Business account over 19,000 in bank charges.** SETTLED IN FULL ***

[dolfos]

Thanks for all support guys as always you are all fantastic and keep things going many a time believe me I have sat with my husband and we have thought what's the point but then I read other peoples stories on here and I get some wondersfil advice and support and I know we are going to see this through just like i hope everyone else see's their claims through too.

The article from daily mail was much appreciated on my local news last night and tonight(spotlight) they have been discussing the bank charges issue and it is really being driven home to everyone what the banks are doing and have been doing is wrong. It's about time the goverment did get involved. The article painted a clear picture of what is happening regarding bank charges being a large factor in debt spiralling. I also saw the CAGgot mentioned on spotlight tonight which is fantastic.

No news from Mr Cuff regarding decline of 13K for full and final settlement

but will keep posted. Claim will be filed next Friday regardless of weather I hear from him or not. I think we have been more than patient and any judge would see that incourt.

[HSBCrusher]

Cag got onto spotlight?

I missed that.

[crispqueen]

(Edited to say we were making a profit,),Hi - like yourself Dolfus, only different if you know what I mean..Hubby & I owned house and in our case were also business partners..to cut a very long story short...we wouldve paid off our business loan with the amount of charges we had in relation to our new venture. It lasted 2 years, was hard work - especially with 3 wee ones and me doing working all day (sometimes 14 days in a row, and also doing the banking ,accounts,flyers,wages,etc ( and it was my first return to work in 9 years)...we werent asking for much - just a decent livable income- we dont even drive...anyway, hubby gave up £30k a year job to do this.. for bout half of that between us. So , sorry for rambling but we ended up having to sell our house or go bankrupt. Or as I like to call it, I..`jumped before I was pushed`We now rent the house we use to own...(another long story). very unsettling but I have learned that this sort of thing is going to take a lot of work to put right but an awful lot of patience ...which is constantly being wore thin by these hooks that the FO is allowing to operate on the High Street.

Anyway -It was good to read your thread and I wish you all the best of luck ...I always like to think of `payback time`

[Guest Tracey284]

Below is an article from the Daily Mail (enjoy reading!!!!)

Customer sends bailiffs in to seize bank's computers

 

Last updated at 23:55pm on 19th January 2007

Declan Purcell: Striking a blow for the customer

 

 

 

 

A man who was fed up with paying massive bank charges decided to give one of the high street giants a taste of its own medicine.

When Royal Bank of Scotland refused to refund £3,400 charges that Declan Purcell believed he was owed, he sent in the bailiffs.

Stunned customers at his branch of RBS watched as debt collectors seized four computers, two fax machines and a till filled with cash.

The branch manager was told that the items would be sold unless RBS came up with the money owed to Mr Purcell.

Only when the manager gave an undertaking that the debt would be paid did the bailiffs leave.

Mr Purcell said: "I think the bank was pretty shocked when the bailiffs went in. But my view is that this is exactly what they would have done to me."

The move, which will raise a cheer from millions of other bank customers, is part of a consumer fightback against bank charges, which net an estimated £4.5 billion every year.

Every time a current account customer goes overdrawn by as little as £1 most banks will charge around £28, even though the administration cost is only about £4.50.

Then every cheque, direct debit, or card transaction that goes through or is bounced incurs another charge of up to £38.

The Office of Fair Trading is investigating whether banks have implemented these charges unlawfully.

The Daily Mail's Fair Play on Charges campaign and that run by the Consumer Action Group have helped thousands reclaim charges in the past year.

Like other customers Mr Purcell, 48, from East London, had warned his bank that he was prepared to go to court to claim back charges he believes were imposed unlawfully.

In June last year he demanded the refund of £3,400 charges he accrued during the previous six years while running a motorcycle dealership.

RBS ignored the claim so in October Mr Purcell filed an online application to get the money back through the county court.

After 30 days the bank had not responded and so on December 10 the court ruled in Mr Purcell's favour.

It ordered RBS to pay the charges and £120 court costs. When RBS again failed to respond Mr Purcell got the court to give him a warrant of execution, allowing him to order debt collectors to reclaim items from the bank equal in value to the amount he was owed.

Finally on Monday, January 8, a team of debt collectors walked into the busy Camden Town branch in North London, demanded to see the manager, showed their court order and announced that they were repossessing items.

Mr Purcell, who now works for London Underground, said: "I was dismayed by the bank's reaction when I made my claim for a refund – it was so rude and arrogant.

"They thought they were above the law, so it is great to know that customers can use the law in the same way the bank does to get money they are owed."

A spokesman for RBS said: "We are looking into this as a matter of urgency, but early indications suggest that unfortunately due to an administrative error, the bank failed to defend the claim leading to a default judgment being obtained on the branch and a resulting warrant.

"The confusion was cleared up at the branch."

Marc Gander, who set up campaign website Consumer Action Group, which helps consumers get refunds from their banks, said: "I am quite sure that Mr Purcell will not be the last person to send bailiffs in to his bank.

"The continued operation by UK high street banks of their unlawful charges regimes will see to that. "The heavy-handed debt collecting approach is something that the banks have been handing out to their customers for years. Mr Purcell simply gave them a bit of their own back."

[photoman]

Here's the link also......... for anyone who wants to see a photograph of someone that will be probably be printed out and pasted over every dartboard in every coffee room of every Bank in the UK !!!

 

Customer sends bailiffs in to seize bank's computers | the Daily Mail

[Guest Tracey284]

Thanks Photoman - I also had the photo but wasn't sure if it was the right thing to do to put his photo on here. Mind you, it has been all over the daily paper!!!! Great story though. I would rather have the cash than their computers!

[andrew1]

Just a moot point on this, I notice that Mr Taylor - the MP, referred to the charges as 'illegal'. My impression is that they are 'unlawful' at common law and not illegal - there is a difference.

[dolfos]

Thanks Photoman - I also had the photo but wasn't sure if it was the right thing to do to put his photo on here. Mind you, it has been all over the daily paper!!!! Great story though. I would rather have the cash than their computers!

 

EXCELLENT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I don't think any other bank will want this same free advsertisment in the news. The people are deffinately winning!

:D :D

[LizzyBee]

Hi Dolfos, firstly can I say what fantastic post's this thread has had, both from yourself and all the other contributees. All power to you, hope you take them all the way.

 

I don't wish to appear to be hijacking your thread but I did post something in the Yorkshire Bank forum under business accounts but had no replies. I am trying to recover charges on behalf of a friend totalling approx £18,000.00. He is also a soul trader, his account with the bank is 'Personal Name T/A Business Name'. All the Prelims and LBA have been sent. Had a reply yesterday saying that as his was a business account he could not reclaim the charges. From reading this thread and some others like it I now believe this to be untrue. Although I know your circumstances are a bit different I was wondering if you had had a similar response and if so what was your reply to the bank. Would appreciate any info you can supply.

 

Lizzy.

[dolfos]

Hi Dolfos, firstly can I say what fantastic post's this thread has had, both from yourself and all the other contributees. All power to you, hope you take them all the way.

 

I don't wish to appear to be hijacking your thread but I did post something in the Yorkshire Bank forum under business accounts but had no replies. I am trying to recover charges on behalf of a friend totalling approx £18,000.00. He is also a soul trader, his account with the bank is 'Personal Name T/A Business Name'. All the Prelims and LBA have been sent. Had a reply yesterday saying that as his was a business account he could not reclaim the charges. From reading this thread and some others like it I now believe this to be untrue. Although I know your circumstances are a bit different I was wondering if you had had a similar response and if so what was your reply to the bank. Would appreciate any info you can supply.

 

Lizzy.

 

Hi Lizzy,

I can deffinately say in our case we certainly could claim HSBC did not tell us we couldn't although I have heard others say they have to them. The diffrence is though you are relying on the unfair contracts law under common law where by charges can not be penal in nature and the charges must be only the true cost to cover the banks costs of returning a DD standing order etc. We all know it does not cost 30 quid to return a DD etc and infact the charges make lots of profit for the banks. They certainly spare no victims in small business accounts.

I would also recommend putting in a complaint with the financial ombudsman to try and push them into some more stronger action however do not rely on them doing much it will be down to you to do lots of letter writing and emailing etc. You have a really strong case the only word of warning would be the fact they may close your business account so be prepared for that. If I can help I will try PM if you lant anytime. there are lots of fantastic people on this site with lots of knowledge and advice. If your willing to dp the work it is all achieveable and you are really not alone. I earge any small business to go after their charges. GO FOR IT!!!

[dolfos]

Hi Lizzy,

I can deffinately say in our case we certainly could claim HSBC did not tell us we couldn't although I have heard others say they have to them. The diffrence is though you are relying on the unfair contracts law under common law where by charges can not be penal in nature and the charges must be only the true cost to cover the banks costs of returning a DD standing order etc. We all know it does not cost 30 quid to return a DD etc and infact the charges make lots of profit for the banks. They certainly spare no victims in small business accounts.

I would also recommend putting in a complaint with the financial ombudsman to try and push them into some more stronger action however do not rely on them doing much it will be down to you to do lots of letter writing and emailing etc. You have a really strong case the only word of warning would be the fact they may close your business account so be prepared for that. If I can help I will try PM if you lant anytime. there are lots of fantastic people on this site with lots of knowledge and advice. If your willing to dp the work it is all achieveable and you are really not alone. I earge any small business to go after their charges. GO FOR IT!!!

 

Sorry but re reading realised you are at LBA stage. If you are confident the charges are all reclaimable ie for returned DD's, cheques and overdraft excess then go ahead with the court claim. Also when you write to financial ombudsman tell them the bank have ignored your letters and not had the courtesey to respond leaving you with no other option but to proceed with court proceedings. This is what we had to do in order to invoke any response. The fact they are saying you can not reclaim unlawful charges is frankly a load of bull and they know it. With the amount that your friend is claiming they are probably not thinking you will seriously take this all the way but you must. Also you would over 15K go into multi track which is in your favour as it means full disclosure is mandatory and the bank would be forced to disclose their true costs. In my opinion none of them want to open this flood gate as they know they are unlawful charges. It may even be worth mentioning that you are aware of the multi track system however be prewarned if it did go to court and it is a BIG IF if your friend lost they would be liable for costs. Thebank may play on this factor but in my opinion the chances of you losing if you have done everything correctly are minimal.

[LizzyBee]

Thanks for the reply. Do you think then that we should ignore the letter and go straight to fast track or should I try to compose a reply and give them another seven days. Also do you know if there is a different set of forms for fast track? Thanx.

[elsinore]

Lizzy, as Dolfos says, YB are talking bunkum when they refute your right to reclaim charges on a business account.

 

Just press on with your claim in the County Court, they will decide which track it should be allocated to. Because it is a business account you should avoid any reference to Consumer Credit Act in your particulars of claim.

 

Caro is inviting contributions here http://www.consumeractiongroup.co.uk/forum/yorkshire-bank-clydesdale-bank/63052-business-claims-against-yorkshire.html

and no doubt will offer you better advice than I.

 

Good luck with your claim:)

 

Elsinore

[LizzyBee]

Thanx Elsinore. Have now started my own thread for the business account and one for my personal account. Am watching Booth v Yorkshire Bank with interest.

 

Best of luck to everyone with their claims. As I said to Caro my confidence is growing by the minute with all the help from this site.

[Guest Tracey284]

Hi Dolfos, just wondered what stage you are up to? Has your case been settled and if so how much for? Did you have to file the AQ or did they send an offer before this was due? No sign of Mr. C.! Has taken to ignoring correspondence as have the solicitors!

[tiaposy]

Dolfos,

I just wanted to wish you the best of luck with your claim.

We too are going though a hard time with our business bank account, not on the same scale, but over the last 18 months they have charged us £2,800 in fees alone. Our overdraft is only £3000 and the bank manager had the cheek to ring me the other day to arrange a meeting to 'nibble' at our overdraft in order to get rid of it!! I felt like mentioning the fees to him, but at this stage I am only just started out on claiming my bank charges, and till we are in better shape financially, I cannot risk the bank closing down our business & personal accounts. But I will get them, and I cannot wait for the day.....

[ED1237]

Hi Dolfos,

Nice offer. Perhaps they misread the amount and thought you had the decimal point in the wrong place. I noticed previously you had been in contact with a solicitor, but didn't qualify for legal aid. You could ask him about after the event insurance. This is a policy Solicitors take out on behalf of thier clients to cover legal costs in the event that they lose. It is charged as a % of the estimated costs, but the premium can be defered.

[dolfos]

Hi Dolfos,

Nice offer. Perhaps they misread the amount and thought you had the decimal point in the wrong place. I noticed previously you had been in contact with a solicitor, but didn't qualify for legal aid. You could ask him about after the event insurance. This is a policy Solicitors take out on behalf of thier clients to cover legal costs in the event that they lose. It is charged as a % of the estimated costs, but the premium can be defered.

 

Thanks guys for all your continued supprt. Things have been happening and I do have some news I hope to officially share with you guys soon. Please be patient with me I am still here!

Anyone going after business bank charges do not back down. If you are strong enough to lock horns and you do not run before you can walk you can get some of that hard earned cash flow back.. I wish we had done this and knew how wrong the banks were while my husbands business still had a chance, then maybe we would have not been in our current situation but then I guess alot of things would have been difffrent and how often do we wish we had alitle hindsight.

Anyway just wanted to say I'm still here and hopefully will be able to share more soon.

Thanks again for all your support guys. Some interesting TV on Watchdog tonight didn't you thnk???

[elsinore]

Hey, we're still rooting for you, dolfos. I wouldn't miss this thread for anything!

 

Yes, Watchdog was pretty good, made better by the fact that there was no mouthpiece from the BBA, spouting nonsense!

 

Also, a piece on BBC1 10 o'clock News, no less.

 

I'm looking forward to the day when we see a TV interview with a successful business account claimant.

 

Elsinore

[Guest Tracey284]

Great to know you are keeping up the fight. Watch this space with regards to business account - don't want to tempt fate, but things are moving along.

[make_me_happy]

Not trying to steal the thread, but can someone out there with business claim experience help me please....

 

My thread is:

http://www.consumeractiongroup.co.uk/forum/hsbc-bank/71876-make_me_happy-hsbc.html

 

Many thanks

[photoman]

Dolfos

Been a while?

Any news your able to share with us ?

[Guest Tracey284]

Hi Dolfos, how's it going?

 

In reply to Make me Happy, if you want to PM me I can let you know my experience or start a thread and let me know what it is.

[dolfos]

hiya,

i know it's been a while but didn't want tojeopardise anything. Anyway all seems ok now. HSBC paid up in full. In total we settled in the end for 21,498UKP!!!!!!! :-D

 

However this has all been off set against their debt in the IVA as we knew from the beginnning.

The good news though is our creditors have agreed to reduce the term in light of our success to three years instead of five years and the modification to this effect has now been agreed which is fantastic:) .

 

I am really glad we have gone through all this worry and stress and I could not have done this without all the great support from everyone.

This means so much to me and my family.

 

The amount of 21K is being sent to the DCA who bought the debt from HSBC and in effect HSBC will be wiped out of the IVA.

I would encourage any business account holder to get on and claim. No bank wants to go to court. Even for the amount we went after. It would be lovely to have had this money in our hands but then to us we knew this was extremely unlikely in our given situation and it was not about the money so much more about saying no to the banks who had a massive impact on getting us into our current financial stresses. I now know we are not by any means the only people effected and banks are not too big to be fought and just because of their size it shouldn't mean we all nod our heads and agree with what they say.

For us this has been a real journey good and bad and the achievement of actually recouping this money even though not in a tangable form to us has been massive to us.

There was lots of letter back and forth but I think if you all are prepared to take it as far as the courts with that preparation and time put in you will be succesful. This is not a get rich quick [problem].

Again a massive thankyou to all of you. This website and all you guys massive massive thanks is owed to you all

THANKYOU

xxxx

 

If I can give advice or help please feel free to PM me.

[givememymoney]

What a fantastic result and such a relief well done for sticking in there and winning. I am sure your story will give a lot of hope to other people in similar situations.