Burke vs Alliance & Leicester

[alice-rose]

hi there...

could i please leave a message for

the very friendly squarebob information desk,

sorry but its me again - alice ...

could you please kindly let me know what rate of interest i should be charging on my current account charges from 2001 - 2007

should this be 17% or 8%, as I am just amending my form.

many thanks squarebob.

alice x

[MimiJane]

Why wait? I know some people say stick to the timescales, but whose? Yours or theirs! No, you set the timescales, after all it is you who is asking for your money back, if it was them, they'd be soon dipping into your bank account.

 

Time will still drag, so why prolong the agony.

 

I may be wrong, but I think I've read somewhere that someone's case was struck out when they filed court proceedings "too early", i.e without allowing 28 days between sending their first letter requesting a refund of their charges and starting court proceedings. It may therefore be a good idea to stick to the timescales recommended on the forums.

[squarebob]

Sounds pretty petty to me, smacks of the old Ironside, it's not us who is on trial. Now you have got me checking my timescales, I never even bothered with an L.B.A just borrowed the money and filed my NI. Surely this is the sort of thing one would expect at the Old Bailey, slippery gits are'nt they!

 

Some one once mentioned that the enemy look in at all the messages posted on the various sites just to try and keep one jump ahead of, so to them .

[squarebob]

And finally a message to dear Alice,

 

17.08% will do nicely for the current account. The Premier account is less, 7.9%. Wragges in their defence will say you are not entitled to this, there is a thread somewhere that says you are, and why.

I have spent the past two days sifting and wading through the mountains of paperwork created by everybody who is making a claim and trying to sort the good from the bad. As the banks get cuter, so have we.

[squarebob]

One last, quick message, having spent the past two days trawling through the different messages posted on this (the main) and other sites. There seems to be no exact timescales when dealing with the A&L. Some people get dealt with quickly, others get decent offers without even getting as far as filing a claim, yet others get left in limbo. In my case I was expecting things to drag quite a bit as every one said they were snowed under, so that was probably why I moved as fast as I did. My timescales were as follows: S.A.R request sent 9.3.07. Statements received 24.4.07. Letter sent asking for my money back on the 1st of May. Filed NI 24.5.07 and deemed served by the 26th. Letter from Wragges recieived on the 4th of June and their defence arrived on the 14th of June, signed by a Partner, not a trainee. And on the 18th I received my AQ from court which will be duly filled in and sent by next week. In between times I received an offer from A&L for a paltry sum, but this was only on one account. The rejection letter was duly sent, but the only other letter received from A&L was one to inform me that a 'lost' cheque had been presented (£14.98) and they had not paid it, instead they had charged me £34.00 plus another £25.00 to be taken out on the 29th of June plus interest. And Wragges have the cheek to say any charges incurred after the 24th of May to be struck out! It looks to me as if this case will go all the way, and knowing my luck, they ain't going to roll over.

[MimiJane]

Sounds pretty petty to me, smacks of the old Ironside, it's not us who is on trial. Now you have got me checking my timescales, I never even bothered with an L.B.A just borrowed the money and filed my NI. Surely this is the sort of thing one would expect at the Old Bailey, slippery gits are'nt they!

 

Some one once mentioned that the enemy look in at all the messages posted on the various sites just to try and keep one jump ahead of, so to them .

 

I reckon it's best to err on the side of caution ... if there are timescales we're advised to keep to, they're there for a reason.

 

Yep, someone on this side told me A&L/Wragge were seen with a printout from this site and they do indeed look in to have a good read and a good ol' chuckle no doubt:rolleyes:

[squarebob]

Well Mimi,

When you think about things these claims have been going on for some time and Wragges and everbody else's legal bods must be getting their act together. After all everyone uses the same type of paperwork quoting the same rules and regs etc. In my defence document from Wragges they quote the following; As to any allegation (if any) that these charges are unenforceable under the Unfair Contract terms Act 1977, the charges are administrative fees levied by agreement in the circumstances set out above. As such, the Unfair Contract Terms Act 1977 has no application to these charges.

 

The terms are not in any any event unreasonable in relation to the service in question.

 

There's a nice paragraph regarding the Unfair Terms in Consumer Contracts regulations 1999. Basically saying that as there is no significant imbalance in the parties' rights and obligations arising under the contract to the detriment of the claimant. In consequence, by reason of section 5 they are not unenforceable.

 

So it's up to us to prove otherwise. If not, then what are the consumer laws for?

I'm seeing double, so I'm going to chill out with a nice glass of

juniper berry.

[wobbles5063]

Wow, so many knowledgable people out there. Thank you to each an everyone of you for giving me your views, on whether to proceed now or to wait the 14 days.

 

Squarebob I appreciate what you say, yes if it was us owing them money then they would be taking it straight away and wouldnt wait til I said ok I can afford for you to have it now, but as this isnt my bank account its my husbands (and im a total chicken) i think im going to err on the side of caution and wait the 14 days before moving to the next stage.

 

I will return very shortly to partake of all your wise wisdom, because you just know as this moves further one I will have more questions, and this is only the easy bit.

[younganfree]

What I find slightly annoying about the forum being monitored is that they can see when something they do makes a claimant 'wobble'! And I have witnessed a fair amount of wobbling just recently.

Admittedly, this has mostly been as a result of financial difficulty for the claimant and the immediate need for the money far outweighs the principle of getting all their money back. In those circumstances who can blame them for settling for a lesser amount? I know I don't.

But I, for one, would hate to see a knock on effect of others settling just cos it's 'easier' - this will have a diluting effect on what the CAG site has spent a great deal of time achieving.

CAG members have never made a secret of their usage of the site, (there are envelope stickers and all sorts available!), so let anyone who wishes to, go ahead and monitor the site - there is nothing to hide.

But please, everyone, let's stay strong and show these geezers that no matter what they throw in the way or however long they try to draw things out, they'll not deter people from claiming back what is rightfully theirs!

[jansus]

Why wait? I know some people say stick to the timescales, but whose? Yours or theirs! No, you set the timescales, after all it is you who is asking for your money back, if it was them, they'd be soon dipping into your bank account.

 

Time will still drag, so why prolong the agony.

 

I did not say stick to their timetable - if they dont reply you just go ahead with the dates in your letters thats all. If they reply saying they need 8 weeks to look into your claim then of course you would ignore it - as in the letters they have dedicated departments to deal with this. I am no expert just at the same stage as you -I am just using this site for guidance and trusting the information- otherwise I would not be here

 

 

best of luck

 

Jansus.

[wobbles5063]

Hi All

 

Ive now finally received my statements and am starting this process with my bank.

 

Quick question ... I keep seeing Debit interest charges on statements some as high as 10quid, should I be including these on my spreadsheets does anyone know?

[squarebob]

Right from Wobbles post upward.

 

Debit Interest Charges is a new one on me, I have checked my statements and TLC's but cannot find any mention of them. but it looks like something to be claimed for. Hopefully some one will know just what they are.

 

Put them down any way. You can always change things if they are not something you can ask back.

[squarebob]

Next post, Jansus.

 

It's all a waiting game - 'bit like poker' - see who's nerve breaks first.

It took a lot of people a lotta bottle to start the process of claiming their money back in the first place. First there was the 40 days for the S.A.R. then 14 days for the Pre-Lim letter, then a further 7 days for the L.B.A. No wonder everyone is getting so cheesed off. Decent thing for A&L and the rest to do, is sort the 'Wheat from the Chaff' and settle up. Instead they are dragging their heels in the hope that some miracle is going save them. I think we are all wanting things to move faster, just in case we have a door shut in our faces. So the answer here is to just 'Chill' take our time, and let nature take its course!

[squarebob]

Next on the list, 'Young and Free' (Reminds me of my 'Hippy Days').

 

You are dead right in what you say. I got the wobbles when Lloyds won their first case. But once the mist had cleared from my eyes, I thought, so what, I have nothing (left) to lose, but everything to gain, so I plunged right in. I've already mentioned how there is no consistency with A&L and their legal advisors, and their response to us. One person gets dealt with one way, while another gets put on the back burner, one gets an offer in thousands while another gets an offer in hundreds or less. Some say there is a backlog and they don't know what they are doing, not in my case!. Filed on the 24th of May, acknowledged on the 4th of June, defence papers served on the 14th June, A.Q received on the 19th of June and they filed their copy on the 20th. To me, my case seems like sliding down a hill, it's as if they have something up their sleeve! So here's where the 'Wobbles' could have slipped in, but I thought no, you can only hang a person once, let battle commence, what's the worse that can happen?

 

Yes, it may have been easier for those that have claimed before us. But no matter how hard it gets, or how many tricks get pulled out of the bag, we should be All able to achieve the same goals. So lets all stick together and stay strong no matter what gets thrown at us.

[squarebob]

Last post for Wobbles 5063.

 

You are right, 'Patience' is the key to success.

 

Aren't you good claiming for hubby, you should make him sweat a bit by letting him do his own claim, but that's it isn't it! us males are just not patient enough to let nature take its course.

 

I'm off to chase the cat around the garden.

[wobbles5063]

Hi Squarebob

 

Thats my problem you see im just too damn good to my husband ... its gonna cost him a nice big fat family holiday if I manage to get his money. Id say he could take us to the states but he has been working there since Feb so dont think the USA is gonna be somewhere he will wanna go for a while.

 

I should point out the Debit Interest I mentioned is appearing on my statements im with YB, also have a thread on here for that. (very dirty players .. send your statements extremely late, copied back to back so dates dont run in sync, one min your looking at Feb charges, then it switches to March and then on the back of March is Feb again ... talk about a major headache). In fact they have p****d me off so much i think im gonna add it into my spreadsheets and see what happens, lets face it whats the worst that can happen they tell me to bog off.

In the meantime If anyone out there knows anything about Debit Interest I would like to hear from you as to whether or not this can be claimed for.

Hope the cat survived the Chase!

 

Wobbles

[wobbles5063]

Hi Squarebob, really hope you are there, I need your help.

 

I went to your little link the one you sent me when I was doing my husbands Prelim letter the one where it works out how much interest they owe you and that worked fine when I was doing his. Ive now come to do the same with my account and I aint sure if its right.

 

I checked on that site you gave me and the unauthorised o/d fee is 29.08% so filled that in, in the little box at the top right hand corner entered all my charges for each month which is just over 1400 and then looked at the bottom to see how much i enter in the plus XXX box on Prelim letter and its worked it out at something like 4grand!!!!!!! HELP!!!!! have I done something really stupid or is it that im using the wrong percentage.

 

Wobbles

[squarebob]

Oh Wobbles,

 

Contractual Interest really does work miracles, that's why the banks don't want anything to do with it. You're worried about your amount, some one posted recently that their charges were £5,000 but the interest pushed it to nearer £13,000 ouch!

 

When I did not not know what interest rate to apply, I used 28% and nearly fell of the cat!

 

So don't worry, just grin like the Cheshire Cat.

[wobbles5063]

Squarebob, thank you for coming back to me so quickly ... im getting very scared at the thought of putting these figures on the Prelim letter.

 

My letter is going to read charges: 1431.00, Interest: 4611.12 TOTAL: 6042.12 :o :o :o :o !?!?!?!?! This just seems to be so much, going by hubby's Prelim letter I was expecting about the same as him back, just over 2 grand.

 

So you would put these figures in the Prelim letter? Im extremely scared now.

 

Wobbles

[squarebob]

Well Wobbles, you really have got the Wobbles now!

 

I experimented with my one of my spreadsheets, as my claim was for £1,700, I changed my original 7.63% for your 29.8%, it made quite a difference, but not as much as yours, the reason for this was that my charges never started until 2003 and then it was only in dribs and dabs. In your case it looks as if you are starting from 6 years back, and that is where the difference lies.

 

Do not worry too much about putting that much interest down in the Pre-lim letter, after all it is 'Their' rate of interest, and not something you have just pulled out of a hat. I don't know which Pre-lim template you will be using, but in mine (from the reclaimunfaircharges.co website), there was a paragraph which went; Currently you apply interest at the rate of --% APR for unauthorised borrowing. I have applied the same rate to my request in accordance to consumer contract legislation, as you have unlawfully applied penalty charges that you had no right to, which therfore amounts to unauthorised borrowing of my money.

 

Hope this calms you down a bit!

[wobbles5063]

Oh yes that set of figures certainly made me live up to my name, was wobbling all over the place, its ok now though im calm again ... I never guessed this would be so stressful. Thank heaven for people like you, I really appreciate all your help.

 

I dont know what I done earlier but i have had another play around with the spreadsheet and the reason for my being a lot more calm is that the figures are starting to look a lot more like I was expecting. I will have another go when I get home just to double check, very hard trying to fill in spreadsheets from your work computer with your boss breathing over your shoulder (im sure she knows im not working).

 

I still used the same percentage and now its coming out as interest 1786.08 with a total of 3217.08, this figure seems more like what it should be.

 

Will report back once ive had another look at home.

 

Wobbles

[jansus]

Oh yes that set of figures certainly made me live up to my name, was wobbling all over the place, its ok now though im calm again ... I never guessed this would be so stressful. Thank heaven for people like you, I really appreciate all your help.

 

 

Crikey - after worrying one other A&L person I am reluctant to ask this - I know that square bob has done his research ( on looking at his thread ) and has decided to claim CI - just making sure you have read all the information on this on the site - there is one big thread on "why is no one claiming CI "

 

I know several people have won including the CI - but in some cases a precedent case has been used to reject this part of the claim only.

 

I just wanted to make sure you had considered all the information in this respect - not offering an opinion at all.

 

( I will probably regret not claiming it! )

Jansus

[wobbles5063]

Hi Jansus

 

Oh dear Wobbles is starting to wobble very badly again having read your comments. My head is totally messed with all this.

 

The more I read the more my head spins. I really dont get any of this interest business, as I think I stated in a previous thread, Maths and me forget it. I have just read though the thread you mentioned 'why is no one claiming CI interest' and that has totally confused and messed my head more.

 

I really dont know what to do for the best. To be honest id be happy just to get the charges back plus a little interest, we would get a holiday out of it at least.

 

Wobbles

[wobbles5063]

Hi Squarebob

 

Im using the Prelim letter from this site. I have totally had enough of this, its every night im doing this, either reading threads, or re-checking what I have done, my head is gonna explode before I get anywhere near a court date.

 

I dont know how but somehow I have two spreadsheets which when you first look at them look identical, (the second spreadsheet being the one I said id used earlier and felt more comfortable with the figures), but I dont know where I got the spreadsheet from.

 

From reading Jansus response if I have got this right I can put the CI on but it dont necessarily mean im gonna get it, it could be rejected?

 

I think I need a lay down in a dark room, this is all too much.

 

Wobbles

[jansus]

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

 

Hi try the link above it might help

 

At this stage if you are doing the preliminary letter you only have to think about 1)is your schedule correct- and 2)do you want to claim CI

 

the 8% comes later at the court claim stage.

 

I know its confusing but complete one stage at a time and then read up about the next - read the step by step instructions again (under FAQ)

 

The decision about CI has to be yours - and some people have won it- It is just worth reading the threads about that only before you make your decision and then move on and dont look back and say "what if"

 

Jansus:)