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    • Yep, I read that and thought about trying to find out what the consideration and grace period is at Riverside but not sure I can. I know they say "You must tell us the specific consideration/grace period at a site if our compliance team or our agents ask what it is"  but I doubt they would disclose it to the public, maybe I should have asked in my CPR 31.14 letter? Yes, I think I can get rid of 5 minutes. I am also going to include a point about BPA CoP: 13.2 The reference to a consideration period in 13.1 shall not apply where a parking event takes place. I think that is Deception .... They giveth with one hand and taketh away with the other!
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    • Regarding a driver, that HAS paid for parking but input an incorrect Vehicle Registration Number.   This is an easy mistake to make, especially if a driver has access to more than one vehicle. First of all, upon receiving an NTK/PCN it is important to check that the Notice fully complies with PoFA 2012 Schedule 4 before deciding how to respond of course. The general advice is NOT to appeal to the Private Parking Company as, for example, you may identify yourself as driver and in certain circumstances that could harm your defence at a later stage. However, after following a recent thread on this subject, I have come to the conclusion that, in the case of inputting an incorrect Vehicle Registration Number, which is covered by “de minimis” it may actually HARM your defence at a later stage if you have not appealed to the PPC at the first appeal stage and explained that you DID pay for parking and CAN provide proof of parking, it was just that an incorrect VRN was input in error. Now, we all know that the BPA Code of Practice are guidelines from one bunch of charlatans for another bunch of charlatans to follow, but my thoughts are that there could be problems in court if a judge decides that a motorist has not followed these guidelines and has not made an appeal at the first appeal stage, therefore attempting to resolve the situation before it reaches court. From BPA Code of Practice: Section 17:  Keying Errors B) Major Keying Errors Examples of a major keying error could include: • Motorist entered their spouse’s car registration • Motorist entered something completely unrelated to their registration • Motorist made multiple keying errors (beyond one character being entered incorrectly) • Motorist has only entered a small part of their VRM, for example the first three digits In these instances we would expect that such errors are dealt with appropriately at the first appeal stage, especially if it can be proven that the motorist has paid for the parking event or that the motorist attempted to enter their VRM or were a legitimate user of the car park (eg a hospital patient or a patron of a restaurant). It is appreciated that in issuing a PCN in these instances, the operator will have incurred charges including but not limited to the DVLA fee and other processing costs therefore we believe that it is reasonable to seek to recover some of these costs by making a modest charge to the motorist of no more than £20 for a 14-day period from when the keying error was identified before reverting to the charge amount at the point of appeal. Now, we know that the "modest charge" is unenforceable in law, however, it would be up to the individual if they wanted to pay and make the problem go away or in fact if they wanted to contest the issue in court. If the motorist DOES appeal to the PPC explaining the error and the PPC rejects the appeal and the appeal fails, the motorist can use that in his favour at court.   Defence: "I entered the wrong VRN by mistake Judge, I explained this and I also submitted proof of payment for the relevant parking period in my appeal but the PPC wouldn't accept that"   If the motorist DOES NOT appeal to the PPC in the first instance the judge may well use that as a reason to dismiss the case in the claimant's favour because they may decide that they had the opportunity to resolve the matter at a much earlier stage in the proceedings. It is my humble opinion that a motorist, having paid and having proof of payment but entering the wrong VRN, should make an appeal at the first appeal stage in order to prevent problems at a later stage. In this instance, I think there is nothing to be gained by concealing the identity of the driver, especially if at a later stage, perhaps in court, it is said: “I (the driver) entered the wrong VRN.” Whether you agree or not, it is up to the individual to decide …. but worth thinking about. Any feedback, especially if you can prove to the contrary, gratefully received.
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Natwest Penalty Charge Claim for my Daughter


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Hi Everyone,

This is my first post and I am so pleased I found this site, however I could have done with finding you a week ago.

 

I will try and keep the details brief, but I should firstly point out that I am acting on behalf of my daughter. I am a named third party on her banking details because she suffers with depression together with poor self-esteem that she finds dealing with people difficult, hence I am now dealing with her bank complaint.

 

We are challenging the Natwest bank on two fronts and I realise the second one is relevant to this site; but I feel it is important to have the background information. The first point relates to the way the bank staff dealt with my daughter; the bank was informed on two occasions of her condition and vulnerability; this information was never noted or acted upon.

My daughter was caused distress when she went for an appointment with the same branch and with the same advisor on the next working day following a visit with myself and my husband. She was dealt with in an inappropriate manner compared to when we were in attendance.

 

I contacted the bank they listened and said they apologised about the level of care and the concerns about how she was dealt with, however they could do nothing about charges. I said ‘thats fine I will contact the FOS again and tell them their comments’ suddenly someone wanted to talk to me :o .

 

The area manager contacted me and I set out the problems, I offered him a copy of the complaint that I was submitting this to the FOS.

I had already downloaded their on line Word Complains document;

 

http://www.financial-ombudsman.org.uk/consumer/complaints.htm

 

I ‘suggested’ that we had a meeting. I explained the reason for my disclosing the documents was so that he had the full information before him prior to these documents being forwarded and so that we can have an informed and open dialogue when we met.

 

One thing I did note was that he did ask me on the phone was “How would I like to see this matter put right?” Interestingly the same type of wording on the complaints forms from the FOS.

 

We had our meeting on 19th January and we had another apology regarding my daughter’s treatment. His findings were that the advisor denied she took advantage of my daughter’s vulnerability in her treatment of her. We were told that everyone is treated the same and they could not discriminate on or make notes about a persons condition as that would be against the DPA and the Discrimination act. The apology was backed up by a goodwill gesture of £50 for any distress caused (thinking about it I am not sure he used these words, just I am prepared to offer you £50 as a good will gesture... hummm) I wanted to decline but we agreed that it was a gesture and in would be given without prejudice on any further claims we would make and that this would be put in writing.

 

With regards to the bank charges he said that the bank had done nothing untoward and all the transactions were all correct; monies paid in were not sufficient to cover for payments out. My argument that if they had not made these bank charges she would not be in this situation. My daughter categorically denied any misuse of her card or abuse of her funds over the last two years. She never took or spent any funds that were not shown on her ATM reading, phone banking or mini statement.

 

On the fantastic information I have got from this site, I am now reviewing my original thoughts. We are basing our complaint on the fact that if the funds are showing and as she can only use her Solo card she should not be allowed or able to withdraw funds or buy things if that money was not available.

 

Her income sufficiently pays for her outgoings but over the months she cancelled everything except her loan. On December 22nd she cancelled the last remaining DD because she never knew if bank charges would hit her and prevent them being paid.

However early January they paid a cancelled DD but the charge for this did not show when she checked her balance. She had a mere £9 in her account, not enough to withdraw so she had to make two transactions totalling £3.86, but because of the DD she was hit with ‘misuse of card’ and was charged £70 for the two transactions of £3.86 Sainsbury’s confirmed this to me yesterday that any transaction would require authorisation and the money would be ‘ear marked’ and her account would reflect on the ATM showing that she now had £5.24.

 

What this site has shown me is that the approach is that the charges are excessively high and that they are punitive and should not be so; and that people should not be paying for excessively high charges that are punitive and cannot be enforced. If the sum payable is excessive it will become a penalty and will be unenforceable by the court.

 

With this in mind our complaint thus far is;

 

Over a number of years my daughter has been incurring bank charges that have led to a “domino” effect, that is due to bank charges D/D cheques ect have not been paid and because they were not paid she incurred more charges.

 

Some eighteen months ago things were so bad she took out a bank loan to pay off the overdraft (oh goodie; even more money for the banks!) this was only a short term solution because you guessed it she incurred more charges when something went wrong and she was back into the same problem.

This situation continued until she told me about it last August, I went to the bank with her and saw an advisor explaining that my daughter suffers with Depression and is vulnerable at times; and what was happening to her was just making a bad situation worse.

I asked if we could try and resolve the problem; the advisor said he could try for an overdraft to prevent any other charges but that was declined, (you have to keep the account in ‘good order’ for three months without any bank charges to be considered for an overdraft) however an offer to reimburse two of the charges ‘in good faith’ was made that alleviated the situation.

 

My daughter was grateful and accepted; however I felt that the bank charges were excessive and unfair so I contacted the Financial Ombudsman Services to make an official complaint; a letter of complaint was sent from them to the bank. (Nothing ever happened resulting from this)

 

In November more charges because NatWest took out funds at midnight am at 2 a.m. funds went in but not before she was charged £38; so she was back to square one. In one month from December 6th – January 6th her income was £270 and the bank charges were £250 It was at this time I got involved again and my daughter asked me to be a third party as she was struggling dealing with the bank.

 

Throughout all this time my daughter would ask the bank every 6-8 weeks for an overdraft because of the charges but she was always declined. When she went in again to see them in early January (after our collective visit) she was told that her account had been transferred to Debt Management. They were contacted and an overdraft was issued for £138 so to protect her only income of benefits not being taken yet again in bank charges. She has to pay this back at £22 p.m. on top of the existing £42 p.m. bank loan.

 

These were the key issues relating to the bank charges I sent to the bank;

 

1. The Bank has failed in their care of duty by not preventing bank charges when they were made aware that XXXXXX could not afford these charges.

2. The majority of the bank charges have arisen even thought XXXXX diligently took measures to ensure the account at the time was in credit; evedence of this can be obtained by accessing her TLF. XXXXX always acted in a responsible manner; the actions of the bank left her frightened and doubting her ability to cope.

 

How can this complaint be dealt with to put the matter right?

 

1. XXXXX tried on several occasions to request an overdraft facility until she had her account in good order and to use this facility not to draw against but to prevent bank charges. She was always refused because her account was not kept in credit and this she had to do before she could be considered for an overdraft. We have a situation whereby the bank are asking for funds on the same day as deposits and for the sake of two hours are putting charges on to the account that cannot be paid; how is anyone going to escape from this situation of financial poverty?

2. An overdraft would have prevented XXXXX having to pay over a thousand pounds (we feel it is about £1,400 plus the thousends we have spent to just provide food and heating) in bank charges; perhaps that is their intention?

 

3. Mrs XXXXX will be seeking to have charges reimbursed and is considering her position regarding compensation through all means available to her for the months of financial and emotional hardship she has had to suffer.

 

 

And then I found you….!!! :D

 

So where do I go now? We have proved the funds were there when she went to use them so she should not incur bank charges for misuse of the card. I still want to ‘hang them out to dry’ for all to see because of the distress it has caused and knowing there are hundreds like XXXXXX suffering the same.

 

I can honestly say that I would not know what price could be put on a compensation claim; XXXXXX has a history of self harming and this often leads to suicidal thoughts; is this what it might take before banks are made to stop their abusive behaviour?

 

I am on long term sick leave due to a disability from my work as a Counselling Therapist I am also a Relationship Advisor or ‘Agony Aunt’ to regional radio. When I get back on air I will make sure your details are well publicised (together with other helpful sites) for anyone who needs advice on money issues!!!

 

Sorry this was long, if anyone can help PLEASE contact me, any help gratefully received,

 

Best wishes,

Jo

Have you ever known a bank to admit they are in the wrong??

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Your post is very interesting and distressing - but not terribly unusual.

 

It is also very long and that makes it difficult to read and to comprehend in a structured point-by-point kind of way.

 

It would be very helpful if you could turn this account into a chronology listing out the sequence of events in relation to the charges only at this point. The issue of shappy and distressing treatment will have to be dealt with later if it at all can be. What is cetain is that if you can show that the charges shouldn't have been levied in any event and even those that were imposed were disproportionate and unlawful, then the issue of the poor treatement of your daughter becomes much easier to deal with and the result of that complaint much more certain.

 

I have already sent you a private mail message asking about details of the letter send by the Ombudsman to the bank. Please do reply to me about that as it may become very significant.

 

In the meantime, please try get a complete statement from the bank of all charges levied and what each one was levied for.

 

Write a chronology - very succinctly :-

Date - brief - explanation - amount

Date brief - explanation - amount

 

You will have to put your case in a coherent from if you go to court anyway.

 

Then come back and repost here.

 

Finally, do you know that SkyNews and the Daily Mail are both asking The Bank Action Group to find volunteers who might like to be included in a documentary and an article about this problem of unlawful charging by banks?

Have a look at the "General" forum for more details.

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I have got a comprehensive Word doc with everything listed as you say, I did not want to put all the information up so I tried to give the cut down version.

 

If you feel it would help I can send the document to an independant email address. This reflects all the information for the FOS and the Financial Services Authority.

 

I know the importance of keeping records of names events and so forth as well as any paper trails to back up events.

 

So far this has be of real help; my thanks once again,

 

Jo

Have you ever known a bank to admit they are in the wrong??

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Should of also said that I did see the Daily Mail artical and the request for Sky News; being involved with the media I would not shy away from interviews as I have been involved in broadcasting for almost 15 years !!!

 

Jo

a.k.a. 'Auntie Jo' or 'AJ'

Have you ever known a bank to admit they are in the wrong??

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I would be grateful if you would send a copy of your documentation to me, [email protected] - as you can see from my postings, the NatWest are my bank as well, and I have a Solo card which they have used to con me out of money in the past.

 

I'm trying a completely different tack to most people when it comes to court. We've established that the banks back down and repay the unfair and illegal penalty charges rather than have a ruling go against them, but when I finally take the county court documents out, my reason for sueing is going to be different.

 

I believe where the problem up till now is, people have sueued for themselves. The banks have caved in and paid them back, but this hasn't affected the actual policy. I firmly believe now that someone has to sue OVER THE POLICY and not specifically to recover the charges, and this is my aim. I intend to take the banks to court with the aim of getting a judicial review of the policy behind penalty charges. Either the bank will cave in, and accept that the amount I say is fair IS actually fair, in which case people can go to their banks and say "If it's fair for this guy, it's fair for me" or it will go to a court to decide, in which case a court ruling that £38 is way too much will force a change in the entire banking policy.

 

Either way, I've been gathering evidence for several years about the banks tricks and techniques for what I term the "We can't do anything about it" [problem], where everybody but the bank is responsible for you ending up having to pay the banks money; I'd very much like to open dialogue with you and compare notes on this matter. I think it would help both our cases.

 

If you want to contact me by private message here I'll give you my contact details, or phone you if that would be convenient or preferrable. My email address is [email protected] if you want to contact me there.

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good luck whisper wolf, I have a solo card on another account, not natwest... if you need comparison how another bank operates there solo system let me know.

 

we know the solo, mastro etc should be standard acroos the banks

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  • 3 weeks later...

Hi,

I am now at the point where I am about to ‘prepare for battle’ regarding my daughters account with NatWest.

 

However I really need advice and guidance just to make sure I am going in the right direction, apologies if I am being repetitive; but with the really good advice I have had so far I do not want to waste it on getting it wrong.

 

We have submitted our request under the DPA as per the format given in the forum; (including handing over the 10 gbp required to process the request) for any and all information regarding my daughters account to be sent to me; this was on January 26th allowing them in 28 days to comply. That date is up on 23rd Feb and as of today I have not had as much as a conformation that they have received or are dealing with this matter, so my points are;

 

Should I expect an acknowledgement?

What if they do not respond? Who do I contact and is there a ‘breach’ that I can quote that they have committed by not complying? (I have seen similar information elsewhere in the forum but am still unsure)

 

I have held off from seeking returned (unlawful) bank charges as I felt I needed an accurate amount to claim for by seeing these documents as our calculations only go back to October 2004; (totalling 1,986) should we seek to pursue these known charges with the intention of returning for the remainder if/when the documentation shows the bank charges from all the proceeding years?

 

Ironically we have a Solicitors appointment on the same deadline day to discuss taking action against NatWest not for the Bank charges (I anticipate taking these through the Small Claims Court; unless it exceeds the 5k limit then I realise I have to make secondary claims under this limit) but for the resulting and lasting effect of that the banks action has had on my daughter and her family.

 

If I understand correctly my daughters ‘pecuniary position’ has without a doubt resulted from the fact that had the bank not acted in the way they had she would not have suffered or been in this situation. Having read through the forum I know this is considered a difficult path to take.

 

Furthermore the deterioration of her health is documented and supported by her G.P. it clearly demonstrates that despite repeated requests to assist they allowed the situation to continue. In one instance when she asked for help in reducing her overdraft and safeguarding her income as opposed to it all going out in bank charges, she actually left the bank with an even higher overdraft than when she went in because the advisor said it was the best thing she could do!!

 

 

I have requested sending some information to the Solicitor who is on maternity leave prior to our meeting and I am very aware that these challenges that people like us are making is still difficult to comprehend for us the customers and also the legal profession.

 

To utilise the valuable time with our Solicitor I need to send her sufficient information; points of law that she can read or access that is going to assist her in her understanding of our case, based on our challenge of the repercussions of unlawful charges.

 

My question is;

What would be the best information I could send?

Does anyone know if there has been a successful claim based on seeking compensation based on the above against any bank?

Would it be prudent to direct her to the recent successful claims? I do not want to give her the ‘jumping on the band wagon’ impression.

 

Many thanks for any advice and support offered.

 

Jo

Have you ever known a bank to admit they are in the wrong??

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Guest stephen

jo the best info you could give her is teh sample letter, or give her my number, I run her through the law.

 

if you need my number email me

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If you qualify for legal aid then you do not need to worry at all about the small claims limit as you won't be bothered about ciosts very much if you lose.

Don't forget that the personal injury climit for smal claims is only £1000 and it may be that your daughter's condition is worth more than that.

 

Although you have written a lot on all of the posts, I still don't seem to understand exatly what is your claim is for and in respect of which dates.

 

Also, if you are legally aided then there are sme moe intereting and larger issues which you could explore with your solicitor and which I would like to have an opportunity to discuss off-forum with you.

 

Also, it sounds to me as if you are preparing to clim some of it yourself and some of it through a solicitor. If you are legally aided then you should put all of it through a solicitor.

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  • 2 weeks later...

We asked for our records under the DPA giving 28 day’s; (I have since found out a week or so later they can have up to 40 days) this was due on Thursday 23rd Feb.

 

On the advice of others we phoned the bank on that day for an update on of the situation; after a lot of going around the houses the bank said they would look in to it and call us back.

 

When they called we were in with our solicitor; they said the information had been sent (to my daughters address not mine as requested) it the end of January, we said ‘nope’.

 

They offered to resend it, however when we got home I had a letter dated 22nd Feb from NatWest thanking us for the letter sent on Jan 26th; saying ‘please be aware the IC gives us 40 days’

 

They also said the information under section 7 will be forwarded as soon as possible and that they were collating the information and acknowledged the payment of the £10 (note!!!) in respect of the fee. The last line saying if I had any queries do not hesitate to contact the number shown.

 

Because of the morning’s happenings I wanted to be sure someone had at least got it right; the phone call was put through to a vodaphone voice mail after a few attempts I got a real voice belonging to what appears to be the chief honcho as he said he was head of the DPA department; I think the phone was redirected by mistake.

 

I explained the situation and the fact that the bank called whilst we were in with our solicitor and was it a case of the left hand not knowing what the right hand was doing or was someone being imaginative with the truth?

 

In all fairness that was a bit low; but sometimes you can’t help yourself. He took the details again commenting that I had a letter confirming their receipt of my letter, I said that this was the first and only letter I had from them.

 

He did not seem too pleased about this and said that was not the way it should be. He asked me to send him a copy of the letter and he would look into the matter. Interestingly I actually got his direct email address; his accent was strong I had to get him to repeat it as I did not expect him to say RBS. I joked that of course the RBS had taken over NatWest; not the other way around.

 

Anyway he was ‘out of the office’ until Wed; holiday maybe? He was really quite nice but I got the distinct feeling he was not happy with what he was hearing!!!

 

Not sure if having his direct email information will help others or if it is protocol to reveal it; perhaps someone could advise.

 

Jo

Have you ever known a bank to admit they are in the wrong??

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If he is being supportive of you then you should probably not reveal it.

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  • 4 weeks later...

Hi All,

Once again I am torn as my next course of action. I had to phone the Retail Regulatory Risk in Scotland (they tried to phone me on March 3rd, that would of been a good time to talk to them!!!) as the deal with all things DPA related.

 

The DPA request sent 26/01/06 was not acknowledged until it arrived in Scotland (by carrier pigeon??!!) on 22/2/06. This they said meant they had 40 day's from when 'they' got it... I said wrong not my problem for their inability to take 4 weeks for a letter to arrive. Pointed out that they had one day left they said they would deal with it.

 

Next day a whole forest of paper was delivered, containing 1 year's worth of statements and no sundry notes or other information regarding meetings etc.

 

I contact and point out the missing information, she agrees to send all the statements going back 6 years but it will take 12 days. I then asked about any notes and calls made; unless I can say the exact time and date of any phone call forget it... it cannot be done(???!!) I ask about the letter sent from the FOS last August; they say it is their information and not for us to see. I explained I did not want to see it I wanted to see what action was taken; I have the original myself, or it's with our Solicitor and I have the copy... and suddenly she wants to look into it and will call the next day.

 

No call so I contact on the Friday to ask why; she said she was waiting for the manager to get back to her at the end of day and she will call me on Monday... And guess what.. no call!!!!

 

At the end of the Monday I sent an email outlining how they had failed to comply with the DPA request and finishing with the following...

 

"The Information Commissioner allows 40 days for the provision of this information and that time has now lapsed as of Tuesday 7th March 2006 and I am now invoking this 40 day rule and this information will now be sent to the Information Commissioners Office; FOS and FSA where I shall be making a formal complaint.

 

Also I today had an email from our Solicitor requesting an update on the information from the bank. Following a conversation it was decided that should the Bank not of contacted me by end of day I would pass this matter over to them to deal with; this has now been done and I am sure you will be hearing from them in due course."

 

And that was a little over a week ago; I was not able to do anything as I was away last week and I am now summoning up the energy to get back in.

Our Solicitor will deal with the DPA side as I have for the moment had to let that go and concentrate on submitting the letter for the charges as it continues to drag on.

 

With only some of the known charges should I continue and 'guesstimate' the amount or wait until I have all the statements going back?

 

Is there anyone else I should contact for the DPA request not being complied with? As far as I am concerned it is all positive ammunition to take to the FOS to support our claim.

 

Many thanks,

 

Jo

Have you ever known a bank to admit they are in the wrong??

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If their failure continues then I think that you should tell your solicitor to include it in your calim as a breach of contract. The idea is that they have a contractual duty to comply with your reuqests if those request invoke a statutory duty.

Your solicitor woin't be keen to include this but you are the boss. tell her to do it. You will have to identify some losses associated with it - or alterntively tell her to include injunctive relief a part of your claim.

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  • 2 weeks later...

Hi,

Well at last we have got the account information dating back to 2001 sheet 1; not printed out but proper duplicates of the statements sent from Borehamwood.

 

They were in a manila envelope that disintegrated and had to be re-packaged by the Royal Mail due to the 'unsuitable' use of dispatch product!!

 

So not happy about that; also this information request ran out on March 7th and this arrived on March 30th. My view is that I will add it to my already growing list for the FOS and others.

 

However once again the original request for 'any and all information including but not limited to details of accounts, transactions, statements, breakdowns of charges and any sundry notes that may be held with relation to telephone conversations or meetings' has been ignored.

 

As some who have followed this journey of ours are aware it is our intention to challenge the bank as per the Banking Code relating to having a sympathetic approach and their 'care of duty'

 

On both counts it is our belief that they have failed, but more importantly are they in breach of the IC by not sending this explicit request? Could anyone please advise on what our position is relating to this information not being delivered under the Information Commissioners DPA request?

 

I have just spent all afternoon with the spreadsheet and we are seeking £4700 in charges and interest. The letter requesting payment will go of tomorrow.

 

Jo

Have you ever known a bank to admit they are in the wrong??

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I and many other have had the same response from Natwest, sending statements and no details of transcripts or details or lack of Manual Intervention either. They also have sent me statements but haven't cashed my £10 cheque so can't really start the clock ticking for the 40 days after that.

 

I tried to ring Joyce Tudor today after sending her a letter explaining the bank has a fiduciary duty to provide me with the details I originally asked for, but was told she had gone home and to ring tomorrow. An update will be posted on my personal thread.

Ex CAG helper ^_^

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Good luck with Joyce!!! Every time she said she would call me back she never did; I had to 'let it go' because I ended up calling her almost every other day!!!

 

When I told her that information was missing from the FOS she said it was 'their' information and I was not intitled to see it. I then pointed out I had the origional.

 

(OK I also said it might be with my solicitor just to 'push' the point home!!) and what I was wanting was the action taken regarding the complaint; (which was nothing by the way!!) It was then she said 'yet again' leave it with me and I will call you tomorrow... huh!!!

 

I am really more annoyed about this aspect than the money because I hate injustice. However I will not let this go and someone WILL listen to me; what was the Chairmans name again...??? I'll go look him up....

 

Jo

Have you ever known a bank to admit they are in the wrong??

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If your stetements etc turn up in a package 'not suited to the purpose' then there are two threads you should look at:

 

http://www.consumeractiongroup.co.uk/forum/showthread.php?t=2694&highlight=Postal+Security

http://www.consumeractiongroup.co.uk/forum/showthread.php?t=2862&highlight=Account+Security

 

This is definitely a case of writing to the IC, irrespective of whether the request has been fulfilled within the 40 day limit...

Alecto, Magaera et Tisiphone: Nemesis on Earth is come.

 

All advice and opinions given by Spiceskull are personal, and are not endorsed by Consumer Action Group or Bank Action Group. Your decisions and actions are your own, and should you be in any doubt, you are advised to seek the opinion of a qualified professional.

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Good luck with Joyce!!! Every time she said she would call me back she never did; I had to 'let it go' because I ended up calling her almost every other day!!!

 

7 words: "Put me on to your superior, please." Of course, there are an optional extra word: "immediately."

DPA Letter received by NatWest 11/04/2006

DPA Request expires 21/05/2006

Statements received 15/05/2006

LBA sent 15/05/2006

 

If you find me vaguely coherent, click the scales.

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  • 1 year later...

This sorry saga continues and it seems each week brings something else.

Considering this dates back to early 2006; it has been a long haul to get where we were hoping the end was in sight.

For those of you who want to know the background it can be found here; http://www.consumeractiongroup.co.uk/forum/natwest-bank/99-help-advice-needed.html

 

This problem is both pressing and frustrating; and trust me I have worked hard to try and resolve this problem and now feel helpless.

 

I am dealing with the NatWest & the FOS behalf of my daughter. We are challenging them on a mis-selling of a bank loan. The only beneficiary was the bank because all the money went to them to pay off 'penalty charges'

The loan was for 1550 pound over 5 years taken out in 2004; to date the loan stands at 1708 pounds.

 

We have an offer for the penalty charges to be paid back without going to court that amount about 800 pounds less than the figure I came up with of 5198. The reduction was they said because we exceeded the 6 year rule.

 

However they have said that they will take out the balance of the outstanding loan from the any money they repay. At the same time of getting this offer another letter arrived from the bank 'demanding' the loan repayment. I contacted the Bank and informed them the FOS were dealing with the case. After a lot of duress I agreed to a repayment of £10.00 per month as I was told it would be the only way to prevent a Debt Recovery service making contact. (I asked for this agreement in writing it never arrived.)

However within days of this agreement this is exactly what happened; my daughter had a letter from 'Green & Co' Solicitors, or to be exact a headed notepaper with the solicitors name but the Telford CMS details.

 

I called they said it was an error, had a verbal apology, asked for it in writing, never arrived. A little over a week later another letter arrived this time from Wescot Debt Collection. I called again and asked what was the most recent information they had only to be told that 'the case had been forwarded to Wescot for recovery' I was truly amazed as I was ready to blame Wescot for the problem. I asked her to go back to earlier records, she went away and came back with an apology that it had been (another) 'error' and the records would be amended.

 

I insisted on talking to a manager, the person kept saying she could deal with this problem; I said so far the department had three tries and had failed every time. I eventually spoke to someone who acknowledged the problem with more 'I am sorry' and assurances of someone would be contacting me.

 

This time I had the letter dated 7th August saying "Please accept my sincere apologies for this oversight and for any inconvenience this might of caused you and your daughter. I have advised our agents not to contact you again"

 

On Saturday we had another letter dated 16th August from Wescot saying we have 10 days to pay. The bank has said they will investigate and say Wescot were told on the 7th not to continue; but they seem unstoppable.

 

In all of this the most important thing is that my daughter suffers from depression and is also a self harmer. I have repeatedly asked that they put all correspondence through me, she is the one getting these distressing letters.

 

Despite my pleas and putting a plan in place with the bank nothing seems to be working. If as they are suggesting they will show up at my daughters this will be devastating for her.

 

I did think of taking out an injunction but in reality it is not a practical solution; although it would make me feel a whole lot better!!!

 

If anyone can help or advise I would be so pleased to get anything.

 

Regards

 

Jo

Have you ever known a bank to admit they are in the wrong??

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You have FOS involvement here which naturally prevents you from Court action,(or certainly to keep the FOS involved)

I am pretty sure that the dcas are in breach of OFT guidelines in debt collection http://www.oft.gov.uk/shared_oft/bus...dit/oft664.pdf

Because of the circumstances here.

Did you consider contacting your local trading standards ?

If not I think it would be worthwhile.

You agree to the repayments as you say under duress,if indeed you are questioning the origins of the debt then why did they continue to press for payments since the account should have been placed on uncollectable hold as in dispute.

I can see your frustrations here,and although you may think you are going around in circles,its time to take a more determined stance to use the laws that appear to have been broken in order to get a result.

I am moving your thread into the dca section I feel you will get more response and help there.

Have a happy and prosperous 2013 by avoiiding Payday loans. If you are sent a private message directing you for advice or support with your issues to another website,this is your choice.Before you decide,consider the users here who have already offered help and support.

Advice offered by Martin3030 is not supported by any legal training or qualification.Members are advised to use the services of fully insured legal professionals when needed.

 

 

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Hi Martin,

Thank you for the information from the OFT; unfortunately the link did not work so I telephoned them. I gave them the information and they are going to call me back within 5 days; best they could do.

 

I contacted the FOS yesterday also but the person dealing with my case is away until September 4th; requested someone call me; but so far we have only got each others voice mail!!

 

I do feel that my only hope is with the FOS as my comment to the bank about taking out an injunction did hit the mark, but it was my knee jerk reaction and I am sure they knew that.

 

Regards Jo

Have you ever known a bank to admit they are in the wrong??

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I am almost embarrassed and feel a failure in not resolving this complex situation on behalf of my daughter. I have been with this group since January 2006 and was one of the three who went into the OFT to present a dummy cheque. (There is historic information for those who wish to check out my posts)

 

But just when I thought all was safely being dealt with it has all come back to haunt me and I have now hit an all time low and need advice. An apology in advance for in-depth information but it is all relevant.

 

Has anyone had a letter from NatWest asking them to complete their details so they can be ‘paid out’ ?(my term not theirs) What they are asking for in my opinion is for us to commit to accepting their offer as in this letter they are asking us “to confirm the amount we are seeking”

My daughter has already had 2 offers so far for £4630.30p; the first just an offer; the second informing her about the OFT and the test case but with the same amount offered. The arrived on June 14th 2007 and a second arrived the beginning of August, both with several weeks to accept.

 

We never went as far as going to court, but I did send the two preliminary letters ( in March 07) together with a spreadsheet detailing the sum of £5265. I was told the lesser amount was because we had exceeded the 6 year rule.

 

However because we are challenging the bank over a mis-selling of a loan where they were the only beneficiaries, (the ‘loan’ was used to pay themselves for the amount the account was overdrawn because of penalty charges).

 

Prior to these offers at the end of May I also had an offer ‘to reduce the outstanding balance on the loan or forgo further recovery’ The NatWest then went on to say that ‘However this is subject to you/your daughter not furthering any complaint in relation to charges on the account’

 

Believing this to be called ‘blackmail’ I made contact as I have done in the past with the FOS whose advice was to submit a complaint to them relating to the Mis-Selling of the loan and to pursue the intended plan of recovering the penalty charges through the Small Claim Courts.

 

It was then the first offer to pay us £4630.30p arrived from Customer Relations at Borehamwood; they also added that it was a ‘full and final settlement of your complaint’

 

Then hot on the heels of this was a demand notice arrived dated 20th June 2007 for the balance of the loan standing at £1790.04p. The Credit Management Services who sent the letter were contacted on June 25th 2007. During what was yet again a protracted phone call a recommendation in the form of a verbal offer was made.

 

The recommendation was that the £4630.30 stipulated should be paid into the account and the outstanding loan of £1790.04p would then be removed from the account. (The loan was originally for £1550 over a 5 year period.) That offer was declined; an ‘alternative’ offer was that the amount to be paid was £782.84 that represents the balance minus the interest of £1007.20 and the amount of £767.16 that has already been paid. This was a verbal offer and was not agreed to but asked for it to be put in writing strangely this offer never arrived???!!!

 

At this point in the same call I was repeatedly coerced into agreeing to make some kind of payment as I was told that it would not be possible to make any assurance that no further action would be taken without such an arrangement.

 

I put it to the advisor that whilst this complaint was being compiled and sent to the FOS I was not happy to enter into any financial arrangement. However I was told that the debt could be passed on to a recovery company who would visit my daughter, and in order to avoid this action I offered a token amount of £10.00 per month that would be paid into the account to prevent any further legal action taking place.

 

Following on from this I again contacted FOS who asked me to send in all the information and they would deal with all the aspects of the complaint. As it pre-existed the OFT test case I was confident this would be handled as such; this however has not been so. I have had to argue with the FOS that I was informed my complaint would be put through; I now feel that might not be so because of the ruling.

 

I posted something a day ago because we have since had one Solicitors headed notepaper from CMS pretending to be ‘Green and Co’ and now two ‘action’ letters from Wescot Debt recovery.

 

I again contacted the FOS who to my surprise have ‘suggested’ that we take the money to make the harassment “go away” As it happens I did contact both the bank and Wescot, the bank said on Monday (20th August) that the debt was recalled on the 7th August. However Wescot told me that they were only asked to return the debt on the 20th August… strange that!!!

 

Contacting and passing all the information over to FOS was I felt going to get this all sorted and most of all justice; but now I am confused. If we accept surly the bank has nothing to answer for as we will have taken the money as “a full and final settlement” FOS say they will look into the complaint because of financial hardship; which is apparently the only way you can now penetrate FOS and get them to act.

 

Also what about the mis-selling of the loan and the fact that they will get the balance of £1790.04p; as the person at FOS said ‘if’ they decide the loan was mis-sold it will be dealt with.

 

So what do we do? This has caused my daughter such trauma; she is acknowledged by her doctor as being a depressive and is also a self harmer whereby cutting herself is her way of dealing with the situation.

 

It has never been just about the money; important though it is; the Bank also has to be accountable for their failure in their duty of care…

Have you ever known a bank to admit they are in the wrong??

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  • 11 years later...

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