Natwest student overdraft, business loan and overdraft lumped together

[raine11]

Hi, hope someone can help me.

 

My husband had a personal account with Natwest, he had a student overdraft on it. He set up his first small business with them in 2007, with a business account, loan and overdraft (loan I think was £5000, overdraft £2000). He was paying the loan off, no problems, except the date they'd take the loan out every month would always mean the bank charged him. The business manager used to be impossible to get hold of and he wanted to change the payment date by a couple of days, but they wouldn't let him.

 

We moved to a new area in 2009, he still had the loan and personal account as well. He went back to studying as well as a new full-time small business in which he was a partner and thanks to the student loan company being very late with payments (first payment- should have been paid in the sept, but was paid January- I was a student too and I got the first payment 3 days before that Christmas- I had to leave the course in the end- they paid the tuition fees so late I wasn't allowed to continue), everything got thrown around a bit. Natwest chucked their toys out the pram that we'd pay the rent and council tax, buy food etc, above paying them, and bullied him into having a managed loan- which they dumped the whole lot of personal and business overdraft and loan accounts into. He still had a basic account with them at the time.

 

He was paying them every month (credit history shows was all fine then), when he was suddenly rushed into hospital in autumn 2010. He's still not well now. We're trying to sort things out, one thing at a time, getting rid of debts and this is the second biggest one we have, and has just reared it's head again via debt collectors (Regal Credit- who strop like toddlers when you call them liars:lol: we had a bit of fun with them on the phone yesterday...).

 

Natwest were, shall we say, difficult, when he was in hospital (he was in for a couple of months). I had access to his NatWest bank account- and the only money going through it at the time was working tax credit, then ESA. They froze it- I'd ring up- get my husband to give them permission for me to discuss it, sometimes they wouldn't understand him as his speech would be a bit slurred and they'd say the line was bad:x- they'd then shout and argue with me, I'd quote something at them (can't remember what it was)- they would go to speak to a manager, come back and apologise and release the money and say they'd put action on hold for a month/whatever, and then the whole thing would happen again. And again. And again. We wrote and told them he was ill, begged them not to do this, but they didn't care (I know we should have got it paid to another account at the time, I honestly can't remember why we didn't, I think we were just sinking under everything and then he was back in hospital for a bit, then had to find somewhere to live as the landlord wanted the house back... it's been a difficult couple of years, full of stress).

 

Natwest refused to put a note on the account that I could speak, every time they'd make my husband go through the security checks- he wrote to give me permission, and they ignored it. The last time I spoke to them in 2011, they mocked the fact my husband used a wheelchair and couldn't get into his local branch because it was not accessible- the man suddenly decided he was a wheelchair user too and claimed ALL NatWest banks were accessible and he'd never been to one that wasn't- well lucky him, but our nearest one not only has a step, it also has a wall right opposite the door and my husband still can't get in there (not that he wants to) in his powerchair. They have a bell to press for assistance- ie a member of staff eventually comes out to speak to you on the pavement. Discussing your private financial situation in the street in front of everyone passing isn't really very nice. When I got off the phone, I took my husband to the bank and we took whatever was left in his account out, and closed it (although it still shows as an active account on Noddle? But he closed it in 2011).

 

I think we wrote to them after this, told them we wanted the account putting on hold as we were not in the position to pay anything right now.

 

Natwest have not had any real contact since then, other than through a couple of DCA letters- I swear one offered a discount, but at the minute we have no proper bedroom/living room, we're sleeping downstairs and a lot of our paperwork is in storage, so can't go through it all properly and check. For the past couple of years we've picked other battles to fight- my husband's health, finding somewhere to live that's adapted etc.

 

A week ago, we had a phone call from Regal Credit. My husband refused to confirm details, told them to write to say what they wanted- they gave out part of our previous address when he questioned if they even wanted him. They didn't write- but they did a few silent calls (on bank holiday Monday, then in the day, then yesterday, few minutes later rang again, and someone was actually there- I answered- the woman hung up when I asked to speak to a manager though and seemed confused that I'd know if they'd written- hmm yes, my husband doesn't hide letters from me, we trust each other and talk to each other I was ready to argue with her for ages- I was feeling a bit fed up- but she hung up on me . My husband rang them back but he wouldn't confirm anymore than his name, so he got yelled at by a manager, then the manager hung up on him because my husband told him to calm down and to stop shouting and being aggressive. So my husband rang again, spoke to a 3rd person, who said she'd email the supposed letter they'd sent. Email came this morning- their client is Natwest, who have increased the original amount by a few hundred pounds, with charges.

 

 

I was going to start trying to sort this out by writing to Natwest. My husband thinks there was PPI on one loan, but not sure, and they added the loan together with his student overdraft, business overdraft. At the time (2010) they told him (their debt management department or something like that- same department I had to beg and write to when they kept freezing his account when he was first ill) he had the choice between them taking him to court for it or a managed loan, so he took the loan. I know he needs to send a SAR to them, to get all the paperwork. But at the minute, we just want them to put action on hold for a few more weeks.

 

Would a SAR also have transcripts of phone conversations? What about discussions in person with a bank manager- would notes be taken and put on the accounts?

 

If we dispute the amount and their behaviour regarding being helpful to him when he was in financial difficulty and also ill, in a complaint with Natwest, can we also tell Regal Credit to stop ringing us because it's being discussed with Natwest? Will they actually stop?

 

We're not really in a position to make more than token payments at present anyway, at the end of the day, they can't have what we don't have.

 

 

 

Thank you:-)

[dx100uk]

in the sar specifically detai what it should include that you want

 

as for the way you/he have been treated.

 

benefits are involved here so a BCOBS complaint will hold even more water.

 

have a read of this and the links in the bcobs bit too.

 

http://www.consumeractiongroup.co.uk/forum/showthread.php?353395-Letter-to-send-if-you-are-being-charged-bank-fees-whilst-on-benefits

[citizenB]

I agree with dx that you need to obtain the Subject Access Request as soon as possible. Then I think you need to consider a formal complaint.

 

Managed loans were all the range around the time your husband was manipulated into taking one out. They usually had Payment Protection Insurance added on. If you have a copy of the agreement, you might want to check. Alternatively you will need to wait until the data arrives and you can check via that.

 

Banks usually bullied people who were already struggling into this type of Loan, knowing they could roll up several debts into one new agreement. Which usually denied customers the protection they had under the old agreements and pretty much set them up to fail with the new one.

 

It would appear that NatWest have not only fallen foul of BCOBs, but their own Lending code as well.

 

I have attached a copy of the Lending Code below for you. It is quite long, but I think you only really need to look at Section 9

 

[ATTACH=CONFIG]43694[/ATTACH]

 

As for the way they treat wheelchair bound customers, well that beggars belief.

[raine11]

Thank you.

 

I'll have a good read of those I wish we'd known more about it before he took out the loan.

 

Natwest and the debt collectors both sent him letters today- both addressed to our previous house- which the debt collectors know we don't live at, but they don't know our new address apparently.

 

Regal Credit want him to ring them, hmm- I don't think so. It's dated last Friday, which means it's not the letter they said they'd sent anyway. Natwest Letter is a notice of arrears.

 

Think I'd better start digging out paperwork!