Just starting against Abbey.....

[Beth Cheyne]

Hello Everyone!

 

Very interesting reading all these posts - I was reading some posts on BTInternet.com earlier and getting really wound up about all these bank charges and anyway, it spurred me on to get my spreadsheet completed.

 

I had an account with Abbey open between July 2000 and May 2003 and having just completed the spreadsheet am shocked to find that I have actually been charged and paid £2,733.00 in just 20 months!!! This was a result of going overdrawn by just £11.00 one month and following the discovery of someone in my family actually stealing money from me (using my cheques and my card to withdraw funds) I found myself facing a whole load of charges for clearing transactions and/or bouncing some DDs and SOs which I wasn't anticipating! The spiralling effect of the debt relating to these charges soon took hold and despite the fact that I contacted Abbey straight away and asked them to hold off further charges, they weren't interested and I guess as I was paying in over £1300.00 per month they thought I could stand the charges. Well I couldn't. The worst point was being some £400.00 overdrawn at the start of the month, getting paid and then 3 days later having charges of just under £400.00 being taken from my account - so I was working hard as a teacher for very little!!

 

I currently have a default notice against me for just under £1200.00 with them and I imagine if they offer me any refund they will take this amount off any settlement! However, this amount is made up purely of their extortionate bank charges so as far as I'm concerned they can go to hell over that aspect of this matter! Would be interested to hear if anyone else has had such a ludicrously high amount (and that's without the 8% interest which takes it up to just about £4,000 to be reclaimed) and if they have been successful in reclaiming their money.

 

I have, as I said, finished the spreadsheet for Abbey - I also have 2 accounts with Halifax and need a break before we start working on those . Have done the more complicated spreadsheet but as I am about to send off the first letter giving 14 days notice of requirement of refund (the one after the SAR which I didn't do as I have all but a handful of my bank statements) I wonder if anyone could clarify exactly which element of this spreadsheet goes to the Abbey?! It seems that this first letter is accompanied by the spreadsheet minus the 8% interest column. On the simple format that is easy to remove, however, on the complicated one you have the right-hand section that still shows the interest deducted. Is this removed from the printout or do I send this as it doesn't actually show the 8% interest figure - just a cumulative one. I know there is a separate sheet in the workbook that shows the charges and interest which I obviously won't send out - but need clarification on the other bit! Hope that makes sense - it does in my head lol

 

Want to try and get everything sorted to send letters off on 21st May and am just unsure about this point - so any help or advice gratefully received.:grin:

[Bigmac versus]

Hi Beth Cheyne and welcome.

There are plaenty of peeps who have successfully claimed over this amount and in regards to the spreadsheet when sending prelim or lba the interest is not added.

[Beth Cheyne]

Hello Bigmac.

Thanks for the reply, but what I'm still confused about is precisely which part of the workbook to leave out on the complex charges.

 

 

I presume that in my spreadsheet above, the right figures to use in the 1st letter, not the LBA, are the £2,942.00 (penalty charges) and the £143.90 (interest on penalty charges) and these create the total. If I understand things correctly, the sheet within the workbook (coloured red in the above example) including the 8% statutory interest only gets sent to the banks when at the stage of making a claim through the courts?! Sorry to be pedantic about this but don't want to get it wrong.

 

Also, you'll see from the start date of my claim above, that it actually goes back to 30/10/00 - presumably I have to remove the entries that take me over the 6 year time limit, before submitting my claim to the banks?!

 

Any help gratefully received.

[Bigmac versus]

Hi well yes you claim the charges and the interest that you accrued due to going over your OD only, this applies to both your prelim and your lba, the juducial interest of 8% dosent get added on until you file at court.

In regards to the earlier charges i would remove them as they may decide to defend your claim due to these being included.

There are people claiming over the 6 years who first claimed up to the 6 years before doing so, hope that makes sense.

[Beth Cheyne]

Hello Bigmac,

 

Thanks that makes things clearer. Have removed reference to charges between 30/10/00 and 30/04/01 and just gone with up to 6 years. Am sending off letters and spreadsheets to both Abbey and Halifax - recorded - today.

 

Hopefully, I've got everything else right!

 

Thanks for your help

[Bigmac versus]

Your welcome, ask before you send that way you dont let them have a chance.

[Beth Cheyne]

Never sure where to post things on this website, hopefully this is right for Abbey at least?!

 

Anyway, Sent off letters to Abbey and Halifax requesting repayment of bank charges, sent on 22nd May by recorded delivery. Abbey sent a reply dated 24th May received yesterday and Halifax sent a reply dated 24th received this morning. So presumably I take 14 days from the 24th, when they both obviously received my initial letter.

 

Abbey response is one that I think I have seen on here (or something similar):

 

"We're sorry you're unhappy with the service, etc etc. Will investigate the matters you raise and endeavour to resolve the complaint quickly, but we want to carry out a thorough investigation and sometimes this can take time. If we have not contacted you before then, we will write to you in four weeks to let you know what is happening". They also included a little leaflet explaining the complaints proceedure - which I thought was very nice of them!!

 

I presume I simply take no notice of this and send the LBA on 6th June 2007, with a further copy of my schedule of charges spreadsheet. I would appreciate any further advice anyone can give me. Going to find the Halifax link now as their letter is quite different - they've refused my request - and that's an end to the matter for them!!

 

Will post again when something happens or if I get any replies.

[Bigmac versus]

Yes You Are Right Continue With Lba When The Time Is Right

[Beth Cheyne]

Hello Bigmac

 

Many thanks for confirmation. I know I'm probably asking the same questions as everyone else (and doubtless there are solid answers on here somewhere) but I'm really getting paranoid about getting something wrong!! Very sad I know but I don't want to give the banks a free-hand in any of this, so thanks for reassuring me.

[charleyfarley]

Hi Beth Cheyne,

 

Welcome to Abbey......you keep asking the questions, we''l try and answer them.................it's well worth spending time getting things right early on in your claim, so that you don't have to put them right further down the line.

[Beth Cheyne]

Hello charleyfarley

 

Thanks for reponse - I know I'm asking the same questions as others have but can't find things quickly enough. I'm not very good with message boards etc, and I used to teach IT!!!

 

Will post again when I have more news

[charleyfarley]

Add this to your favourites.........it's a godsend

 

http://www.consumeractiongroup.co.uk/forum/site-questions-suggestions/53182-cant-find-what-youre.html#post436526

[Beth Cheyne]

Hello All

 

Just an update - have sent off the LBA, that has arrived today, so now going to wait and see what Abbey has to say. It seems they like to delay until the 11th hour, which seems very silly as they obviously end up repaying more money that way?!

 

Anyway, hope everyone else is getting along nicely with their claims, will post again when I have some further news.

 

Regards,

 

Beth

[charleyfarley]

Hi Beth,

 

I think they work on the premise, that every claimant that drops by the wayside because of their delaying tactics, is nett profit to them. You just have to make sure you don't give up:)

[Lula]

Hi Beth and welcome you are going great guns, but if you have any questions then just fire away, i have a question for you though, how on earth do you do that image of a Spreadsheet in a post? most impressive , and yes i am aware that most people will know how, but i am a doofus lol

[kia]

yep me too had enough problems filling it in let alone putting it into a post that makes two of us love you always sound really clever unlike me whos thick lolxxkia

[Beth Cheyne]

Hi charleyfarley, Lulu and kia,

 

thanks for your replies. Just confirmed that Abbey has received my lba, so hopefully I'll get an offer from them soon - wishful thinking maybe?!

 

Lulu and Kia: as for the spreadsheet bit being in the post - not my doing, I'm sorry to say! My other half said it would probably be useful for others to see so went ahead and screenshot it, before posting it somewhere in cyberspace, only to be placed in the post. Should know how it works really but don't and he does it so quickly I can't follow what he does, lol - god that's sad, isn't it?

 

Anyway, Halifax letter doesn't seem to have arrived yet for some reason and I'm quite worried about them as they are my current bankers. They are quite likely to close my account I reckon and as I currently only have a silly 'mickey-mouse' account because of poor credit rating etc, I don't think I'll be able to open an account elsewhere. Anyone any advice on what to do if they threaten account closure?!

 

I'm not going to give up this reclaiming business but the thought of going to court is not something that inspires me in reality. I've said I'd quite like my day in court with Abbey because of the hardship my daughter and I suffered as a result of the bank screwing me over with their charges, but in reality I'd probably clam up and/or cry!!

 

Anyway, we'll see what happens. Will post again with more news when and if I get any......

 

Good luck all,

 

Beth

[kia]

you need to open a parachute account and if you only need to pay direct debits and you have a solo debit facility on it then the nat west offer one and it doesnt count on a credit check cos i opened one there and it works perfectly well and its there if they close my account although i dont think they will but you never know eh hope it helps xxkia

[Beth Cheyne]

Hello Kia,

 

Thanks for that - I just get the feeling that Halifax are going to get a bit stroppy and give me 30 days notice!! I worked for NatWest many, many years ago so I'll investigate that route,

 

Beth

[kia]

your welcome love ive got one know with them xxkia