Ombudsman complaint against account closure

[Sarrahk]

Hi folks.. i am, back again to let you know what has been going on between HSBC & I recently!

 

After I recovered my £198 charges from them unfortunately they sought to applied a further £50 in June and £100 in July to my accounts. I wrote in June asking for the £50 to be returned (before I received notification of the further £100 for July) and they wrote and agreed this. I then however realised the additional charge of £100 for July was coming out (as a result of the previosu £50 charge taking it over limits!) so I said i would accept the £50 provided they suspend the £100 pending charge...

 

Their response on Saturday was to say they are closing my accounts (2 current account and 1 baisc account!) with 30 days notice. I understand this is a common situation? Is there anything we can do to stop this?

 

I was initially in a panic but I managed straight away to set up a step account with NatWest which has given me some relief.. I have not signed the paperwork yet but are there any other suggestions for accounts before I do... My credit score is not good enough for another current account!

 

I have since re-read my terms and conditions again with HSBC and according to them they CANNOT close my basic account (although they can of course my current accounts with 30 days notice) unless there has been 3 missed DD or SO's which there has not!! I am therefore going to battle over that I think..

 

I have also contacted Ombudsman today who have said they can help and are sending me a complaints form..

 

Thoughts welcome xx

[Can_Do_Network]

I would be interested to follow this one. I have a similar problem in that I can't get an account elsewhere. If HSBC do close my account I will be in problems! I knew there was a chance of it but I am hoping they don't! (don't tell them!)

[Sarrahk]

Tell me about it! You can still get an account but it is only a basic type (solo with natwest) which doesn not give you cheque book/o draft (probably sensible for me!) or switch card.. not having switch is pain mind cos of online shopping etc

[sopsps]

Hi Sarah, what a pain eh - I think they will be closing my account soon too 'cos I have had simillar sitauaion to you where since my 1st claim they have taken more charges. I managed to get some back through a phone call but have sent an lba (expires today) for a further lot & haven't received an offer yet.

Have you got an overdraft on your account? Do you have to pay it off within the 30 days?

[markd]

Sarah, I have a feeling I am going to be in the same position when my battle with HSBC is over!! I was able to open a Flexaccount with Nationwide, but it has only let me have a cashcard with that, with no problems. As you say, all other banks seem to umm and ahhh and in the end don't let you have a full account, or at least so I've found!! As regards your online shopping, I have recently got myself a pre-pay mastercard, I know you have to put money on it first, and it takes a day or two to be added onto your card, but I have already found it to be a great help when, as you say, doing online shopping or even down at Tesco!! Apparently you can even get your wages paid onto it, so it is almost like having an account with a credit card! It was www. mycashplus.co.uk I intend to run the two together, get my wages paid into Nationwide, and then transfer a lump each month onto the credit card to use.

Hope this is of help!!

[Sarrahk]

I have a £900 o/draft on the account so i am really worrying as it will take me a few months to pay off.

 

They have not said to me yet that i have to pay it within 30 days notice but I know they will be starting to demand it straight after the closure which is going to obviously be another big battle for me!

[Sarrahk]

Sarah, I have a feeling I am going to be in the same position when my battle with HSBC is over!! I was able to open a Flexaccount with Nationwide, but it has only let me have a cashcard with that, with no problems. As you say, all other banks seem to umm and ahhh and in the end don't let you have a full account, or at least so I've found!! As regards your online shopping, I have recently got myself a pre-pay mastercard, I know you have to put money on it first, and it takes a day or two to be added onto your card, but I have already found it to be a great help when, as you say, doing online shopping or even down at Tesco!! Apparently you can even get your wages paid onto it, so it is almost like having an account with a credit card! It was www. mycashplus.co.uk I intend to run the two together, get my wages paid into Nationwide, and then transfer a lump each month onto the credit card to use.

Hope this is of help!!

 

this is very helpful thank you, i will have a look into this!

[sopsps]

hhmmmm... I too have a large OD which I wasn't able to pay off with my first claim. Surely they will allow it to be paid off gradually though, through monthly increments. Let's hope so,

Good Luck. :O)

[007coot]

Anyone who is worried about having to pay off their overdraft and not being able to afford to do so please read my post http://www.consumeractiongroup.co.uk/forum/natwest-bank/11326-sherbornevnatwest.html#post123235 which mentions a fantastic organisation that will help. They are NOT a LOAN company and WILL NOT get you to take out more credit to consolidate. They are the opposite and they are brill! Don't worry;)

 

Good Luck peeps

 

Plese click on the scales if you found this information useful:)

[Sarrahk]

Thank for this, I am already in a debt plan with CCCS and unfo i dare not tell them about this £900 as i got this after o.draft after my debt plan came into play and they might stop my plan because i was not really suppose too:eek: !!

 

(i was really stupid i know, but in my defence this is actually the only additional debt i have since i took out debt plan!)

 

My plan has been absolutely brilliant and i have paid off 1000s since i started it 2 years ago and i dont want to risk losing it so i am just going to have to make my own arrangements to pay it off i think:(

[007coot]

ooops, never mind. You're not alone. I know it's hard. Maybe you could negotiate with them yourself, you could always print off a copy of your budget, show them that you cannot afford it and make them an offer. (CCCS pay all my creditors for me rather than me having to negotiate myself - is this the same for you or did you choose to do it on your own?).

 

I know how you feel. It will all work out right in the end. After all... they can't have what you haven't got can they!

 

Keep smiling:)

[Sarrahk]

yeah CCCS do it all for me and it works brilliantly.

 

I guess i am just going to have to sort this latest mess out myself (i really should learn!) because i dont want CCCS turning round and stopping the plan over this £900 when i have paid off so much over the past couple years and made a good hole in the ridiculous debt i had got myself into. I guess the only other way is to tell white lie to CCCS and see if i can somehow get it incorporated but that is probably not a very good idea!

 

I know i can offer HSBC £100 myself to begin with from my overtime and then probably £50 a month after that because i do work a lot of overtime but depends how difficult they want to make my life which is probably quite a bit right now!!

[rmoody70]

Try the coop bank for a new account they seem quite good.

[juicy]

Hi Sarrah,

 

I opened 2 accounts with the Woolwich, they were really helpful, if you go into the branch they open them there and then and give you the account number and sort code and your cards and pin follow shortly. So if you have any direct debits etc, you can get them set up straight away!

 

HSBC asked me to arrange alternative banking and to clear the accounts and overdraft by the time the 30 days is up!! BUT if you do not have the money I am sure they will come to some sort of arrangement with you.

 

I only had current accounts with them and I did have missed DD and SO, so I doubt I would have a leg to stand on trying to keep them open.

 

The Woolwich account is a basic Visa/Electron card with a cheque book but it's not a cheque guarantee card!! If you run the account ok for 6 months they will then review it and may give you a Premier Direct Account which is the cheque Guarantee card. Also if you pay cheques in it takes 5 days to clear. Most places now take Visa/Electron and as long as there is money in the account you can use the card in the shop to pay.

 

If you need any more info PM me!

 

Good Luck Jodie

[Sarrahk]

thanks for that juicy i will look into it. I am however going to try and challenge HSBC through the ombudsman, they have sent me the forms to give more info about the complaint and have said it is something they could help with.

 

Certainly I know in relation to my basic bank account they cannot close that as i have never had any failed SO'd or DD's which is criteria in their terms and conditions for closing..

 

I have also never had any failed DDs or SOs on the current accounts although I have gone unauthorised overdrawn a few times in recent months. (hence my complaints aboput charges)

 

I do not know how far i will get with the ombudsman but I intend to try as i think this is completely unacceptable and shows ineffective customer service if the minute people complain they are shutting down accounts. I dont think they should be able to get away with it!

[Can_Do_Network]

I think it shows that CAG is rattling the big boys cages if they are resorting to individual action. A bit like taking the 'boys out of the group' and confronting them alone.

 

I applied for a Smile last night and was declined. Natwest declined me last month. Now I have to get an Experian report to see what's on there. If HSBC close my account I'm gonna have problems but I am still going to continue as far as I have to.

 

It seems to me that you have a good case with the ombudsman Sarah!

[Sarrahk]

yeah i think you are quite right "can do", we must certainly be making an impact and they are trying to scare us off but i am not going to give in that easily. "Can do" are you applying for basic accounts because with those you should not have any problems, whilst they are not ideal as you dont have switch an earlier post on my thread has provided a very useful link to a pre paid meastro or visa card you can obtain alongside these with no credit scoring etc (and no additional debt as you load it up with the amoutn of funds you want) see above?

 

I really hope the ombudsman are able to assist and resolve this (in my favour!) so they know we are not going to take this nonsense and these tricks so easily!

[Lurcherlady]

I'm getting a little worried about the bank closing accounts and maybe calling in overdrafts. I am claiming charges on my own personal account. Sent prelim 13 July, no response whatsoever from HSBC so about to send LBA. I don't have an overdraft anymore as forced into Managed Loan last month, just made first payment. I've opened Step account with NatWest so OK there. But we have a joint business account with an agreed overdraft limit of £3000 which we unfortunately have to use although we manage to stay within the limit, fairly regular amounts get paid in and certain times of year bigger chunks get paid in but stuff gets paid out too so we never completely clear the overdraft. My question is could they get spiteful and close this account and call in the overdraft, would they be allowed to do that as my husband's name is also on this business account and he is not part of my claim against HSBC? Anyone have any thoughts or experience of this?

Cheers

[007coot]

Hi Lurcherlady,

Please can you start your own thread within the HSBC forum so that we can track your progress and you should get lots of help and advice about this. As far as I am aware, they cannot close down accounts that are not related to the one you are claiming charges for. They did lower my O/D but they haven't withdrawn it completely (YET!) but this is the account that I am claiming charges to be refunded to.

 

I'm not sure if this information is 100% correct so start a thread with a catchy title and you should get advice from people who know a bit more about it.

 

GOOD LUCK!

[Lurcherlady]

Hi Lisa

I'm too hoping they can't close down other accounts. I do have my own thread - how do I paste it into a message when I'm replying or commenting on other threads??? I'm not as proficient at this lark as most others on this board are!

Cheers

[Sarrahk]

i have completed my ombudsman complaint forms and sent all correspondence to them to try to tackle the proposed account closures...

 

I have also sent reply to HSBC stating my views on their letter saying they are closing my accounts, this includes a paragraph stating that to close my basic account (which has never been the subject of any dispute) would be breach of the terms and conditions as it has never been overdrawn nor any DDs or SOs missed. I am also arguing the current accounts should be kept open as only unauthorised o/drawn cos of repeated charging regime & no DDs and SO's ever missed. Its clearly all just a reaction to complaints i have made over their charges.

 

i will keep you posted on any new developments.

 

Forms have now come through for NatWest step account in mean time and think i will go with that along with a pre paid maestro card so i can still do my online shopping & switching!

 

Can any administrator out there re-name my thread "Ombudsman complaint against account closure" please??

[Can_Do_Network]

Thanks for the update Sarah. I have 3 accounts: 1 current, 1 savings and one Business Account. They could really hurt me if they want to... I'm hoping they don't do this to me. Gonna go look at NatWest Step account now...Getting scared!!

 

**Update**

We are delighted to inform you that your new account has been agreed in principle.

Your documents will be posted to you straight away. Please check these when you receive them, sign where indicated and return in the pre-paid envelope provided.

We may ask you to provide further information. If so, please note that we can only accept original documents, which we will return once your application has been processed.

Once we've received your returned documents we’ll then complete our checks and provide you with a final decision.

We will, where appropriate, automatically register you for OnLine banking and Actionline, our internet and telephone banking services. We will send you more details, together with the information you need to start making use of these services once your account is open.

 

 

Looking good - It may be a basic account, but you can build it up by running it correctly and upgrade as time goes by...I hope they accept - this will give othe CAG users OPTIONS when threatened with account closure.

[Sarrahk]

absolutely, its pretty good, you only get turned down if your bankrupt or fraudulent! They say if you run well for 3 to 6 months they can look into upgrading to a current account (which then if you have no o.draft requires less of high credit score). Pre paid maestro or visa is also great idea to give you bit more flexibility in buying goods this link is great for the pre paid cards as rates much better than other providers https://www.extremecred.com/index.php. I will be getting one of these along with my solo account for natwest.

[Sarrahk]

Thanks for changing my thread title!

[rdm2006]

Hi Sarah

I would also complain to the British Bankers Association as the bank may be breaking the banking code by closing your account just for making a complaint about them.