Natwest Threatening me to court for overdraft charges

[mrkhm]

Hello,

 

I would be grateful for a bit of advice.

 

I have been so far fighting the whole charges issue with lots of help from this forum (many thanks andyorch and others)....

 

Since the commencement of the OFT case or bank charges and the putting on hold of most claims, i didnt pursue putting my claim through the courts (also as it cost money to do so).

 

However my claim circumstances are different in that I actually owe the bank, not in terms of a loan, but wholly from overdraft charges, £30 here, £30 there £30 here and there over the years it accumilated.

 

I did have an overdraft of total £2000 (from 2 accounts - 1 student, 1 current) and the debt Natwest have been pursuing me for totals £3.3, the £1.3 wholly made up of bank charges.

 

They have been harassing me with an array of different debt collectors since 2006, but i've been fighting back with help from this forum and the hope of a favourable OFT case response, which we obviously did not get.

 

I've pretty much lost a lot of energy, but I guess I have to go to court to defend myself if need be regarding the overdraft charges which i still feel are unfair. I have not been summoned yet but it seems that way any minute now.

 

So i ask, can i still pursue them through the court system, or shall i just wait for them to summons me? And if i am summoned, what shall i do?

 

What are my options?

 

I realise the banks have a victory in terms of consumers not being able to get back money from them, but is it fair for them to win both ways, in having a re-enforced ability to press for debt of which a substantial portion is made from those overdraft charges? I don't have a loan agreement with them.

 

Please kindly advise?

 

I thank you in advance...

[AndyOrch]

HI KHM

 

I surmise you have the account isolated now and have other banking facilities in place.My approach is to leave it to them and DCAs to pass the hot brick around.When and if any summons is received Defend in full,they may have won the OFT decision but they have yet still to justify in front of a DJ that their charges are not unfair at common law and transparent.

Im sure no attempt at litigation will be made by the OC, however some of the other Muppet's might try their chances if it is assigned.

 

Regards

 

Andy;)

[mrkhm]

ok Andy, thanks again as usual for your input, I will have to just wait from their end...

[ieuanMr]

I agree with anyorch entirely. Let them do all the running you could offer to settle, if you think the original overcharge was fair at say £12, agree to pay the £12 + interest at 8%. Atlernatively do nothing and if summoned to court defend vigourously and read up on current law especially on OFT854.

 

Whatever you do be polite and respond quickly within 14 days to any information or court action. Read up on court procedures. At the end of the day it is going to cost them a lot of money to take you to court and cost you hardly anthing, they can't even get costs back from you.

 

Agree to conciliation or arbitration and stall, stall, stall.

 

In the end, for minor amounts, they will give up, and if the charges are made up entirly of overdraft fee plus interest I doubt if they wil persue it. They are running the risk of a judge finding in your favour.

 

regards

 

 

Ieuan

[mrkhm]

Hi again,

 

And thank you also for your input ieuanMr as well as ongoing input from andyorch

 

Please can you give your advice to this scenario if possible.

 

 

I received a letter dated on the 7th from the solicitors acting on behalf of Natwest pursuing me for the entire amount which is inclusive of bank charges with the threat of court action.

 

In their letter they also state that if i dispute liability for the debt I should state my reasons and supply them with documents. (which is just a repeat of previous cycles with other DCA's but in past instances I have always been laying claim to the OFT test case still being in progress etc... and they usually back off, and someone else comes along and the cycle continues).

 

Then I also received another letter also dated on the 7th, this time from Natwest, saying that due to the outcome of the OFT test case they believe their charges to be fair and reasonable so therefore they would not uphold my claim for refund of charges and if i dont respond in 8 weeks they will assume i have given up.

 

From where i am sitting, these 2 letters look pretty synchronized to set up for court action, one letter saying this is the total outstanging figure (which is made up of overdraft + charges) and one saying the charges are valid.

 

I am happy to pay back the overdraft, because that was genuine money borrowed (2100 from a total of 3100 with charges), but i totally disagree with £30 charges for going 50p over drawn or having a bounced cheque etc...especially as these charges were on my student account and quite a few of them after the accounts were inactive i.e. rolling £30/month charges..

 

And, i am still a full time student with no regular income so having a ccj for 3k or being expected to pay this all off sometime this year by direct debit is near to impossible. I have absolutely no income, so i am in no rush to pay this off.

 

anyorch advises i should just wait for them to pass the hot cake around, but i am worried that the synchornization of the above mentioned letters means definite action this time

 

ieuanMr suggests proposing to settle, and also that i should still respond to any communication.

 

So are you suggesting i should reply to the solicitors? But this time what would i say? normally i would say "oft test case ongoing...etc" but we as consumers have been let down and they know this...

 

Are you also suggesting i should respond to the Natwest letter dated on the same day which justifies their charges and assumes if i dont respond in 8 weeks that they are all clear?

 

I am hoping you can advise in light of these new circumstances...

 

(On a personal note, thanks for your time, but please also be aware I am worried of the impact that court defense will have on my studies, as i am in the middle of intense ongoing uni stuff and normally i'm the resilient type but am worried how much of time this will take up from my studies...)

[ieuanMr]

I think the OFT case has now been settled and there is little hope for success. I don't know your case well enough to give secure advise but from what you have told me I would say you have to settle.

 

If you hadn't gone to court you could have gone to the FOS and there the matter wold rst until they made their decision. Now it is up to the Bank and their solicitors, they are in the driving seat.

 

Your exams are the most important and you must concentrate on them.

 

Reply to their letter and tell them you are willing to settle, also tell them you are a strudent and suffering hardship and cannot payback more than x amount evry month. But you do acknowledge the debt but dispute the charges plus interest and that you would be evry willing to listen to a suggeston of a repayment plan. You are also willing to accept arbitration. This should give you time and you can concentrate on your studies.

 

You could tell them for instance that you would accept £12 per instance for bank chrages but not £30.

 

I think there ar emore helpful people around on this site and I have limited knwledge and wish you the best.

 

regards

 

ieuan

[mrkhm]

ok, thanks for your input again...

[AndyOrch]

Hi again,

 

And thank you also for your input ieuanMr as well as ongoing input from andyorch

 

Please can you give your advice to this scenario if possible.

 

 

I received a letter dated on the 7th from the solicitors acting on behalf of Natwest pursuing me for the entire amount which is inclusive of bank charges with the threat of court action. Mitchels or Shoosmiths?

 

In their letter they also state that if i dispute liability for the debt I should state my reasons and supply them with documents. (which is just a repeat of previous cycles with other DCA's but in past instances I have always been laying claim to the OFT test case still being in progress etc... and they usually back off, and someone else comes along and the cycle continues). Does it give you a time limit to respond?

 

Then I also received another letter also dated on the 7th, this time from Natwest, saying that due to the outcome of the OFT test case they believe their charges to be fair and reasonable so therefore they would not uphold my claim for refund of charges and if i dont respond in 8 weeks they will assume i have given up.

 

From where i am sitting, these 2 letters look pretty synchronized to set up for court action, one letter saying this is the total outstanging figure (which is made up of overdraft + charges) and one saying the charges are valid. No true this letter as been sent to every customer complaint and is standard because of the OFT conclusion

 

I am happy to pay back the overdraft, because that was genuine money borrowed (2100 from a total of 3100 with charges), but i totally disagree with £30 charges for going 50p over drawn or having a bounced cheque etc...especially as these charges were on my student account and quite a few of them after the accounts were inactive i.e. rolling £30/month charges.. Argue then

 

And, i am still a full time student with no regular income so having a ccj for 3k or being expected to pay this all off sometime this year by direct debit is near to impossible. I have absolutely no income, so i am in no rush to pay this off. Let them know they wont attempt litigation because they will get a £1 a month back

 

anyorch advises i should just wait for them to pass the hot cake around, but i am worried that the synchornization of the above mentioned letters means definite action this time.IMHO not worth the court costs or time if they know you have no income

 

ieuanMr suggests proposing to settle, and also that i should still respond to any communication. Your Choice

So are you suggesting i should reply to the solicitors? But this time what would i say? normally i would say "oft test case ongoing...etc" but we as consumers have been let down and they know this...Let them know your arguement your income and offer a £10.00 a month providing they reduce the amount by the unfair charges

 

Are you also suggesting i should respond to the Natwest letter dated on the same day which justifies their charges and assumes if i dont respond in 8 weeks that they are all clear? Standard circular up to you if you respond but I would talk with their Sols

 

I am hoping you can advise in light of these new circumstances...

 

(On a personal note, thanks for your time, but please also be aware I am worried of the impact that court defense will have on my studies, as i am in the middle of intense ongoing uni stuff and normally i'm the resilient type but am worried how much of time this will take up from my studies...)

Not much at all providing you conduct the battle

Regards

Andy

[mrkhm]

thanks again andy, as per your advice i will write to their solicitors and explain circumstances...