Where do I start?

[msheridan69]

Hi all,

 

I've been reading through this forum and I can't believe the how low MBNA can stoop in order to intimidate and harass their customers who are facing financial difficulty. Not only that but I've been a customer of theirs for over 10 years and correct me if I'm wrong, they've been illegally charging me with late payment fees. This is something that always bothered me when I'd make a payment a day or two before the account was due to rollover and they wouldn't clear my payment for 3-5 business days and therefore I was always stuck with the late fee.

 

Here's my predicament - I've emigrated to Australia from Ireland 2 years ago with the intent of returning to Ireland, but the GFC has left Ireland in ruins and my family have become very attached to Australia so I don't think I'll be returning for a quite a few years, if at all. We still own a property in Dublin which we are renting out but because of the GFC its negatively geared and just another debt. We thought about selling it but its also gone into negative equity because of the GFC (lost over 200,000)

 

The GFC has also taken its toll on us over here and my wife is no longer working and I've taken a pay-cut. The bottom line is that we have let our MBNA Gold card reach max (14000 euro) and we can't afford to make the expected monthly payments.

 

Two questions...

 

1. What would be your best advise on how to deal with the MBNA debt?

2. Is it really possible to reclaim illegal late fees and interest - how?

 

Also, can you point me in the direction of standard letter templates etc to start dealing with this.

 

Many many thanks,

Martin

[Guest Old_andrew2018]

IMHO you should write asking them to freeze the interest and accept token payments.

What method are you currently using to make the monthly payments.

[msheridan69]

Thanks for your advice.

 

To answer your question, I'm currently making the minimum payment every month before the rollover date althought they have charged my for late payments while my transfer is approved grrrrr! This is becoming way too much of a strain on my cashflow and I won't be able to afford anything like what I've been paying.

 

The payment isn't direct debit - I manually use online banking to transfer the payment every month.

 

I'm really interested in putting my account into dispute and attempting to reclaim illegal interest and charges - is this a worthwhile course of action? How do I start?

 

To be honest, up until recently I was the type of man that always paid his debts as a matter of principal, but as I've learned how the banking and taxation systems of the world illegally take our money and use underhanded means to bully us into believing we are legally liable for charges etc., I've changed my mind about the banks (have you watched Zeitgeist Addendum?)

 

Anyway, I look forward to your reply.

[msheridan69]

Sorry guys - I've searched and searched - where can find an example letter requesting that MBNA freeze interest and accept token payments?

 

cheers

[enamae]

You could try amending this to suit your circumstances.

 

 

Here

 

 

 

enamae

[msheridan69]

Thanks enamae.

 

I'll send the letter tomorrow and post something again as soon as they reply.

 

I've been reading through quite a few threads and it seems that if you have an MBNA card from before 2005 that they aren't entitled to take late payment fees etc from your account... my card is pre 2000, 1998 I think and I don't recall ever signing a CCA, as far as I remember the account was setup over the phone - any thoughts on this?

 

cheers

[Cardiac55]

From what I can understand the debt is unenforceable and cannot be collected in Australia.

[msheridan69]

Hi Cardiac55 - thanks for your reply.

 

You could be right... I changed phone numbers a while ago and they cut off my credit card even though I was making well above the monthly repayments. I called the MBNA center and they put me through to the Credit Risk department - they said they tried to call me and they couldn't get through so they canceled the card so as I would call them. They wanted to know if I still had a bank account in Ireland, I told them I had so they reinstated my card, but about a week later they canceled it again. This time when I called they came up with some cock and bull that my card was used in a coffee shop in London and they needed to cancel it and send me a new one. They insisted on sending it by registered courier - wow I thought, how considerate - I've had my card canceled due to fraud a couple of times over the years and they usually just post it. They obviously wanted to confirm my address here in Oz. They certainly are underhanded and crafty, I'll give them that. The funny thing is I've moved since then (nearly a year ago) and I just have my mail forwarded.

 

I have considered just ignoring them and defaulting, but something inside me says I shouldn't, but then again, what I've learned in recent years about the banking and lending systems makes me want to 'give them the up yours' since they've been extorting money from me for years.

 

If I was to default I don't think I could put up with the harassing phone calls and receiving bad credit rating back in Ireland. Would this effect me if I was to sell my house back there in the near future?

 

I think I'll pursue the CCA route and look for a Final Settlement of some form, but we'll see how it goes - watch this space!

 

thanks guys

[msheridan69]

Hey everyone - just a quick update...

 

I sent a letter to MBNA stating that I wasn't in a position to pay my full monthly payment, only token payments, and could they freeze interest etc (as per enamae's previous post) - well that was on 29th of August and I haven't heard back from MBNA with regard to the request.

 

However, last week I received my monthly bill with late payment fees, interest etc and another letter today (dated 30th of September) stating:

 

"A payment has still not been received and a late and overlimit fee has been applied to you account...blah, blah...Should you have difficulty in meeting this request, please contact us immediatly on freephone 1800 ..."

 

I didn't make the any token payments yet - I guess I should pay something, say 50 euro or something???

 

Any ideas what to do next?

 

Cheers

[msheridan69]

Hi all,

 

Just got a letter from MBNA stating that I'm 2 payments behind and that if an account is 1 month in arrears is does register negatively with the Irish credit Bureau.

 

They included an 'Income, Asset, Expenditure Form' for me to fill out so as they can assess me for reduced payments and suppressed late fees etc. They say that they are unable to accept reduced payments if I do not supply all information required on the form. I'd prefer not to give them all of this information - do I have to?

 

At this stage do I request a CCA and put the account into dispute?

 

Looking forward to some more advise.

 

Cheers:confused:

[ksenianadja]

A Friend Of Mine Recently Became Unemployed And Had To Do The Same. Although We All Hate Giving These Details, It May Work In Your Favour To Do This And Suggest A Realistic Figure That You Know You Really, Really Can Afford Each Month. It May Be A Smaller Amount Than They Would Prefer, But All They Will Do Is Stop Card Usage And If You Have Many Other Outgoings, They Will Be Happy To Be Gaining Back The Money Rather Than None At All. You Know It Wont Go Away And It Is Better To Have An Agreement In Place, Which Will Register Better With Credit Agencies. To Dispute It At This Stage Would Be More Damaging. It Is Far, Far Better To Talk To Them, But Must Re-iterate, You State An Amount You Can Reasonably Afford. If You Dont Act Now With Them, You Will Only Increase Charges. Good Luck! P.s. My Friends Credit Card Debts Come Close To 30k!

[msheridan69]

Latest Update...

 

I received another letter from MBNA today stating that they will not be renewing my card when it expires in November, ok....

 

The letter states they must provide me with the information under Section 54 of the Consumer Credit Act 1995. They say they have taken the decision in accordance with section 15b of the terms and conditions (which I have no idea what the content is).

 

They also state that the account remains open and I must keep to the terms and conditions while paying down the balance, and this means that existing interest and fees will still apply and you must ensure that yuo continue to maintain the minimum monthly payment.

 

OK calling all experienced caggers - at this point they are quoting from the CCA and I think it's a perfect opportunity to make a request for it - thoughts please

 

Cheers

[msheridan69]

Help?

[MaryanneI]

Ive just got off the phone to the pigs!!!!!!!!!!!! Thats what they are and dont let anyone tell you otherwise.............

do you pay payment protection????????? i did for 4 years and during that time i lost my job. i got no payment protection at all with my account. im trying to get them to help me with my situation and im getting nowhere with them.............

they put me up on the ICB for a few days late payments which were days late. paid up in full by the next month and with extra money too. they dont care aboout people. they really dont. if they had an office to go into maybe they'd see their customers as people and not money trees.

They never give you answers to any questions. ive had the phone hung up on me and shouted at too.

they have ruined any chances of me getting a mortgage and im going to hound them with phone calls untill someone in that shambles of a company helps me.............

just bombard them with phone calls.............