HBOS Charges reclaiming - 5 Accounts over the years.

[gemspan]

Just about to send of my SAR to Bank of Scotland. I am claiming on 5 different accounts - also a business account. Just want to ask if they will send me the details of that through the SAR. I am a sole trader and dumped them 2 years ago because they almost bankrupted me with their charges!!!!

 

I am currently being threatened with court action over an overdraft Ihave with them for £1150 whch is made up purely of charges so will be taking that further when I get them back. They have also got me into such a mess with charges I have a default on a BOS bank loan and also a BOS credit card. I am going to be claiming all this back and I can imagine that it will amount to a tidy sum over 6 years.

 

I don't have any money at all at the moment but when I get the money back I will be donating to this site as it has been a godsend for me. I now truly have a light at the end of the tunnel.

 

I was speaking today to somebody in their mortgage department and asked about charges. She told me what I had incurred and when I said they were unlawful she laughed. I subsequently got her manager on the phone and made an official complaint about her attitude.

 

Here goes. I think it will be a long battle but nevertheless it will be sooooo worth it at the end of the day.

 

Gem.

[maroondevo52]

Gemspam,

 

I'ts your cash-----you will get it back, I'm also self-employed and they have almost put me out of buisness a few times! I've just had over a grand back from them on my business account, still got about 5 grand to chase up. Best wishes with your claim.

 

Scott.

[gemspan]

Hi

 

Thanks for your support Scott. I just wanted to ask. If I can prove that it was BOS that got me into financial difficulty because of their charges, can I have all the defaults against me lifted. I say that because it was due to their charges that bills couldn't get paid and hence I got myself into a muddle with my finances. I had to borrow to get myself back on my feet but then it all started again. The BOS are currently defaulting my account. If I find that they owe me more than the amount they are defaulting me for, can I sue them for defamation? Also, surely a default which is wrong cannot be upheld. By that I mean if BOS have applied charges to me unlawfully and they are defaulting my account because of the charges I don't owe them, surely I can take them to court about that? It may be that nobody can answer this but it makes sense to me.

 

At the moment I have about 4 companies wanting to default me for sums they say I owe. If the sums include unlawful charges, then is their default legal?

 

Thanks

Annie

[gemspan]

Hi thereSent off my SAR on 8th November. I have not had confirmation of receipt, nor have they cashed the £10 cheque. Should I send a reminder letter advising them that they only have 40 days and I will have no hesitation in reporting them if they do not comply within that timescale?Thanks

[gemspan]

Hi there

 

Sending my prelim letter to BOS tomorrow 13/12/2006 for the sum of £2586 on one account. I have 3 accounts with them and am still awaiting statements from them. This figure will be substantially higher.

 

Wish me luck

Annie

[dazzaboy2]

Good luck Annie!!

[sowerby17]

Good luck I sent my two letters prelim and lba. no luck though started mcol on 29th november.They have until monday to defend.

[gemspan]

Hi there

 

Are you in Scotland? Can you submit a claim through MCOL in Scotland? I have to get a claim submitted for Lloyds which will sit in the Small Claims but a bit unsure as to what to actually do online.

 

Sending off my second prelim letter for a second current account. This time it is for £1646. I'm really getting into the flow with this now.

 

Annie

[sowerby17]

no Annie not in scotland. I sent mcol to their address in birmingham.

Wish they would reply

[townend81]

Well gemspan it certainly does sound like your getting into the swing of things! And I'll certainly help out if i can. I'll keep my eye out just in case.

 

Townend81

[gemspan]

Hi there

 

Received my first letter back from BOS today. Sorry to hear you are unhappy etc,. etc we will get back to you within 4 weeks. Sorry no!!!!!

 

My claim for these 2 accounts is below £5000 and I was thinking about taking it to an english court so that I can claim it all in the one go. When I add the interest does that have to be within the £5000 limit and how do I go about taking it through the english system. Is there a link I can have a look at?

 

THanks

Gemspan

[aliboy]

Good luck gemspan.

BoS have 2 days till i file for court. Know exactly what you mean about their attitude though. I got dog`s abuse on the phone to them. "If you`re such a legal expert then prove that our charges are unlawfull" etc. Would love to see their faces when i take back almost 2 grand from them!!

[gemspan]

It makes you really angry doesn't it? I got a phone call from the Head of Data Protection yesterday because I still havent received all my information. I am still awaiting statements for my business account, bank loan, some of my credit card. I actually phoned customer services and told them specifically what statements I needed for my credit card. Some arrived today. Guess what? They havent sent them all. Still, the head honcho was very concerned and said he would deal with it personally so I'm going to give him until next week as he said he was working during the break so here's hoping.

 

I have a friend that lives in NOrwich so I could use her address.

 

Thanks again

Gemspan

[javorb]

i have been a little lenient with bos ,i am claiming £6663 in scotland ,i received the `we will get back to you in 4 weeks` letter,phoned last week asked for info assured response by today ,no response ,now told 2nd jan ,away to send pre court letter giving then a further 14 days trhen if no full refund i am going for full amount + interest at my local sheriff court.i have went into debt management caused by these charges ,cant wait toget my money back then close my account

[jaxads]

Good luck Gemspan!!!!

[mbdiss]

It makes you really angry doesn't it? I got a phone call from the Head of Data Protection yesterday because I still havent received all my information. I am still awaiting statements for my business account, bank loan, some of my credit card. I actually phoned customer services and told them specifically what statements I needed for my credit card. Some arrived today. Guess what? They havent sent them all. Still, the head honcho was very concerned and said he would deal with it personally so I'm going to give him until next week as he said he was working during the break so here's hoping.

 

I have a friend that lives in NOrwich so I could use her address.

 

Thanks again

Gemspan

 

 

if they reach 40 days and you have not had every thing then file a complaint remember to stick to your time line. Also i would not phone them put it all in writing because it is easier to prove a paper trail.

[gemspan]

Thank you.

 

I seem to have changed overnight from somebody who just accepted the treatment dished out by these large financial institutions - into somebody who actually feels empowered to fight back. I have cleared through some old paperwork tonight and from the statements I have found from A&L (13 months worth) and Coop (9 months) I have totalled up almost £1000 in charges. Some months they were charging me more than I was paying because the payment hit the account 2 days late!!!! :o Another thing I have noticed is a card protection insurance with A&L that I didnt know I had and I definitely wouldnt have taken. So will be getting in touch with them about that too.

 

I think by the time I have finished I could be owed almost £10,000 in charges over the last 6 years. Now, the last 2 years have been really really hard for me and it all started with BOS charges. When Halifax took over BOS they started a new charging system ie you got charged 7 days later. I was always chasing my tail; thinking I had put enough in to cover it and then I would get hit with another one, which generated another one etc., I can honestly say that my current situation started off with BOS and their charging regime as I just completely lost control of my finances; which made me worry; which made me ill; which made me unable to work so my business suffered. The thing about charges is that they only affect the most vulnerable in society and also small business people who have to think about cash flow.

 

Another thing that really affected my business was when BOS suddenly started taking 5 working days to clear cheque. This effectively meant that I would be waiting a full week for money that normally would have cleared in 3 days. If the money wasnt cleared and a DD was to come out, they would bounce it and charge me £35. I still havent received my statements for my business account but I am sure I will be able to identify when the problem started there. As it stands now I have defaults, I have just closed my business and I think I have aged 10 years in the last 2 years. It seems to be only the last 2 years that they have really been shafting us; before then it was £20 here and £20 there but nothing like what they are doing now. The greed has finally caught up with them and I am so glad.

 

I really concerns me that there are people out there who perhaps dont have access to the internet that are not aware of this forum and they are still being hit by the banks. My parents said they wouldnt bother, but I am making them bother. they are retired and every penny counts. They are from a generation though that just take what these institutions dish out. I am going to be handling their claims.

 

Good luck to everybody.

Annie

[gemspan]

Hi mbdiss

 

I normally do keep everything to writing but found a phone number on here and phoned to see what the story was. If I havent got them next week (bearing in mind it is the holiday period!) I will most certainly be placing a complaint. The guy said that to say they were inundated with requests would be an understatement but he also said it doesnt excuse the bad service.

 

He was really nice and I do feel he was genuine so I am going to give him a chance. Failing that though I will be cracking on!!!!!

[gemspan]

i have been a little lenient with bos ,i am claiming £6663 in scotland ,i received the `we will get back to you in 4 weeks` letter,phoned last week asked for info assured response by today ,no response ,now told 2nd jan ,away to send pre court letter giving then a further 14 days trhen if no full refund i am going for full amount + interest at my local sheriff court.i have went into debt management caused by these charges ,cant wait toget my money back then close my account

 

I can really sympathise with you. HBOS really treat you vry very badly. I remember not last hogmanay but the year before 2004 the guy on the phone had me in tears and was laughing!!! I did complain to my MP who in turn took it to the Chief Executive and things were done but he was never brought to task because he just denied it and they dont tape the calls!!!!

 

Are you going to take an ordinary action then? Or will you be splitting this amount into 5 separate claims? I would go for £5000 in England and then another small one too. It just makes it so much quicker. When you think about it, when you are in a situation that you want the money to kick ass then it is better to try and get it done as quick as poss. Do you know anybody in England that you can use their address?

 

Annie

[mbdiss]

gemspan post 17.

 

it's not just in the last two year the banks have been doing it all along its just people like the one's who stared this great site found out what was happening and wanted to do some thing about it and this has got around more because of the internet and the media.

 

i can fully understand how you feel. when i started this i was very upset with my self about how much money i had wasted as it makes you look at what you have been doing with your money plus it really hurts when you see the news saying that the banks have made X amount of billion this year.

guess they are going to loss a bit of it now though

 

just keep thinking to your self that when you have got your money back you will be a lot stronger and able to help some one else in the same situation as you were.

[javorb]

i am very confident and i am going to do an ordinary action for the full amount in scotland ,worst scenario if they defeat me i go to the press

[Mairi]

Unfortunatley the thing about Ordinary action is you need to be able to pay, upfront, for a solicitor and you are open to higher court costs if you lose. Lots of the members of this site would be unable to afford a solicitor. I've just won my 4th case against BOS (through the Scottish system)and the highest outlay i had (before settlement) was £69.

[sowerby17]

Well Annie BOS have just acknowleddged my claim so waiting for their defence or hopefully some sort of offer.

They are gits when it comes to charges od business accounts they just take the money before they tell you and this causes real bother.

[gemspan]

Hi there

 

Well, I am absolutely furious. BOS had until last Friday to even acknowledge both my letters but have failed to do so. I am preparing court papers today. I am still awaiting information regarding my other accounts.

 

My question is this. I am claiming in excess of £4000 and would like to use MCOL. If I use MCOL can I use my Scottish address or do I have to use an address in England? I can prepare the papers for BOS at the Halifax address they have.

 

Any answers would be gratefully received. I am really unclear now as to what route to take to get my money back. Scottish claims are only £1500 in summary cause and that's why I want to go down the english route so that I can get my money back all in one go. They have had it too long and I am really suffering financially now because of it.

 

Thanks a lot. I look forward to receiving your replies.

 

Kind regards

Gemspan

[gemspan]

Well Annie BOS have just acknowleddged my claim so waiting for their defence or hopefully some sort of offer.

They are gits when it comes to charges od business accounts they just take the money before they tell you and this causes real bother.

 

Hi Sowerby17

 

Yes, I had terrible problems with BOS on my business account and eventually had to close it. All was well until they started to take 7 full days to clear cheques. This often meant that I was still waiting for funds to clear when dds etc., were due to come out of my account.

 

I got my statements back and they owe me money so I will be sending off my letters today. I am sending all my claim letters today as I am still waiting for information from all the pepople I sent the SAR to. I will start my claims using the statements I have got and then add the monies at a later date.

 

Gemspan