Railroading a Student Account and offers of 'Internal Loan'!

[LyncusBee]

Hi all,

 

I have just graduated this year and during my four year course I held a Student Overdraft and a Credit Card account with the Cooperative.

 

About five to six months after my graduation they have started ringing me saying that I owe them the outstanding sum of the overdraft (£1700) because my student account had been converted to a current account, further the year of interst free overdraft after graduation, and indeed the overdraft facility had all been removed because, " Ihad not made payments to the account and the account had defaulted because of the £20 of interest charges they had applied (since it was now a standard current account not a student account) had breached the terms and conditions of my student account thus all was owed immediately!

 

Since which I have had the usual bombardment of calls; the first of interest was to try and pursuade me into consolidating my credit card and ex-student overdraft into a lump through their chosen loan (shark) Freedom Finance, which I point blank refused; the second, about a week later, was an offer of an "Internal Loan" which I was told after I said "OK put it to me in writing" was only available in verbal agreement on the phone and that "no written offer could be made", well you can imagine my response to agreement to a seven year loan which would have attracted £1500 of interest on a £3900 debt moreso I had told them I was currently unemployed but was told that was not a problem....hmmmmm!

 

I have come to a complete head because they are trying to force the debts combined even though I have met the minimum payments off my credit card and payed off any monthly interest on the overdraft, which of course they finacially benefit from, yet they are still hassling me; I have kept up the best payments I can in the hope that it will (if push comes to proverbial shove) make for a decent statement of case or defense or such if iot ever comes to a county court situation (which I reckon not for the sum involved but hey it's all changed somewhat.

 

It has come to a haed this evening when a rep' rung me and asked me for payment, I have coughed up an amount to cover the interest but that's all I can afford (it's not reducing the debt any and I still have to endure the telephone harrassment!)

 

They have sent me a breakdown of you and your partner's income and I have refused to fill it out for now because my partner is six months pregnant and will, after six weeks of initial merternity leave, be on 10% of her salary; so to fill the form out now and make a repayment agreement will not be a true reflection of our mid-term situation, at best. I am reckoning just like final judgement in a county court I am best waiting until we are on a low income before negotiations with my creditors or even when our situation changes (don't get me wrong if I get a decent job I'll get shot of the debt asap) they will hold us to such assessment indefinately?

 

Well sorry for a long post but I'm sure many know how difficult it can be to get all the detail across so any help most appreciated..

 

TIA