Halifax Overdraft Withdrawal

[BubbleCat]

Hi Everyone, I really would appreciate help with this.

 

Out of the blue I got this letter today:

12 December 2008

 

Dear Sir/Madam

 

Following a recent assessment of your overall relationship with the Halifax, a decision has been taken to withdraw your Current Account overdraft facility in accordance with condition 27.3 of your terms and conditions. This will occur within 2 weeks from the date of this letter. Subject to outstanding transactions this may result in your account falling into an unauthorised debit balance. If this happens, you will be liable for unauthorised overdraft charges, and any debit balance will be charged interest at the unauthorised rate. You are then required to ensure your account does not go over the arranged overdraft limit.

It is in your interest to contact us to discuss this on 0870 850 1298.

Yours faithfully

Senior Collections Manager

 

I have tried to reason with Halifax in branch and over the phone today. They will accept no less than £200.00 per month, which I just am not in a position to afford. They have also said they will not accept any offers less than this unless they come from a debt management company.

Nevertheless, I have prepared the following:

 

Dear Sir or Madam

 

Thank you for your letter dated 12 December 2008 advising with very short notice, of the withdrawal of the overdraft facility.

 

I have enclosed a copy of the electronic letter dated 27 February 2008, which was received via online banking on the 28 February 2008. Please note the content advises the overdraft facility will be in place until 27 February 2009.

 

The withdrawal of this facility in one go will leave my family and me destitute to the extreme. To incur further charges will only add to an already difficult situation.

 

We enclose a Personal Budget sheet which shows our total income from all sources, and our outgoings. As you can see we have only £00.00 left for our creditors. The offers we have made to our creditors have been worked out, where possible on a prorated, basis as per advice from Consumer Credit Counselling Services. We have written to all our creditors asking them to accept reduced payments.

 

In view of our circumstances, please would you agree to accept our offer of £40.00per month. If interest or other charges are being added to the account we would be grateful if you would freeze these so that all payments made will reduce what is owed.

 

Should our circumstances change we will contact you again.

[rory32]

Are there any charges on the account?

 

Have you opened another bank account with another bank?

[BubbleCat]

Hi Rory,

 

My OD is up to it's limit and I pay interest every month.

 

When they wouldn't be sensible today, I have applied for an account with another bank, which I should have a decision on by Wed.

 

My only concern is this means my wages will go in when they are calling in the overdraft, literally leaving me pennyless.

[rory32]

I have applied for an account with another bank, which I should have a decision on by Wed.

 

If you don't get the account remember there are loads of basic accounts that you can open quite easily.

 

My only concern is this means my wages will go in when they are calling in the overdraft, literally leaving me pennyless.

Speak to HR Department at work and inform them of the situation. They should be able to sort something out for you.

[djgordyp]

Ask the person who does the wages if he/she would pay your wages in cash until you get your new account sorted.

I have had to do this a couple of times without a problem (may depend on the person doing the wages though ).

 

As regards withdrawing your OD. It's a nice little earner for them if they can suddenly put you into an unauthorized overdraft situation.

As said before, Check to see if there are any charges on the account. Things such as £28 (or whatever it is now) for unpaid Direct Debits etc.

If there is then strt the process of claiming these charges back.

[BubbleCat]

Thanx Rory & DJ for replying and very grateful, as this has knocked the stuffing out of me.

 

I'll speak to payroll 2morrow.

[BubbleCat]

UPDATE:-

 

Spoke to HR and they agreed to pay wages into my daughter's bank a/c for this month and need to contact them before next payday with an account in my name. Got letter from application for 'Parachute' a/c and this is now in place. Infact, my new bank did not u/stand why Halifax are being so ar**y and only too happy to accommodate me. New bank have said they will trans everthing from Halifax a/c to my new a/c with them, but I'm worried that as halifax are trying to pull in all of my overdraft at once, they will refuse my new bank the details. Does anyone know if they can do this this? My mortgage is also with Halifax (am moving this too when offer expires in 2009) and I have tried to canx the internal D/D today and they have said they will not cancel it and will continue to take from my existing Halifax a/c, even though there will not be sufficient funds to pay and will put me in unauth O/Draft!

[rory32]

Does anyone know if they can do this this?

No they can't withhold this information.

[BubbleCat]

Thanx Rory, that's put my mind at rest.

[BubbleCat]

Hi

 

In December 08, Halifax decided to withdraw the overdraft facility and wanted all the money back in one go £2000 . This was after, thanx to this site, I had started to challenge back on bank charges.

 

To have done this would have left me and mine in financial dire straits to the extreme. BUT would they listen NO.

 

So we come to today, and I have received a DN it reads as follows:

 

DN served under section 87(1) of the CCA

 

The T&C's of the above a/c state:-

 

At any time we may require you pay us the whole or part of any overdraft, interest and fees or charges which you owe on the a/c.

 

You are in breach of that condition because we have asked you to repay the whole or part of your overdraft and you have failed to do so.

 

To remedy the breach you must pay into the bank a/c the sun of £2,130.53 befor the 14th March 2009.

 

Then there is the usual spiel about terminating the agreement and closing the bank a/c and demanding immediate payment and taking legal proceedings.

 

Any advice /guidance will be very gratefully received.

[freedomexpression]

i recieved this today. same thing. when i questioned the charges they were trying on me. i think you have to be reasonable all the way along and slap them back with letters to show that you're no fool. boring, this is true.

 

however, write letters to them and hassle them and take them for all you can! harrassment, breaking the banking code etc.

[BubbleCat]

I have received a DN it reads as follows:

 

DN served under section 87(1) of the CCA

 

The T&C's of the above a/c state:-

 

At any time we may require you pay us the whole or part of any overdraft, interest and fees or charges which you owe on the a/c.

 

You are in breach of that condition because we have asked you to repay the whole or part of your overdraft and you have failed to do so.

 

To remedy the breach you must pay into the bank a/c the sun of £2,130.53 befor the 14th March 2009.

 

Then there is the usual spiel about terminating the agreement and closing the bank a/c and demanding immediate payment and taking legal proceedings.

 

Can anyone please help me to deal with this?

 

Any advice /guidance will be very gratefully received.

[freedomexpression]

if they have done a default notice in relation to charges, you can sort them out. however it's not illegal for them to withdraw the overdraft as far as i know.

[freedomexpression]

if you offer then tenner a week they have to accept it.

[BubbleCat]

I did offer them £40 per month verbally, nothing in writing, but they declined this. Does anyone know if the process is the same as credit cards? Should I CCA them?

[havinastella]

Hi BC,

 

the CCA will not really cover the OD!

 

If you do not have a full set of statements, I would be inclinded to SAR them for all the charges on the account.

 

http://www.consumeractiongroup.co.uk/forum/bank-templates-library/516-1-data-protection-act.html

 

 

Just remember that Bank cases are stayed unless the bank initiates proceedings, then you can counterclaim for the charges.

 

Jogs

[ukmadness]

have had an overdraft with the Halifax for nearly 6 years. Sometimes it has been up to 2,400 and other times at nil.

 

On the 13th of February my debit card would not work. I contacted the bank who told me that they had withdrawn my overdraft facility and that as I was now £1,800 overdrawn without a prior arrangement they would be charging me £5.00 per day for being overdrawn!!!!!! Disgraceful. I complained like hell of course but it got me nowhere. They told me they would unlock my account if I agreed to pay them £200 per month. I cannot pay them anything at the moment as I was made redundant on the 4th of February. In a desperate attempt to stop the £5.00 per day charge I have had to pay them off with a credit card!!! Thanks to the Halifax I am now really in debt. They will not pay my bills and that is making my other creditors charge me for late payments etc. My credit rating has always been A1 up to now as I have always looked after it but now due to my bank my credit rating has been destroyed. What has happened to this country? how can people be treated like this?

[djgordyp]

I would complain right away to the FOS. Is it possible that any letter they would have sent may have gone to an old address?

[BubbleCat]

have had an overdraft with the Halifax for nearly 6 years. Sometimes it has been up to 2,400 and other times at nil.

 

On the 13th of February my debit card would not work. I contacted the bank who told me that they had withdrawn my overdraft facility and that as I was now £1,800 overdrawn without a prior arrangement they would be charging me £5.00 per day for being overdrawn!!!!!! Disgraceful. I complained like hell of course but it got me nowhere. They told me they would unlock my account if I agreed to pay them £200 per month. I cannot pay them anything at the moment as I was made redundant on the 4th of February. In a desperate attempt to stop the £5.00 per day charge I have had to pay them off with a credit card!!! Thanks to the Halifax I am now really in debt. They will not pay my bills and that is making my other creditors charge me for late payments etc. My credit rating has always been A1 up to now as I have always looked after it but now due to my bank my credit rating has been destroyed. What has happened to this country? how can people be treated like this?

 

 

Hi ukmadness and welcome to the forum.

 

I've alerted the site people to move this to your own thread, as it will be more personal to you.

[BubbleCat]

How does it work with OD and banks?

[tosh1]

subbing. got a phone call from halifax today demanding that i pay back the £1000.00 overdraft immediataly or go into the branch and apply for a new one.

[BubbleCat]

>>> Bump

[ukmadness]

Thanx Rory, that's put my mind at rest.

 

Hi BubbleCat, Get them at their own game. take out the amount you need (if possible) in cash from their Halifax One credit card and pay off your overdraft. Then you have paid them with their own money. :DThen look for a card on 0% finance and transfer the funds to them.

[BubbleCat]

we're on the same wave length - I did try that one, but because I'd started challenging back on CCA & SAR for my Halifax One card, they froze it, which turns out the agreement is unenforceable , so I suppose you could say swings and roundabouts.

[BubbleCat]

Other than a SAR, is there any other course I can take, or do I just offer a token payment till it's paid off?