Suga1982 v The Bank

[suga1982]

Hi everyone

 

First of all i would like to say what a great site this is, packed full of very interesting information..

 

I've just e-mailed my first letter to Lloyds TSB.... I'll keep you updated

[suga1982]

HELP ME!!!!

Right my pregnant brain has got me again and i've only gone and sent the wrong letter!!!

I sent the Letter Before Action as my first letter!!

Plaese advise me on what to do

Many thanks

[lee6370]

You are only required to give reasonable notice to the bank to resolve the situation, however it's generally accepted that a month is a reasonable time.

 

Which is why there is 2 letters.

 

However if you have spoken to the bank about this prior to your letter then you can take that time into account.

 

If you haven't spoken to the bank, I would suggest that you write another letter at the end of the 14 days, along the line of;

 

"Having taken legal advice, I now realise that my initial deadline of 14 days, could be considered to be unreasonable. Therefore in order to give you sufficient time to resolve this issue positively, I will extend my deadline by a further 14 days.

 

However there will be no further extensions, etc"

 

Some may agrue that the bank will think your weak and try to take advantage, but they will try anyway.

 

Your other option is to press ahead with just giving them 14 days notice, chances are you will still win, but do you want to take a chance?

[suga1982]

Thanks for your reply, i really dont know where my head is at the moment

 

I've just received an e-mail back from them

 

 Thank you for the e-mail. 
I am sorry to learn that you appear unhappy over the level of charges you have incurred on your Lloyds TSB account. 
Under the circumstances, your e-mail has been passed on to the Manager of the Complaints Unit within Service Recovery. I have asked that he notes your comments and issues raised and arranges for a response be sent to you at the earliest opportunity.
In case you haven't received a copy of our leaflet called 'How to voice your concerns' I've attached one to my e-mail. This tells you all you need to know about resolving your complaint with us.
? 
Regards 
Keith Boden 
Lloyds TSB - Service Recovery 
Birmingham

[lee6370]

Ahhh Keith, yes I remember him well.

 

They do reply very quick, although they say nothing in the process.

[suga1982]

Oh my god!

 

I've just got a letter this morning of another charge on my account.. £30 for being over drawn for a few hours! How can they do this!!!

 

I dont even have alot of money going into my account, i'm a mum and dont work and got another baby on the way!!!

 

Lloyds Tsb make me sooooo angry!

[lee6370]

When you put in your next letter, add this charge to the amount your claiming and also point out why the amount your claiming has risen.

 

They just won't listen or learn will they.

[suga1982]

Thanks for your reply

[suga1982]

Just received the same letter as my dad(fizzbin)

 

Re: Account Charges for Overdraft Excesses and Returned Items

Thank you for taking the time to contact us about your account.

I understand that

· You feel that the charges you have incurred are unlawful.

• You are unhappy with the amount of charges you have incurred as a result of being overdrawn and from returned items.
  
• You have requested that all charges incurred should be refunded for the past 4 years.

When you become a customer, we give you details of any charges for the day to day running of your account. Details of our charges are also available from our branch staff, telephone helpline or our website.

For the vast majority of our customers banking with us can be completely free as charges are not made for services such as debit cards, cash machine withdrawals, balance requests, statements, cheque books and Internet banking. We also do not charge for processing Direct Debits and Standing Orders when they are paid through our customers' accounts.

One of the few services we apply charges for are when a customer does not have enough money in their account to meet payments they have requested us to make. If customers think they may exceed any limit they have, we urge them to contact us to discuss their requirements. Any requests for further lending are then assessed in line with our usual credit policy. Similarly, when we return an item, we are preventing a customer from exceeding their limit, and again as we explain clearly to our customers, this process incurs a charge

Typically, we do not levy customers an excess overdraft fee the first time they go overdrawn without agreement, as long as it hasn't happened in the past twelve months and we limit excess fees to a maximum of three occurrences in any one month.

As a business we are entitled to set charges to cover additional work. These charges are not hidden and are notified in the guide to banking charges leaflet we produce. We advise our customers to ensure cleared funds are available in their accounts to meet payments due. You will also note that in the front of each cheque book we request that funds are available before cheques are issued.

You incurred charges because you did not ensure funds were available in your account to cover the payments set up by you. It is your responsibility to operate your account within any agreed limits and within the terms and conditions.

You accepted these terms when you opened your account and when you agreed your overdraft. We did not agree to pay your account in excess of the amount agreed without charges being made.

Accordingly, I am unable to agree with your request to refund the charges. We do expect your account to be run in line with the terms and conditions of its operation. This means that you must ensure that cleared funds are deposited into the account the working day before any payments are due. If you do not feel you will be able to run your account in accordance with the terms and conditions, we may have to consider withdrawing certain facilities, such as any debit cards, overdrafts and chequebooks. Alternatively, you may wish to consider alternative banking arrangements.

In case you haven't received a copy of our leaflet called 'How to voice your concerns' I've enclosed one with my letter. This tells you all you need to know about resolving your complaint with us.

If you are unhappy with my decision and feel that you have something to add which might change the outcome, please get in touch. If we cannot agree on a solution at that point, I will help you refer your complaint to the Financial Ombudsman Service for independent arbitration.

Yours sincerely

 

 

David Just

Assistant Manager

 

 

Roll on day 14

[paulson1985]

Yes they sent that one to me wait 14 days from when you sent your 1st letter then send your Letter Before Action. Dont be surprised if you just get a standard reply and another leaflet back from them . I file my claim early next week so then the fun begins.

 

 

Good Luck

[lee6370]

No don't wait 14 days.

 

You only gave them 14 days to respond, they have respnded, they have not requested more time or stated that they are looking into it, they have made their position clear.

 

So you don't have to wait, move on to the next stage.

[VIKKI ARDA]

I got a statement of charges for the month today Unpaid D/D £35.00 O/D Interest £48.84 & Overdraft Excess Fee £30.00 Total £113.84.

[suga1982]

Thanks Lee, fancy giving me some advice so i dont mess it up again with my pregnant brain??

 

I sent the Letter Before Action 1st so what do i do now???

 

Thanks

[lee6370]

The things those hormones do to you!

 

It's not the end of the world, you only have to give reasonable notice, however this is generally accepted as 1 month.

 

The argument is that if you now send a letter saying you will give them another 14 days, it makes it look like you don't know what your doing and they will think they can get away with not paying.

 

The truth is they think they can get away with not paying whatever you do, so play it safe and send another letter, best not to give them any excuse.

 

I would send your second letter, very similar to your LBA, but just add something along the following lines.

 

"After taking legal advice I realise that my initial deadline of 14 days for resolution could be construed as unreasonable, therefore in order to give you sufficient and reasonable notice to resolve this issue I am prepared to extend my deadline by 14 days."

 

when is it due?

[suga1982]

Thanks for the advice i really appreciate it loads

 

I'm due 5th Nov, still got a long way to go yet! Gonna have my hands full casue my son will have just turned 17 months then, but his a good boy

[lee6370]

So the money will come in handy.

[suga1982]

Oh yes dont you know it

 

Right i'm gonna sound really silly here, but which letter is the one i send now??? lol

[lee6370]

Well it would be the letter before action, but as we know you have already sent that.

 

So you need to send a letter based on the LBA, restate your points and include a few lines saying why your not acting as you stated in your last letter (the LBA you sent stated your next stage would be legal action).

 

If you want a draft of a letter, pm me an e-mail address and i'll send you one.

[suga1982]

Thanks for your help lee

 

I have pm'ed you

[suga1982]

My 14 days ended yesterday so i sent my next letter off to the bank

 

Thanks Lee for your help and with the letter

[suga1982]

Woohoo!!! Sent my second letter to the bank on Monday and got this reply today:

 

Our Ref???????? : *********

Dear Miss Suga

Thank you for your e-mail dated 26 April 2006. I am sorry to hear that you have not been happy with my response to date.

Unfortunately there is little I am able to add to my letter dated 12 April 2006 and I am only able to refer you back to the terms and conditions of your account, although I do respect you opinion about our charges.

This letter is the bank's final response, which means that if you remain dissatisfied you may refer your complaint to the Financial Ombudsman Service.? If you decide to pursue your complaint through the Financial Ombudsman Service you must do so within 6 months from the date of this letter. I have attached a leaflet, which outlines how to contact them.

Yours sincerely

 

 

David Just

Assistant Manager

[suga1982]

Just done my money claim!!! Wish me luck

[suga1982]

UPDATE: Received acknowledgment back from the court today saying that the bank intend to defend all of the claim!!!! They now have until the 5th June!!!!! Solicitor Martineau Johnson

[suga1982]

Just wondering how many of us are actually going through money claim at the moment??? I filed my claim and it was set for them from the 8th giving them till the 22nd to reply. Received acknowledgment from the bank this morning so they now have until the 5th June!!!

 

Just wondering how everyone else is doing?? And when your next expecting to here from the bank or file judgment

[sweetcyanide]

Good luck, here's hoping they crumble at the last minute! *fingers crossed*