Lending stream ignoring emails

[paulhn757]

Hello, I am looking for a bit of advice regarding loans I have with lending stream.

 

I've not had any problems paying until  a few weeks ago I was laid off work on hugely reduced pay due to the virus.

I wrote to ls to explain the situation, asking them to place the accounts on hold until I was back at work full time hopefully in a couple of months.

 

I got an acknowledgement back saying they would be back in touch within a week but I have heard nothing.

I have also emailed them through the help page on their website but have not had any replies.

 

I know they have received the emails as I get an automated reply with a 'ticket  no.'

again saying they will respond within 7 days, but nothing back.

 

All I do get from them are emails telling me I am behind on my payments, they are damaging my credit score and I need to call them.

It's obvious they are also adding further charges while this is going on.

 

How should I proceed?

I wanted to keep everything  in writing but should I give in and call them?

 

Thanks in advance for any help.

[London1971]

I normally don't recommend it but we are living in strange times. I would call them. I'm pretty sure that they will put things on hold. 

 

Note this is not my normal advice or recommendations.

[paulhn757]

Thanks

Believe it or not they actually emailed me back finally yesterday

Not very helpful, tried to pressure me into paying half of the outstanding payment and offered to only stop charges/interest if I did. Oh well can't give them what I haven't got

[paulhn757]

Hello again. So things have moved on slightly now. I tried calling but couldn't get through, I can't sit on hold indefinitely.

I wrote to them (recorded delivery) nearly two weeks ago but still haven't heard anything back, yet they still keep sending threatening emails.

 

Shoud I now esalate a complaint with the financial ombudsman or FCA?

Obviously I want to avoid any further damage to my credit record but it does seem that they are completeley ingnoring me?

Thanks

[dx100uk]

you can't escalate until you either receive a final offer or 8 weeks have expired.

 

dx

 

[paulhn757]

today has been 8 weeks since I first wrote to them, and still I have had no reply other than a few more threatening standard emails.

 

I really don't want to phone them but if they won't acknowledge any written communication then we are stuck.

 

Is it now worth complaining to the FOS or FCA?

Thanks

[dx100uk]

No need to phone the pdl co... why?

 

off to the fos then

follow our irl guide

[Peterbard]

 

If you ring one of the free  DMP companies and get them to start an account, they will give you a call back appointment, a reference number.

 

Ring the creditor ask for a months leeway as per FCA guidance as you are in consultation with A DMP, 

At this point they will offer one of their own plans.

 

Be very careful before you accept, personally I would stick with the DMP.

You can put any other debts on there. Y

ou will have to do a breakdown of income for them.

 

Use it for yourselft, do not pay to much because you want to keep in with a creditor.

I is about maintaining a living standard for you and your family, I helped someone recently who are currently paying £1 a week yo five creditors, doesn't matter, as long as you are being genuine.

 

On 11/05/2020 at 08:02, paulhn757 said:

Hello again. So things have moved on slightly now. I tried calling but couldn't get through, I can't sit on hold indefinitely.

I wrote to them (recorded delivery) nearly two weeks ago but still haven't heard anything back, yet they still keep sending threatening emails.

 

Shoud I now esalate a complaint with the financial ombudsman or FCA?

Obviously I want to avoid any further damage to my credit record but it does seem that they are completeley ingnoring me?

Thanks

 

It is only worth complaining if they have not given you any help with your debt.

They are under a legal obligation to provide leaflets and direct you to an advice agency.

[AndyOrch]

Of course you can do all this without the use of a DMP following the advice on this forum and cut out the middle man and their fees.

[pocketsizedwolf]

I have the same problem with them.

I’ve contacted them a few times to try and speak to them and either end up on hold endlessly or get back a standard

“We see you contacted us before your last payment was unsuccessful”

 

I’m currently under a DMP with PayPlan,

I have told them about this and gotten back the same standard email.

 

They first rejected my DMP offer but seem to have accepted it quite recently as the status has changed on my Payplanplus area.

 

However, they’ve just sent me a notice of termination so I’m really at a loss with them. 

[dx100uk]

you need to create your own topic please

hit create in the top red Banner.

 

dx

 

[paulhn757]

Since the last post on this thread I have sent a complaint to the FOS but have not heard anything from them as yet either,

I'm guessing they're rather snowed under and on reduced staff so no real surprise.

 

Still had nothing approaching help from lending stream but today they emailed me default notices for the loans, again demanding I phone them and pay up in full or they will begin court proceedings.

 

Any advice as to how I should proceed please?

[dx100uk]

read it proprly..

it doesn't say WILL anything

and original creditors don't do court as they don't want the judge delving into their business model nor the bad publicity.

 

as for the FOS you just have to let it run. yours is a very short time since yo put it into them

typically it always takes 6-9mts normally before they move on anything though they usually send you an ACK they have the complaint.

 

 

 

 

[paulhn757]

Latest update yesterday they emailed me with termination notices, which I've copied below.

 

I still have had no contact with them about my original complaint, I have also sent them an irresponsible lending complaint 3 weeks ago but again that has not even been acknowledged.

 

Should I just sit tight for a bit longer or try to escalate things further, and with who?

 

RE: Agreement Number XXXXXXX

 

re refer to the Default Notice which we issued on 4-Jul-2020 in connection with the above Agreement.

We note that the period during which you could remedy the Default has expired on 23-Jul-2020, and that we still have not received the Outstanding Payments in arrears.

 

In the circumstances, we confirm that we have terminated your Agreement and that the amount you owe us is as follows:

 

Outstanding Amount in arrears is £843.49

 

Details of Payments to be debited:-a. Loan Amount (excess to Outstanding Payments in arrears): £431.49b. Interest (excess to Outstanding Payments in arrears) : £397.00Total Outstanding Payments : £843.49

 

Also, the interest on the Outstanding Loan Amount will continue to accrue until the Total Outstanding Payments are paid.

 

Hence, we request you to kindly pay the Total Outstanding Payments as soon as possible.

 

You should be aware that we may take you to court and get a judgement against you requiring you to pay us the money you owe us under the Agreement, you may have to pay us both the amount of the judgement and interest under the Agreement on all the sums owed by you at the date of the judgement until you have paid these in full.

 

This means that even if you pay off the whole amount of the judgement, you may still have a further sum to pay. If you do not settle the balance on your account we may transfer the responsibility for recovery of the debt to one of our debt recovery agents with a view to taking action for recovery.

 

IF YOU HAVE DIFFICULTY IN PAYING ANY SUM UNDER THE AGREEMENT OR TAKING ANY OTHER ACTION REQUIRED BY THIS NOTICE, YOU CAN APPLYTO THE COURT WHICH MAY MAKE AN ORDER ALLOWING YOU MORE TIME.IF YOU ARE NOT SURE WHAT TO DO YOU SHOULD GET HELP AS SOON AS POSSIBLE. FOR EXAMPLE, YOU SHOULD CONTACT A SOLICITOR, YOUR LOCALTRADING STANDARDS DEPARTMENT OR YOUR NEAREST CITIZENS' ADVICE BUREAU.

 

Please contact Lending Stream on 0203 808 4440* or at the above address if you wish to discuss this matter further.

 

Regards,

 

Customer Care Team Lending Stream

 

*Call charges apply. Standard charges from BT landlines, mobiles and other providers may vary.

 

 

[dx100uk]

safe to ignore

[paulhn757]

Thanks. What do you think the next step will be, are they likely to carry on trying or just sell it off to a debt collector?

[dx100uk]

doesn't matter what they do..

it's subject to a serious complaint

and a DCA is not a bailiff.

and have zero legal powers on any debt no matter what it's type

dx

 

[London1971]

Looks like a standard letter. With all the stupid Caps and all that. File under ignore. Might come in useful for a good bonfire one day!

[paulhn757]

Received the following emails today. Continue to ignore or go back to them now twlling them about the complaint and how they have completely ignored my requests for assistance again?

 

• We’ve tried many times to collect the outstanding balance on your loan, and to contact you to discuss an alternative, affordable, payment arrangement. In 7 days from the date of this email, we will assign your account to CRS, a debt collection agency. It’s important that you call us today on 0203 808 4440* to discuss an affordable payment arrangement, we are ready to help.

  Default sum: £843.49  Loan ID number: xxxxxxx We will transfer your account to: Agency: CRS  Registration number: 04690879 Consumer credit licence number: 0536459 authorized and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority  Address: Rosemount House, Rosemount Estate, Huddersfield Road, Elland, West Yorkshire, HX5 0EE   Phone: 01422 324 525 If you need free and impartial debt advice, you can also contact the Money Advice Service on 0300 500 5000* or at http://moneyadviceservice.org.uk. Please contact us at https://www.lendingstream.co.uk/contactus/ or on 0203 808 4440* if you have any questions.

  Thanks, Lending Stream Customer Service

  *Call charges apply. Standard charges from BT landlines, mobiles and other providers may vary.

  This email was sent by GAIN Credit LLC (trading as Lending Stream) | Contact Address: Lending Stream, Wisteria Grange Barn, Pikes End, Pinner, London, United Kingdom, HA5 2EX | Registered Address: 251 Little Falls Drive, Wilmington, DE 19808, USA | Registered in the State of Delaware, USA | Registration Number: 4124111 | Authorised and Regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. Registration Number 689378.

  

   

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[dx100uk]

as post 17

[paulhn757]

Hello again. I have recieved a text and emails from crs debt collectors,  and also had acknowledgement and reference no. from the ombudsman of my original complaint.

[paulhn757]

I've now started to get phone calls as well as texts (which i cant block), is it ok to keep ignoring them or do i write to them telling them to go away?

Thanks in advance

[dx100uk]

On 23/07/2020 at 12:51, dx100uk said:

doesn't matter what they do..

it's subject to a serious complaint

and a DCA is not a bailiff.

and have zero legal powers on any debt no matter what it's type

dx

 

 

report the texts as spam

[London1971]

I still have a couple of idiotic DCA's phoning me about some long Statute Barred debts.  Sometimes I answer because they use a mobile number that could potentially be a customer.  I'm always very polite and just tell them that I'm sorry but I don't give out any personal details on the phone, and that they are welcome to write to me if it's important. (which they never do).

 

 

[paulhn757]

Hello again.

 

I've had a few emails from CRS asking for payment etc, but nothing actually threatening as yet.

 

I received this today from Lending Stream.

They have conveniently ignored the multiple times I tried to contact them in between, and the online self service thing is an out and out lie, there has never been an arrangement in place as they just kept ignoring my requests.

 

Should I go back to them now or just sit tight and wait for the Ombudsman?

Thanks again

 

First of all, please accept our sincere apology for the delayed response, since the mass lockdown in March following the spread of Covid-19, we continued to maintain contact with our customers through our Live Chat service and by email. However, this has caused unprecedented volume of emails to work through, so we understand your frustration at the delay.

You have two outstanding loans with us ***** which commenced on 10^th January 2020 and loan **** which commenced on 1^st February 2020.

You contacted us on 26^th March 2020 initially to let us know that you were laid off from work and unable to afford the repayments, however we can see that we had redirected you to online self service for you to set up suitable payment arrangement according to your needs.

 

Further, we can also that you had set up a part arrangement on the loans **** & **** on 17^th April 2020.

On 22^nd April 2020 we also shared a personalised link in our email to you if you wanted to make any changes to the existing arrangement.

 

From your previous correspondence, you told us that you will be able to make smaller repayments and would contact us in June regarding payment plan as you will be back to work, however we did not hear from you thereafter seeking assistance in relation to the above.

As we did not receive any payments towards the above loans, a Notice of Default
(NOD) was issued on 4^th July 2020 and Notice of Termination (NOT) was issued on 23^rd July 2020. Further, the above loans were passed to Credit Resource Solutions (CRS) on 1^st August 2020.

In reference to concern regarding interest freeze or removal, we would like to reiterate that interest is charged according to the loan agreement and the same was informed to you at the time of borrowing the loan.

 

We also find it worth mentioning that by signing the Credit Agreement, you confirmed that you are able to afford the loan repayments. So, we regret to inform you that we would not be able to freeze or remove the interest due to system restrictions, until a full arrangement is set on the account.
Any full arrangement you set up with Lending Stream needs to be completed within 2 years.

 

Again considering your current circumstances we don't think this will be a good option for you, so we suggest you to either work with CRS, who can help you set up arrangement according to your needs or you can even seek free external debt advise. If you think your condition is prolonged then you can get enrolled with Debt Management Company to help you with your repayments.

If you have any questions regarding your outstanding loan you can also refer to your lending stream online account section.

If you have any additional information that would be helpful in investigating this complaint, please send that to us. Otherwise, please consider this as our final response on the matter.

You have the right to refer your complaint to the Financial Ombudsman Service, free of charge – but you must do so within six months of the date of this email. If you do not refer your complaint in time, the Ombudsman will not have our permission to consider your complaint and so will be able to do so in very limited circumstances. For example, if the Ombudsman believes that the delay was as a result of exceptional circumstances.

For further information, please visit http://www.financial-ombudsman.org.uk

If you need to contact us, the best way is by using our live chat option or replying to this email directly. You can also send us a message from our ‘contact us’ page in our website.

We hope this is helpful and thank you for bearing with us.


Regards,
Lending Stream Complaints Team