whats their game???

[Kazzy77]

Hi Everyone...

 

I got a letter from HSBC today that Im not sure how to deal with. Im totally sure its meant to look like something its not. Im not legal minded and I dont trust the bank as far as i can throw them so any advice would be much appriciated.

 

I sent off my prelim and schedule on 11th Aug. The majority I am claiming is for charges applied to my current account but for good measure, I intended to throw in an extra 5 statements from my master card account showing late payments etc. At the time I sent it I could only find one of the mastercard statements (I've now found the rest and were just going to add them to my claim when I file my MCOL). I had a rubbish offer to settle and to go away (£900 less than they owe me) which I wrote back with the standard "I accept but will go for the rest of the money according to my deadlines".

 

However, this morning I recieved a seperate letter regarding the 1 mastercard statment I sent. It goes like this:

 

" Dear Mrs X,

 

I write in response to your letter dated blah blah....have investigated...blah default charges are fair and reasonable blah blah....

 

However, notwithstanding the above I have arranged for a good will payment of £25 to be credited to your credit card account which represents 100% reduction of the charges payable. (this is because i only sent one of the 5 statements) The payment is being made on the basis that you agree that you will not make any further claims or take any legal action on the matter. This gesture of goodwill is without prejuduce to our right to impose and recover default charges in the future. I hope that our offer of a good will payment will settle this matter to your satisfaction. If we dont hear from you within 8 weeks we will consider that u accept this crap" (ok last bit not EXACT quote!)

 

My worries are...

 

Firstly, I want to be able to claim the other money but i also want to reserve the right to claim on interest in the future if the OFT ever says their huge rates of interest is claimable too.

 

What does their offer mean I am sacrificing? Im not sure how to respond and and worried sick of saying the wrong thing to them so they can screw me over later.

 

My mastercard account was over my limit and each month they were taking the payments from my current account but sometimes it would be returned cos I couldnt afford all the charges placed on my current account and therefore, I got into trouble paying for my DDs and standing orders. because of this, they rang me, told me to cut my card up and I had to arrange a payment plan with them. My card became void and that was in january 2005. My outstanding balance was £2591.44 when they did this. However, because i couldnt always keep to the terms of payment when my current account was getting charged upto £180 in charges a month, there wasnt enough to cover the £100 for the card...they have managed to really take me for a ride! My outstanding balance is now £2650 (much more than it was in jan 2005) even though i pay £100 a month. How can this be and does their letter mean they want me to give up any rights to question this later?

 

I know this is a garbled thread, i am between angry and tearful right now because I know theres an ulterior motive behind anything they do and no matter how much i read the FAQs and other threads on this site, Im not very clear on what they are doing and how I push for my rights.

 

Can anyone shed any light and help me with a response? I absolutley promise a nice fat donation to this site if I dont drop dead with stress before i win lol.

 

Kaz xxx

[Hedgehog]

I would ensure I have ALL credit card statements before doing anything, add total amount of charges up for that and then send a letter stating that you accept the £25 as partial...etc but the total is now xxxx (total - £25)

[Hedgehog]

As to the whole balance.. not sure, sounds like a rip off to me?

[Kazzy77]

Is there anything I should say with regards to the terms they are setting? I dont want to sign away my right to claim anything in the future!

[Kazzy77]

Also...

 

I bought a copy of my credit report as i want to work on increasing my scoring for the future and I noticed that there are a few months where hsbc has put a "arrange to pay" on my report, which is true but only because i could never cover the payments of the card cos they were taking so much from my current account in other unlawful charges!

 

Does anyone think this grounds to ask them to amend what they have put on my credit report as well?

 

Thanks

[traceyrmj]

int he faq it says that if you feel it is unfair dont waccept an emmending of your credit record, they have to take it off completely ( will see if i can link to the page) also id write back that if they choose to pay the money into your account you welconme that as part payment but you will not forgo your rights to claim the rest fo your cash back in the normal way ( see the faq)

[Kazzy77]

Thank you tracey.

 

I do have one more concern...

 

Amanda wilkinson said that she had already arranged for the money to be paid into my mastercard account but it was with those terms. Can I still say i do not accept the terms because she has put the money in already without my acceptance.

 

Will this be a problem?

 

Kaz x

[TaylorMade]

If we dont hear from you within 8 weeks we will consider that u accept this crap" (ok last bit not EXACT quote!)

I think the important part lies here - make sure you RESPOND in writing (usual posting proof rules apply). Tell them that you do not accept this as settling the matter (and you might add that the £25 you told them about is actually a fraction of the true amount - due to recently discovered paperwork ).

 

If they have already put it in your account, then that's their problem. Someone on another thread suggested that 'goodwill' should be accepted without changing your plans - but to be on the safe side I'd personally avoid spending it in case they take it back

 

It sounds like you are working to the prescribed 'timescale' - so stick with it.

[Kazzy77]

This is my reply (albeit long winded lol)

Dear Amanda Wilkinson,

Thank you for your letter dated 31st August concerning a gesture of goodwill on your part. Whist I am grateful that you have chosen to reply promptly, I feel uncomfortable with regards to the terms of your offer. I am also concerned that you have paid the £25 into my account without waiting for a response. You made the offer on the understanding that I accept your terms and I am afraid I do not.

I have recovered more statements showing unlawful charges applied to my MasterCard account and have enclosed them for your records whilst requesting you consider extending your gesture to repaying these charges also. With the enclosed schedule amount comes to the total of £55.

The MasterCard Account

I have serious concerns that my MasterCard account balance is actually HIGHER now than it was in January 2005 although it has not been used. I have paid £100 each month but have had charges paid late sometimes purely because of the unlawful charges applied to my current account. I am very put out at your ability to have me owe more on a card 18 months after I have stopped using it although you get a payment of £100 a month from me.

My Credit Report

I am also very concerned that you have placed “arrangements to pay” on several months of my credit report. While this is true, it is because of charges levied unlawfully against the account by your bank and now not only do you get huge monthly payments from me, but I seem to also owe you far more than I did 18 months ago AND you have pulled down my credit scoring. Therefore, a goodwill gesture of £25 whilst giving up my rights seems rather inadequate.

My Targets for Resolution

I would like the removal of all undesirable marks on my credit report in my favour as I feel the “arrangement to pay” is unfairly affecting my credit rating. I feel I would not have been in a position of being forced to make an arrangement to pay if I was not incurring such high charges on my current account. In some months I have been charged as much as £100-£180 in other charges on my current account which, if they had not been unlawfully placed on my account in the first place, there would have been enough money to pay my credit card bill regularly and on time. Therefore, I would like the above mentioned “black marks” removed with the credit agencies. The information shows late payments in October and November 2005 plus an “arrangement to pay” being enforced between December 2005 and June 2006. In no uncertain terms, I would prefer each month cleared appropriately and not simply amended with a note attached.

With reference to my concerns regarding my MasterCard account and how much more the balance is now compared to 18 months ago (as I said, even though I pay £100 each month) I intend to seek a financial expert to review why this is so. I will not sign away any rights to question charges on my account in the future. I believe I am right in saying it is unlawful of you to request I sign away my right to challenge any future unlawful charges and therefore, will not agree to the terms of your goodwill gesture. The fact you have already paid your gesture of goodwill into my account does not mean I accept your terms as you made the credit into my account before I had even received your letter stating you were going to do so.

I am taking this matter to court on the 12th of September 2006 as this adheres to the time scale I have previously set. If you are willing to extent your offer to the enclosed schedules of £55, as well as the £25 already paid PLUS the removal of all unfavourable reports in my credit history then I will be happy to drop the claim in relation to my MasterCard account whilst maintaining the right to legally challenge anything I see as worthy of reimbursement in the future. Until I have spoken with a financial expert regarding the rates of interest you seem to have enforced, I cannot agree to not challenge anything in the future.

I also wish to clarify that if you accept these terms, this settlement will only be in relation to my MasterCard account. My request for repayment of charges relating to my current account has resulted in a part offer from Mr Colin Langdale which I have accepted but I have assured him I will be claiming the outstanding amount with my date to file in court being set for 12th September 2006. So far I have not heard from him with an offer for a full refund, therefore I intend to go ahead with this case and reserve the right to do so WITHOUT ANY RESTRICTIONS.

Should you find my terms for resolution as unacceptable then I will press ahead with this claim on 12th September with the courts also. By signing this letter, I also give you my permission to take back the £25 you have deposited if you do not agree with my terms as I am quite sure I will win this money back in court anyways.

I hope this clarifies my position.

Yours Sincerely

Mrs XXXXXXX

Does this seem ok? I am really bothered that she put the £25 in on the terms that I promise not to make any further claims as she put it into my account BEFORE I HAD EVEN RECIEVED HER LETTER, NEVER MIND WAITING TIL I AT LEAST AGREED!

oopsss....sorry about caps.

What I am worried about is her terms of making no further claims affecting the £2900 i am claiming on my current account.

kaz x

[radiodan]

Seems good to me though I am not a solicitor or financial advisor of any type so please don't take mine as gospel.

I shall be checking my credit report tomorrow for any black smudges and then will be including that in a letter to the HSBC along with my charges (I will probably restart the counter on my 28 days when I do this, just to be fair), but good luck either way duck!

[Kazzy77]

thanks everyone. xx

 

I got my credit report online for £14.95 at equifax.com. I know its a big chunk more than the £2 by post but its instant and reports everything much better than the cheaper way. It gives FAQs and all sorts. I highly recommend it!

 

Kaz xxx