NATWEST REFUSE TO REFUND BENEFITS after Money Shop take extra UNAUTHORISED payments

[u have to be kidding]

My partner took out a money shop loan, he lost his job as the company relocated, on jobseekers.

 

Agreed to pay £5.00 every two weeks out of his jsa.

 

They asked him to take proof of income etc, incomes and outgoings, to the local shop, for them to copy the info and fax to head office, 10/05/2012.

 

The man in the shop said he would fax it in the morning11/05/2012.

 

My partner checked his bank account this morning and they had taken £25.00 twice, so £50.00 in total.

 

They have had £55.00 IN TOTAL THIS MONTH.

 

That was all the money we had in the world for the next two weeks.

 

Spoke to moneyshop, and got no help from the man on the phone, asked to speak to a superviser and he point blank said no.

 

He said we owe it and they have taken it, and they have every right basically.

 

Needless to say he got very upset.

 

I rang the financial ombuds who are firing a letter off to them.

 

He couldnt get a crisis loan as time ran out and they did not have time to sort anything.

 

They basically have stolen the money from my partners account,

and left us with nothing and I have a disabled adult and partner to support.

 

Any advice what to do next,

 

I cant believe how heartless this company is.

[renegadeimp]

He needs to go to the bank and get it disputed. Then if the bank or money shop refuses to refund it, go to the local police and report it as theft. Get a crime number and the bank will be forced to refund the money. Since it is money that the government gave you, it should be relatively straight forward to get it back.

[u have to be kidding]

Gosh thankyou for a lightning quick answer!

 

Unfortunately the banks in our area are closed over the weekend and we cant afford to get anywhere else.

 

He spoke to the bank and they just told us it was our problem with the money shop.

 

They still had his card number.

 

Since then we have reported the card lost or stolen, and he will close that account at the branch on Monday.

 

Never again, and the man at moneyshop seriously enjoyed my partners distress.

 

It was appalling, and I cant attend work tomorrow as I cant afford to get there, and I dont get paid if I'm not there

 

Thankyou for your advice though, we shall have to take it further on Monday, after a walk of 3 miles.

[renegadeimp]

Question, how was the amount paid?

Was it by visa card?

 

If so, phone the bank and tell them to start visa chargeback proceedings.

 

Also, make sure any and all CPA's on the bank account are cancelled.

 

Get on the phone and talk to the banks telephone team, and also get in touch with money shop by letter or email.

[u have to be kidding]

The £5.00 was paid by debit card and then he looked at his account and it said pos,

had to ring the bank to find out what is was, and it was moneyshop.

 

We have emailed the money shop and got a reply saying it takes up to 8 weeks for it to be investigated!

Nothing else.

 

He has cancelled the card now, well reported it stolen, so they have to give a totally new one,

but he will be moving his next payment to another account.

 

Hopefully they wont be able to access that.

 

The money shop knows he is on JSA, but they care not a jolt. you have been very kind x

[renegadeimp]

Make sure you cancel the CPA. Then as soon as you can, speak to your local police as they have stolen money from you. Money that the government gave you to live on.

 

You NEED that crime number so you can force the bank to issue an immediate refund. If they do not refund the money then they are complicit with the PDL for theft.

[u have to be kidding]

Well the bank said we have to go to branch to cancel cpa, but theres nowhere open the weekend, tht we can acess with no money, but we will get there Monday, and if no joy straight to the copshop! I hope people read this and stop the thieving monsters from ruining their lives.....Thanks again much appreciated

[renegadeimp]

I'll give an admin of the site a PM and link to this thread for you. They should be able to clarify it in a bit more detail for you.

[BRIGADIER2JCS]

Hi I've been asked to take a look at your problem.

Just going to read it through and I'll be back.

[u have to be kidding]

thankyou its not a lot of money but it is when you dont have a penny x

[BRIGADIER2JCS]

Ok is the bank branch open on Saturday mornings?

 

What they have done is wrong and must be reported,

this is difficult to get round now if the banks don't open

in your area.

 

I have alerted the site team and one of our benefits experts

I hope will be able to help.

 

I can certainly over the weekend put together a formal complaint

for you.

[BRIGADIER2JCS]

This also needs to be brought to the notice of your MP.

[u have to be kidding]

I look forward to a formal complaint letter.

 

I'm not very good at this sort of thing but am learning.

 

If we had enough money then we would be able to get to an open branch, but we are miles from one.

 

I have not had anything to do with mp's, but this will undoubtedly happen to others on a regular basis.

 

I can't thank you enough for your help.

 

I will signpost anyone here who needs good quality advice from people who know what they are talking about!

[BRIGADIER2JCS]

OK you can PM me with any details that are sensitive and

not for the open forum so I can build a complaint around

the facts, this can then be used to alert your MP.

[dx100uk]

there are three thngs to clairify that you must exhaust with your bank

via telephone banking line now.

 

firstly is chargeback.

 

many banks mis-interpret the chargeback rules

 

it is for them to refund within 24hrs, THEN do their investigations.

 

NOT the otherway around.

 

keep going up the chain until you get a resolution.

 

http://whatconsumer.co.uk/visa-debit-chargeback/

 

................................

 

We have been telling people to put a letter into their bank instructing them not to make any payments under any circumstances to these companie

http://whatconsumer.co.uk/visa-debit-chargeback/s - it works!

 

banks MUST follow written intructions from their customers !

This fsa guide has now been updated:

 

http://www.fsa.gov.uk/pubs/consumer_...ghts_guide.pdf

 

Here's the text:

 

Cancelling a regular

card payment:

 

When you give your credit or debit card

details to a company and authorise

them to take regular payments from

your account, such as for a gym

membership or magazine subscription,

it is known as a ‘recurring transaction’

or ‘continuous payment authority’.

These are often confused with direct

debits, but do not offer the same

guarantee if the amount or date of the

payment changes.

In most cases, regular payments can

be cancelled by telling the company

taking the payments. However, you

have the right to cancel them directly

with your bank or card issuer by telling

it that you have stopped permission for

the payments. Your bank or card issuer

must then stop them – it has no right to

insist that you agree this first with the

company taking the payments.

Be aware, though, that you will still be

responsible for paying any money that

you owe.

 

.............................. lastly

 

You should submit any first right of appropriation ideally 7 days in advance of each deposit expected; in this case that was not possible to do because you were unaware the credit was in its way so you should certainly plead to their better nature to return the credits on the grounds of hardship.

 

 

JSA took four months to process? Horrendous time to wait. Why was this? If the delay was not as a result of waiting for documentation/additional information from you and is entirely their doing, you may be able to claim a payment from them as a result of their maladministration. If you have suffered financially as a result of their maladministration, they may well pay not only a consolitaty payment but your bank charges in addition. Mention that they have paid into your account when you specifically asked them not to, and provide your bank statements as evidence of the hardship caused, and of the charges.

 

 

This however does little to alleviate the immediate issue; you can either set up a new account which doesn't allow charges such as a basic bank account or a post office card account (not clear whether the second account is yours or a third party), or ask that your JSA is paid by sending you a postal girocheque which you can then cash at the post office.

 

 

If you have no funds whatsoever to meet your immediate needs, apply for a crisis loan as an alignment to benefit.

 

 

 

HTH

 

dx

[u have to be kidding]

Hi and thankyou.

So you are saying we are within our rights to ask the bank to refund the money, by telephone, when they said earlier that they cannot help us? Which is what we are going to try again in a moment? It's awful being this desperate. Speaking to you takes away some of the anxiety ......

[renegadeimp]

You are 100% within your rights. Especially since the money is state benefits.

[u have to be kidding]

Okay here we go again!Fingers crossed x

[renegadeimp]

Dont give in to what they say. Let them know that if they refuse to refund or start chargeback proceedings for the state benefits, then you will be considering legal action as the bank is now complicit in theft. Also tell the rep that you require their full name and employee ID as you will be calling them to court as a witness. This is usually enough to scare them into doing what you want, or to escalate it to a manager.

[u have to be kidding]

Well that never worked, said we will have to take it up with the Company, again! Twice in one day told the wrong thing. My partner asked that they may speak to me and that he was giving permission for them to talk to me and she refused????Another dead end

[renegadeimp]

They have no right to insist you take it up with the company. If you used a visa card, they MUST refer you to the visa team. Since it is also state benefits, they are required to refund the money asap. If your partner tells the bank that you are now an authroised thrid party that is dealing with your financial affairs, then the bank cannot refuse to ignore that.

 

Question. What bank are you with, and what type of debit card does your partner hold?

 

Next time you call them, DEMAND to be put through to a senior manager immediately. Do not let a minimum wage front desk rep tell you what is happening.

[BRIGADIER2JCS]

It will get sorted!!!

[u have to be kidding]

Well rang again, passed from piller to pillar! Bank given us another number but it's not open till Monday, so no hope of getting any money back for the weekend. Three times have spoken to the bank today seriously none of them know about giving our money back, and then investigating! Training issues?

Thanks guys for your help. My partner also explained that he has communication difficulties and would they talk to me, nope!

[u have to be kidding]

Its a basic account debit card, has the visa sign on the back. He told them he has communication difficulties and they still said no. What a bag of worms I have opened.......

[renegadeimp]

Actually you are in the right. Theyre digging themselves a very deep hole. You need to contact the vank and speak to the visa team. Then start chargeback proceedings with them. Make sure you tell them that the money was state benefits and you want them returned immediately..