 

I haven't contacted Aegis yet so I'll leave them be and see what happens.

 

Good stuff.

 

They were S.A.R - (Subject Access Request)'d about 18mths/2yrs ago, before our problems started in earnest, but I thought maybe if I re-did it they'd have proof of the conversation OH had with their blokey. Or maybe that's just wishful thinking:rolleyes:

 

The telephone conversation will probably not be there, but you never know! You can also check for charges etc it's amazing what you find when you look

 

 

[lexis200]

Okay, started reading the very interesting thread you linked to at about 9 this evening. I've just torn myself away having finished that and the dozen or so tangents it took me off on due to links within those threads. Oh, and I'm now so full of tea and biscuits (essential reading companions) that I'm feeling very poorly (or maybe that should be portly) indeed:D

 

Cheers for clarifying the 30 days for me, at least that's one less thing to make my brain hurt!

 

I've been chatting with hubbie and I think I'll hang on before sending Curlybens letter, only until he gets the next 'pay up' letter from them. I'm just a bit wary of poking a sleeping bear, so to speak, and that will give a little more time before they have something to focus on.

 

I'll get onto doing another SAR for them - maybe include in that a request for the CCA to be sent too? I'm thinking there that if I specifically ask for it within the SAR and it doesn't come, it's more than likely it's not available? Once I have all the recent SAR details I'll start a formal complaint regarding the phone call, as, if by some miracle they have shot themselves in the foot by noting it I'll have proper ammunition. And if they haven't it still won't stop me, but at least I'll know where we stand from the outset.

 

Thanks again for your time - as always very helpful. I'm still not allowed to click your scales, but they'd be done again if I could!

[Hopeful1]

Okay, started reading the very interesting thread you linked to at about 9 this evening. I've just torn myself away having finished that and the dozen or so tangents it took me off on due to links within those threads. Oh, and I'm now so full of tea and biscuits (essential reading companions) that I'm feeling very poorly (or maybe that should be portly) indeed:D

 

I've actually done some exercises this morning as i'm very conscious of how much snacking i've done whilst on here this week

 

Cheers for clarifying the 30 days for me, at least that's one less thing to make my brain hurt!

 

No probs!

 

I've been chatting with hubbie and I think I'll hang on before sending Curlybens letter, only until he gets the next 'pay up' letter from them. I'm just a bit wary of poking a sleeping bear, so to speak, and that will give a little more time before they have something to focus on.

 

That's fine, you must do things at a pace that suits you. As you learn more you will gain confidence and actually begin to enjoy a bit of bear poking! (that last bit sounds a bit wrong, but never mind)

 

I'll get onto doing another S.A.R - (Subject Access Request) for them - maybe include in that a request for the CCA to be sent too? I'm thinking there that if I specifically ask for it within the SAR and it doesn't come, it's more than likely it's not available? Once I have all the recent SAR details I'll start a formal complaint regarding the phone call, as, if by some miracle they have shot themselves in the foot by noting it I'll have proper ammunition. And if they haven't it still won't stop me, but at least I'll know where we stand from the outset.

 

I did that with hubbies - a CCA request and a request within the S.A.R just to be sure. Because he had a lot of charges i didn't even mention the lack of CCA. I reclaimed them 1st and then went for the PPI. When they refused to refund this i made a complaint to FOS. As part of the evidence i mentioned i was uanble to clarify the final agreement as i hadn't received it, so i didn't use it to say the debt was unenforceable.

 

Thanks again for your time - as always very helpful. I'm still not allowed to click your scales, but they'd be done again if I could!

 

That's really kind, but don't worry about that. I'm glad i can be of some help.

 

 

Speak soon no doubt!

[lexis200]

Okie dokie, looks like the bear has just woken up - and I wasn't prodding or anything:)

 

OH has today had a lovely letter informing him that his account is £x in arrears and they will shortly 'have' to default it, maybe pass it on and certainly put a big frowny face on anything relating to the account.

 

I think I'll be sending Curlybens letter tomorrow to try and ward off anything dodgy happening. I'm not holding out too much hope for that though, having read so many stories now of their antics when they're in the wrong!

 

I didn't manage to get the SAR done due to being on the trampoline/getting my son past certain levels on Mario/making dalek biscuits etc (roll on new term!), but I will do it at the end of the week with any luck. I should be a bit more clear on where I stand when I have that info which will hopefully give me a bit more peace of mind.

 

[Jipdog7]

OH has today had a lovely letter informing him that his account is £x in arrears and they will shortly 'have' to default it, maybe pass it on and certainly put a big frowny face on anything relating to the account.

 

With MBNA it will never be a frowny face, more like a pink pig or postcard showing sunflowers!

[lexis200]

With MBNA it will never be a frowny face, more like a pink pig or postcard showing sunflowers!

 

I think OH may soon be getting one of those, seeing as we had the agreement through today and I *think*, it's not good enough.

 

It's got the APR (or a version of it) showing, and it's signed by OH, but I can't see any signature/stamp from them. The t's and c's are on freshly printed sheets, have no corresponding reference to go with the application, and are showing £12 charges and 35ish% interest. The account was opened in '01, had £20+ charges and the interest (according to the application sent) was between 14.9 and 16.7%.

 

The back of the application is adverts for their card/s, which is where I suspect the terms would have gone:confused:

 

The scanner is playing up at the moment so I can't scan it yet, but from those details, can anyone say whether it sounds enforceable/unenforceable/enforceable by court?

 

I'll get the scans up asap, until then, thanks for any help!

[Hopeful1]

How funny they haven't even tried to pretend the T & Cs are the originals

 

Sounds like a load of rubbish to me

 

Have you seen this thread:

http://www.consumeractiongroup.co.uk/forum/debt-collection-industry/105315-my-agreement-enforceable-useful.html

[lexis200]

How funny they haven't even tried to pretend the T & Cs are the originals

 

I think actually they might be trying to make it look like they could be, now that I've looked at their covering letter - In accordance with section blah blah 1974, we enclose a copy of your credit card agreement, including applicable terms and conditions etc etc.

 

Personally I think that's quite well worded - had this been a few months ago when I hadn't seen anything on CAG, this would have read to me that they were the correct terms for me to be seeing. As it is now, I read it that they are some applicable terms - not for hubbies account, but definitely applicable to someone:D

 

I'll get the scans up tomorrow hopefully, but until then I'll go with the 'load of rubbish' bit as it'll make me sleep better:p

 

Thanks for the link - off to have a look now...

[lexis200]

Okie dokie

 

Scans below of front and back of the application, and first page of new terms showing the £12 charge...

mbna1.jpg - Image - Photobucket - Video and Image Hosting[/url]

mbna2.jpg - Image - Photobucket - Video and Image Hosting

mbna3.jpg - Image - Photobucket - Video and Image Hosting

 

As far as I can tell, I think the prescribed terms (as shown in the link for 'is my CCA enforceable) are there. The bit on the left which I doubt you can read on the scan has the text:

Set out in paragraphs 1-15 below are some of the provisions contained in Conditions 1 and 2 of the MBNA Credit and Terms & Conditions. The other conditions referred to in these paragraphs and the applicable definitions can be found in those Terms and Conditions.

Then what I think are the prescribed terms are in these bits:

1: We will from time to time choose the credit limit and notify you of this.

4: The minimum payment shown on the statement will be (a) the lesser of (i)2.25 of the Account balance as shown on the statement...:or (ii)the total sum of all of the following

(b) the Account balance as shown on the statement if less than £5: except as mentions in conditions 2.4, 3.5 and 3.6

5: We will charge interest on the outstanding amount of: (a) any Retail Transaction at 1.1678% monthly, except as mentioned in condition 2.1

 

Number 5 does carry on in that vein but you get the gist.

 

Basically, at the moment I think the only bits in our favour are;

 

1) It states at the top of the first page 'We make it easier for you to apply. Simply complete all sections ...then return in the freepost envelope' and 'Please note, to apply you must be etc etc'. This must show it's an application form?

2) The terms supplied are not the originals (£12 charge, interest rates completely different, no corresponding references). As they're not the originals I can't refer to them as told to in the excerpts on the left of the form.

3) I can't see any signature/stamp etc from the bank

 

Against us however is that I do think there is a minimum payment shown, there is an interest rate shown and there is their statement that they will decide the limit. These are all on the signed page.

 

With all this, where are we?

 

Have they sent something that will, as it stands now, hold up in court (or that could be enforced by a court)?

 

I'm not holding out too much hope as I think it's one of those 'only enforceable in a court' type agreements. That would be a big shame as I've been supremely unimpressed with how they 'help' you when you're in trouble, and I'd like nothing more than to tell them to go away:(

 

As always, thanks for any input and advice:)

Edited September 11, 2008 by lexis200

[lexis200]

I'll get the scans up tomorrow hopefully, but until then I'll go with the 'load of rubbish' bit as it'll make me sleep better:p

 

Ho hum, maybe not so much of a restful night now:rolleyes:

[Hopeful1]

Hi Lexis. The trouble with what they have sent is that they would need to include on the 'agreement' from 2001 is the following: Please refer to the terms and conditions which we will produce in 2006 (just a guess) when there is a need for us to reduce the charges we make against the account. To apply for this card, you must be psychic.

 

Good grief.

 

I am also suspicious that MBNA are suddenly sending out these applications that suddenly have this CCA 1974 info down the side.

 

Do you know roughly whether there is a high amount of charges on the account?

[Hopeful1]

Also, this post was put on Manc1876's MBNA / LINK FINANCIAL THREAD:

 

http://www.consumeractiongroup.co.uk/forum/debt-collection-industry/141116-mbna-link-financial-2.html#post1695855

[lexis200]

Hey Hopeful1

 

Cheers for taking the time again to answer.

 

I do get that they have to have the original terms available, either on the document itself or linked in some way to the agreement, but I'm still a bit concerned that the prescribed terms do appear to be in place on the form they've sent - or have I got that wrong?

 

If I was relying purely on the lack of original terms, but everything else was in place, would we still be in a strong position with them?

 

I did see a thread somewhere where someone had written all the possible variations of enforceable/enforceable by court/unenforceable etc, but I can't for the life of me find it now. I have started pulling useful quotes since then and sticking them in Word, but didn't do that one typically!

 

I'm just very unsure of this as it's not as beautifully cut and dried as the nonsense that HBOS sent OH - even I thought it was rubbish before getting opinions on it! MBNA have written to hubbie again (I'll scan and post it later), so I really want to be very sure of what I can say when I reply so it doesn't come back and bite me on the ar*e!

 

As you've probably worked out, I have days where I'm pretty confident and days when I'm not so much. Today is the latter:rolleyes:

 

The charges that I can find on the statements OH has (he is appalling with paperwork, so half are missing) amount to around £120 over the 18m/2years since the last claim - I would say there's likely to be about the same again in the ones I haven't seen. It's not quite enough (by a few k!) to be cancelling out the debt if that was what you were thinking;)

[lexis200]

Okay,

 

Just a little update as I've been snowed under with youngest's birthday party for the last week (and we got the day with the good weather - yay!).

 

OH has had two letters - I'll do them in separate posts so questions don't get mingled/lost. Also, I'm typing as I haven't had time to get the scanner up, so please excuse any typos:)

 

On the 27th of August OH had 1st letter:-

 

IMPORTANT DEFAULT NOTIFICATION

 

You are in breach of the agreed Terms and Conditions and a decision has been made to place a restriction on your account. This means that your card cannot be used. If you have regular transactions you should use an alternative method of payment.

 

As you account is £*** in arrears, failure to bring you account up to date will also result in the eventual termination of the agreement and the registration of a Default at the Credit Reference Agencies. (It then tells me the pitfalls of this happening over several sentences.)

IT'S NOT TOO LATE TO PREVENT THE TERMINATION OF YOUR AGREEMENT.

 

Call us now to make a debit card payment. Alternatively, contact us to ensure we can provide you with information to help you deal with your finances, including actions you need to take to stop the Default being registered against you. We also have leaflets available to you that detail your options.

 

Furthermore, the restriction that has been placed on your account does not have to be permanent etc.

 

Please note if a restriction is in place when your balance is cleared in full, the account will register as closed with the CRA's.

 

From my intensely unhelpful friend Mr McGrath, Head of Customer Assistance.

 

So, the couple of points I need to raise in a letter of response are (I think) that a) I don't have a copy of the terms and conditions mentioned in the first para, and b) there are only arrears on the account as they continued to add charges and interest for the best part of 6/7 weeks - OH was under the limit when he requested a payment plan and not due to make a minimum for a couple of weeks after sending the initial letter, so they had plenty of time to stop the charges etc.

 

Also, can anyone tell me the meaning of an account showing as 'closed' with the CRA's? Is this a good note or not, as I've also seen 'settled' and a couple of other similar descriptions?

 

Right, on to number two...

Edited September 11, 2008 by lexis200
remembered ANOTHER question I wanted to ask!