Smile issuing Gesture of Goodwill (GOGW) ***WON***

[foxi]

Hi All,

 

Can anyone tell me whether a Gesture of Goodwill (GOGW) can be used as part settlement or is this something one can keep, as well as pursue a claim for your full unfair charges?? What shall I do.......... help!

 

Here's my story so far, I was offered a GOGW from Smile of £800 despite my total charges being £1150. In fact they put the money into my account without my knowledge and I didnt get a reply to my LBA. When I discovered the funds in my account I didnt know why they put this amount in the account with no explanation. I didnt get any correspondance in the form of a letter, phone call or secure message so

I put the £800 into another cooperative linked account but havent touched the money.... is this ok??

 

Anyway sent a template letter 'Response to their settlement offer' this morning stating that I only will accept the £800 as part payment on the understanding that I will recover the rest through a County court claim if necessay.

 

When I got home today ..low and behold they sent me a BACK DATED LETTER which didn't correspond with my LBA dates ( all very convenient ) Smile's letter says ...' £800 has been returned to your account as a GOGW and that they will not refund any interest according to their terms and conditions and that they wont refund any charges unless there's a bank error & giving me 30 days to close my account ( thats fine coz' I've another one - hee hee!!)

 

Can anyone give me some advice. Shall I send a secure message asap telling them to ignore the Response to settlement offer' letter and send another letter stating that I accept the GOGW but that they return all unlawful charges imposed on my account of £1150.???????

 

foxi

[techtalkonline]

Hi foxi,

 

I would allow the 'Response to their settlement offer' letter to proceed as your claim is ongoing until you receive the full refund. Do not let Smile bully you into submission, this is a dirty trick to make you feel that you should cut your losses imho.

 

In other words, it is irrelevant what they put in their letters, this is your claim and if you say you are claiming for interest and charges, then that is what you claim. Ignore their latest letter, keep the GOGW as part payment and continue your claim for the remainder.

 

Best of luck to you!

[foxi]

Hi foxi,

 

I would allow the 'Response to their settlement offer' letter to proceed as your claim is ongoing until you receive the full refund. Do not let Smile bully you into submission, this is a dirty trick to make you feel that you should cut your losses imho.

 

In other words, it is irrelevant what they put in their letters, this is your claim and if you say you are claiming for interest and charges, then that is what you claim. Ignore their latest letter, keep the GOGW as part payment and continue your claim for the remainder.

 

Best of luck to you!

Hi techtalkonline,

 

Im abit confused in a way, but the Response to settlement offer letter has gone now so I'll see what the outcome is anyway. I also put this thread in the cooperative bank section & had a different response to my situation from someone else called dx100uk stating ..'that every settled claim that has been made on here will be 'a goodwill gesture', the banks will never say 'here is the money back from illegal charges we have made on your A/C', if they did , they would be admitting they are wrong.i doubt they did send a back dated letter either. IF your outstanding money from them is now only the interest you added, then they are quite within their rights, so far only one claim has been paid where compounded and/or contractural interest has been claimed from start...'

I guess I'll need to do abit more reading but what do you make of the above?

 

foxi

[techtalkonline]

Hi foxi,

 

Apologies for the late reply, been busy! I would PM a mod on here for further instructions if i were you. I am not an expert unfortunately, i just give my honest opinions as i see it.

 

However, despite what dx100uk has said, my original post stands. You are entitled to claim interest and court fee's along with all charges, so providing you are certain that your figures are correct, it is my opinion that you should proceed with your claim if you are prepared to fight it.

 

btw, i claimed interest from Smile and got it included in my refund

[foxi]

Hi foxi,

 

Apologies for the late reply, been busy! I would PM a mod on here for further instructions if i were you. I am not an expert unfortunately, i just give my honest opinions as i see it.

 

However, despite what dx100uk has said, my original post stands. You are entitled to claim interest and court fee's along with all charges, so providing you are certain that your figures are correct, it is my opinion that you should proceed with your claim if you are prepared to fight it.

 

btw, i claimed interest from Smile and got it included in my refund

 

Hi techtalkonline,

 

I sent the LBA offer and hoped for the best... low and behold they coughed up the extra £371 in interest charges i'm realy SMILING today yipppppeeeeee.

 

Thanks for your support everyone

foxi

[techtalkonline]

Hi techtalkonline,

 

I sent the LBA offer and hoped for the best... low and behold they coughed up the extra £371 in interest charges i'm realy SMILING today yipppppeeeeee.

 

Thanks for your support everyone

foxi

 

Well, that is just superb news!

 

Well done Foxi, i am so pleased for you. Don't forget to fill out the returned charges survey here:

 

Charges Returned Survey http://www.consumeractiongroup.co.uk/survey.php

 

Isn't it a great feeling when you see that cash given back to you by the banks!

[org1uk]

Nice one foxi ... likewise they have paid up on a couple of my accounts ... one more to go