First time user claim from Halifax **WON**

[marysf]

Hi I have just found this forum and this is my first entry.

I phoned and then wrote to the Halifax about 4 weeks ago and requested details of the last 6 years worth of bank charges - imagine my surprise when last week we arrived home hardly able to open the front door because there were 60 envelopes on the mat each with one months statement inside - what a waste of money - I have had no mention of any charge for receving these statements and nothing has shown up on the bank account so can only assume that the bank is not charging the £10.00 fee. We have gone through the statements and used the bank charge calculator on Martins money page to calculate interest - I yesterday sent a letter to the Halifax requesting a refund of the charges so I am now waiting for their response.

 

I was concerned however to hear on the news about the lost court case yesterday which is typical as I posted my letter yesterday morning.

 

The Halifax bank account is a joint account and just in case I have opened an account with NatWest, and in all honesty we will move once the case is resolved as I have been unhappy with the Halifax for some time now. We have one of their Cardcash accounts and the final straw was when I went in a month ago to pay in a cheque at the counter and also to reclaim a direct debit and was told the branches do not deal with Cardcash accounts, I had to pay my cheque in at the machine and use telephone banking to make the claim for the dd - I phoned the telephone banking from the branch and ended up putting one of the assistants on the phone to talk to them so that they could be told to assist me in the branch. so not only are they charging £39.00 for unpaid direct debits but they are not even offering an in house service and you have to pay to phone them up(0845) cheap rate but it still costs. Anyway thats the end of the whinge and good luck to anybody claiming - I will be reading through postings over the next few days to get a feel about the best way to move forward

 

thank you ChloeJane for your reply - in all honesty I only found this site after reading Martins Money page and when I calculated the interest on his sheet I saw the difference and my husband wanted us to push for all, knowing we probably would not get all, the link to the page is Bank charges: Reclaim them, they're unlawful, so you can get six years money back | MoneySavingExpert: Consumer Revenge, Credit Cards, Shopping, Bank Charges, Cheap Flights and more the letter is already in the post to the bank and I suppose when I get a reply from them I will need to see what we do from there - I will need to start reading and get to grips with things so that I don't mess up again. Do I retract the letter and resubmit or leave things as they are and wait to hear from the bank.

[corsicanpine]

Hi marysf,

 

On your preliminary letter you cannot claim the 8% interest anyway. If you eventually take the case to court, then this is when you apply the interest charges.

 

I would advise that you thoroughly read through the faq's and the many threads on this site as the better the knowledge the less chance of making a mistake. Also be prepared to take this to court!

 

Hope you win before that stage but you never know.

 

Good luck

[marysf]

Hi

I have this morning received the refusal letter from the bank stating that I agreed to the terms and conditions on application of the account, they also state at the end of the letter that if they do not hear form me within 8 weeks then they will assume i am happy, time for the next stage. I will however do some reading first.

 

Any advise gratefully received

[sea-sidelady]

Just ignore that letter. Your right it is standard.

 

So as soon as your 14 days are up from your prelim, send your lba, always make sure you send your spread sheets aswell.

[jetbags]

Hi

 

I have just reclaimed from the Halifax, to be honest i cannot fault them. It only took two of the templated letters from the moneyexpert.com site before they wrote making an offer that was only just below the full asking figure.

I think it's vitaly important in these types of issues to follow the pattern that works, yes it takes a lot of reading up on the subject,but at the end of the day a few hours reading can have very good results for your bank balance.

 

The recent court ruling makes no diffrence at all, Halifax like all the other banks are still settling claims before action, so the advice has got to be.... follow the system to the letter,be patient and don't forget that at the moment at least we are on the winning side.

 

Good luck !!

 

Jetbags.

[marysf]

Hi all

I have submitted my claim to the courts electronically and it has been issued - it says that the bank have 14 days from the date they are served to respond - can you tell me if the web page will show the date they are served or do I count 5 days from the issue date and 14 days from then. this is really scary but it has to be done.

[sea-sidelady]

All that information will come up on your claim, but it is normally around the 5 day mark.

[marysf]

Thanks I received a letter from the courts and the date the bank need to respond by is the 19th June so it is a case of just sitting and waiting and see what happens.

[moneyhelp]

Good luck Mary and keep us posted

[marysf]

i have been reading but I am not very good with working my way round the forum - if the bank does respond, do they respond to the court direct or do they respond to me.

[sea-sidelady]

The bank will respond to the court. But you will be informed of all communication.

[marysf]

Hi

I have just checked my online claim and it shows acknowledged as of yesterdays date. I have called the court and they say it means that they now have 28 days instead of the 14 - is this normal practise?

[sea-sidelady]

Yes this is very normal.

They now have 28 days from when it was deemed served.

 

But still check your account, as it might just turn up.

[marysf]

thank you SeaSide lady, that takes me to the 3rd of July but we will keep checking

[moneyhelp]

Good luck!

[marysf]

I have today received the notification in writing from the court - the acknoledgement of service is attached and they have ticked the box - I intend to defend all of this claim - is this normal as well or can I expect to have to go to court

[sea-sidelady]

yes thats normal.

[buffyoo7]

Good luck mary hopefully you will have your money soon

Buffy x

[marysf]

I have noticed that some people appear to be contacting the bank for status on their claims - is this worth doing or do I just sit it out and wait for next week?

[Dusary]

I have noticed that some people appear to be contacting the bank for status on their claims - is this worth doing or do I just sit it out and wait for next week?

 

Have a look here: (Last page)

http://www.consumeractiongroup.co.uk/forum/halifax-bank-bank-scotland/81108-dusary-bank-scotland.html?highlight=dusary+v+hbos

 

and me mate's: (Last page)

 

http://www.consumeractiongroup.co.uk/forum/halifax-bank-bank-scotland/94286-kennythecelt-1-halifax-bos.html?highlight=kennythecelt

 

That might assist!

[marysf]

Hi

Just received the post and a letter from the Halifax saying that the money will be in my bank account within five working days - charges + interest + court cost.

 

Holiday here I come:) :) :)

 

Thank you for all your help - I will let you know when the money is paid

[**Tilly**]

congratulations:D

[moneyhelp]

CONGRATULATIONS!!

[sea-sidelady]

CONGRATULATIONS...!!!!

 

That is great news.

Let us know when the money appears.

 

They say 5 days but it can go in anytime from today..

 

So keep checking. (like you have to be told )

[marysf]

Money is in our account . brilliant - Kefalonia on Saturday here we come - we were planning a holiday next week anyway, just means the budget is not quite so tight.