August 2023 – the first “UPHOLD” decisions are being received.
Comments on this article are now closed.
Please see the comments below the main Amigo Claims page to see what is happening.
On 23 March 2023 Amigo announced that it has been unable to raise the equity it needed to continue in business. This means that the Scheme of Arrangement currently underway will change into the “Fallback option” and there will be less money to pay cash refunds.
Amigo Loans Ltd, the trading subsidiary, will immediately stop lending and go into an orderly wind down. At the end of this, it will be liquidated.
This article looks at the implications for Amigo customers – those who have claims into the Scheme and those with a current loan.
Contents
The Amigo Scheme so far
Amigo’s affordability checks were so poor that in 2020 the Financial Ombudsman was upholding over 80% of complaints about the affordability of its loans. Amigo had to set up a Scheme of Arrangement to limit the amount paid in refunds to customers given unaffordable loans.
Amigo’s first scheme was rejected by the High Court after the FCA said it benefited shareholders too much and wasn’t fair to customers.
Then Amigo proposed a second Scheme. This included raising equity from shareholders and contributing £15m from this into the Scheme. This would increase the cash refunds to customers. This second Scheme was approved in May 2022.
The six months for customers to submit claims ended in November. These claims are currently being decided and few people have yet been told if theirs has been upheld or rejected.
Scheme changes to the Fallback option
The Scheme says that if Amigo is unable to raise the £15m money by 26 May 2023, the Scheme changes into the Fallback option which involves a wind-down of the business.
The Scheme itself continues in this Fallback option.
What is changing – lower cash refunds
Without the £15m, in the Fallback option now there will be less money available for cash refunds.
When the Scheme was proposed in early 2021, Amigo said it expected people would get paid 41p in the £. So if the refund on your Amigo loans was calculated at £1000, that means you would get £410.
That never looked likely to me. Amigo always refused to say how it calculated the number and crucially how many complaints it expected to receive.
So I wasn’t surprised when the last Scheme Supervisor’s Report said in November that 210,000 claims had been received. The reports said that was a lot more than Amigo had expected. With more claims and the same amount of money to divide, the estimate of refunds had halved to 20p in the £.
That November report also contained a new estimate of what may be paid in the Fallback option – 17p in the £. This is the best indication we have of what may now be paid out andnit is what Amigo is curently saying in the FAQs on the Scheme website.
Timescale for payouts
It was expected that a first, larger payment may be made in September followed by a smaller payment in November 2023 to pay out the remaining money.
UPDATE The Scheme website has now been changed to say:
The initial payment will be unaffected but (under the fallback solution) the final payment will be delayed until approximately May 2024 as opposed to November 2023 (after the business has been liquidated).
What isn’t changing – everything else
Apart from the amount of the cash refund, the rest of the Scheme remains the same:
- customers with a current loan will still be able to get their balance reduced or cleared;
- credit records should still be cleaned if there are any negative marks for loans that are upheld as unaffordable.
Loans continue to exist
Today’s announcement doesn’t change anything about the current loans. The loan still exists, it is still a guarantor loan.
If you are making the normal monthly payments and can afford this, then that is probably your best option.
For people struggling to make normal repayments:
- if you have made a claim to the Scheme, you should consider asking Amigo for “equitable set off”. See Amigo now lets some people pause paying which looks at the pros and cons of this;
- if you haven’t made a claim to the Scheme it is now too late to do this. Talk to a debt adviser about this – see this list.
At some point in the wind-down of the company, it is likely that most or all of the remaining loan book will be sold to a debt collector:
- for loans where there has been a claim to the scheme this is very unlikely to happen before the claim has been decided;
- loans that are sold continue to be guarantor loans
- most debt collectors are a lot nicer to deal with than Amigo, so people shouldn’t worry about this.
If your loan has already been sold, then the announcement today makes no difference to you.
Ask for interest refunds on all sorts of debt
Sean Mcconkey says
hi sara
does this mean claims will take longer to sort out, been years trying to sort this just want it to end
Jo says
So what happens to the money in the pot that they had in a separate account from the scheme started that they said people would get back if their loans where up held
Sara (Debt Camel) says
The money in the trust account? That is still there and it won’t be affected by todays announcement
Anne-Marie Kennedy says
Thankfully I paid of my Guarantor loan with them Dec 21. I should have had some sort of redress but my claim got lost in between All the Schemes of Arrangement and rule changes that were made.
I didnt bother fighting it as I was just happy to be free of them and the debt. Vultures !!
NEVER AGAIN
David says
There is no great shock to any of this as it has been the most likely outcome since they started this charade. With Provident we were reduced from £8,500 to £425 and this at best I think instead of £19,500 will be £3,315 so a loss of around £24,000.
What makes it truly disgusting is that the FCA has allowed Amigo to do what they want as well as the other schemes that have been permitted to continue and been settled at ridiculously low percentages, there has been no support at all from the Financial Ombudsman and they really are not fit for purpose as they lack any real power or enough manpower to protect consumers.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
This is indeed the FCA’s fault. They allowed the unaffordable lending on a massive scale to continue. They failed to make Amigo hold enough capital to be able to make refunds in full. And they have failed to set up a back up compansation mechanism for consumers that have lost out.
Jane says
Well said. The problem is, the ombudsman and FCA are to friendly with large companies in the UK, and are hardly ever on the customers side, they are on the side of companies, who tell the ombudsman and FCA what to do.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Let’s have some realism here! If it wasn’t for the Ombudsman decisions against Amigo in the first half of 2019 they would still be in business and flourishing with no one getting refunds.
J says
Amigos loan has been removed as an unsecured loan from my credit report. When I asked them they said I have got it wrong. Does this removal of amigo loan from credit report mean that my claim is potentially being upheld?? The advisor was quite argumentative for an innocent question.
I hope so. I am going to pay the remainder of my loan back this month. This company targets vulnerable people. I was paying double payments thinking the loan would reduce quickly, but I started to notice interest being applied at the start and end of each month. When questioning them, they got very defensive and very rude. Mentally I was ill and I just didn’t have the knowledge or strength to fight.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
When I asked them they said I have got it wrong.
Do you mean they are saying it has NOT been removed?
Las says
Sara
I am on an equitable set off with them so will this debt be sold to a debt collection agency? 🫣
Sara (Debt Camel) says
My guess is that is very unlikely until your claim has been decided in the Scheme. If it’s upheld, that may well clear your debt. If it isn’t, then the debt is likely to be sold at some point.
Davey says
Hi Sara,
I’ve seen your reply about the trust account (thanks). But for clarity:
I can afford the repayments but paid off the value of my loan ages ago. Is every payment I make, and made since the scheme started, going into the trust accounts. So I will get full repayment of those monies?
Thanks again. I appreciate what you’re doing on here.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
The arrangements for the trust fund are set out in 6.33 of the Explanatory Statement, see https://www.amigoscheme.co.uk/documents/explanatory-statement
As you can see from that only a proportion of the payments is being paid into trust. And that only from the date you made a claim.
Davey says
Hmmmm I don’t understand what that means. If I’m only going to get a percentage back, why is the advice to keep paying?
Sara (Debt Camel) says
That proportion put aside should be enough to repay people with an upheld claim and a current loan the repayments that have been made since their claim in full – if Amigo has got their calculations right.
You can opt for Equitable Set Off if you don’t feel reassured, but that will harm your credit record. If you win your claim the negative marks will be removed. See https://debtcamel.co.uk/stop-paying-amigo-set-off/
Steve Ellis says
On hearing this unsurprising news, I decided as a guarantor to immediately stop my direct debit to these loan sharks. Agreement for the last 18 months or so was to pay £90.00 a month, most I could afford. Was this a wise move or not?
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Have you and/or the borrower made a claim to the Scheme?
Steve Ellis says
Yes, as soon as it became possible to make a claim.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Well this is your decision. You should check with your bank if Amigo also has a Continuous Payment Authority over your debit card (they normally do) and insist that that is also cancelled.
You may get some hassle from Amigo.
As a guarantor this loan does not show on your credit record so your credit score will not be harmed.
You were already “in arrears” so this means you will get into further arrears faster – if your claim is upheld that will make no difference as the arrears and the balance owed will be wiped.
Amigo has set up a trust fund to hold a proportion of payments made (see 6.33 in https://www.amigoscheme.co.uk/documents/explanatory-statement) so that would have provided some protection for your money.
Steve Ellis says
Can’t speak for the guy who took out the loan, had no contact with him since he bailed out on making his payments. He’s almost as much a crook as Amigo!
jessica says
hi i don’t understand should i
stop paying amigo as it’s really not affordable, also i can’t remember is i made a claim or not will this matter
Sara (Debt Camel) says
You need to find out if you have a claim into the Scheme as your position is very different if you don’t – phone 01202 629798
L says
Just want to say; you are such an amazing legend, Sara. You have helped so many people challenge this despicable company, and won against a giant. You’re such a hero. Thank you.
Michelle says
I first complained direct to amigo in 2019, had no success so took it straight to the ombudsman and am still waiting 😩…looks like a lot of people going to lose money over this
Sara (Debt Camel) says
so you have a claim in to the Scheme I assume. Do you still owe them any money?
Michelle says
No nothing as my guarantor paid it off in the end as I was getting in a mess, I had 2 loans in total with them,
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Ok if your claim is upheld, your guarantor will be repaid a percentage of the money they paid Amigo. At the moment iThe best estimate of this percentage is 17% but that may change.
You may get some refund if both of your loans are upheld. Remember you can Appeal if only the second one is upheld.
John says
What if your paying through a debt management company
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Have you made a claim to the Scheme?
Nick says
Hi Sara
What about the people that have paid off there loans? Will the money left just go towards clearing peoples loans that still currently have them with these criminals.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
It is estimated that people like you owed a cash refund (I am assuming your claim will be upheld) will be paid at 17p in the £.
Nick says
Hi thanks for your reply.
Hardly seems worth it but something better than nothing I guess. I was paying them for 10 years as Jeff offering me addons so guessing 10 years worth of interest at .17p will be a couple thousand I guess. Better then a kick in the teeth but the amount of money they made off us is stupid.
Dm says
So Basically, the board will continue to get paid during the wind Dow and because it is a court sanctioned scheme that creditors voted in favour of will have deductions for early settlement for intrest on previous loans. So having delayed for 2years plus in sorting themselves out the best option would probably have been Amigo’s non preferred option of going into administration at the start and would probably had a better outcome for claimants with existing loans in terms of uphold rate and timing as lots of people just want the issue resolved and off their credit files so they can move on , regardless of the pence in pound for redress as many people have paid thousands or had guarantors pay whilst Amigo have dragged on this process.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
I agree. See this article I wrote in January 2021.
https://debtcamel.co.uk/amigo-scheme-reject-claims/
Rob McMullen says
Unbelievable.
The founder of Amigo has clearly been known by the ‘authorities’ for ages to be a very dodgy character.
15 years ago, some time before Oct ’08, the “Office of Fair Trading said it was ‘minded to revoke’ Mr Benamor’s credit licence”..!!!
Why the hell haven’t they done so during all the time since then, to prevent more & more families being ruined?
Or did the founder donate enough to political parties to ‘earn’ immunity, by any chance?
23/10/08 – James Rachid BENAMOR
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/dorset/7685783.stm
“made a fortune by misleading people over loans”
https://www.bbc.co.uk/insideout/content/articles/2008/10/21/south_s14_w6_loan_feature.shtml
https://www.bbc.co.uk/insideout/content/articles/2008/11/25/south_s14_w11_joe_extra_feature.shtml
6/03/14
http://www.bournemouthecho.co.uk/news/11055846.Twitter_row_breaks_out_between_consumer_champion_Martin_Lewis_and_Amigo_Loans_boss_James_Benamor
“A 50 per cent APR on longer term loans is awful.
Comparing yourself with the market’s dirtiest
[short term loan sharks like Wonga] doesn’t make you clean.”
27/01/21
https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m000rlp4
“Last year Amigo Loans received over 25,000 complaints from customers who claim the company didn’t do proper affordability checks”
..etc..
L says
Just read this. It seems insane now to think they only expected 30,000 complaints. I have to think nothing is coming back, and move on like that. I included my FLM Quick loans in with it – which I ended up paying about 5k on an initial £200 loan – am I right in thinking that’s included too?
It’s better not think what I’ve lost.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Where did the 30,000 number come from? The latest Scheme report, linked to in the article above, says the 41p estimate was based on 125,000 claims.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Yes right to include the FLM loan, but I’m doubtful how many of these will be upheld as Amigo may have deleted most of the data.
L says
Oh, UPHOLD 30,000 complaints. Boy, does that seem low.
“The average Amigo refund was £5000, so 10% of that would be £500 which suggest they are expecting to uphold about 30,000 complaints. Not everyone will complain, but with about a million customers, that suggests to me that Amigo won’t uphold a large proportion of the claims they are sent.”
Sara (Debt Camel) says
that relates to the first Scheme that was rejected. Not the current one.
Jo says
Do u think people will now hear any quicker if loans r upheld ? I’ve paid amigo over 30k in interest went into a set off , still have 9k and they gave me multiple top ups even knowing I had major back surgery and had to leave work god know if il get anything back
Sara (Debt Camel) says
I don’t think this will speed up the Scheme processing, sorry.
David Smith says
I received £8000 in total from Amigo. I have paid just over £8000. I stopped paying them when all this started. I haven’t heard a peep from them.
I’ve also made a complaint. I was hoping they’d go into liquidation as they say I’m still due £9000.
My understanding is that my loan will be deemed as paid and my credit profile cleared? I haven’t done the equitable set off but I stopped hearing from them months ago!
Sara (Debt Camel) says
My understanding is that my loan will be deemed as paid and my credit profile cleared?
yes, if your claim is upheld.
David Smith says
Thank you Sara, your advice has been invaluable during this shenanigans!
Just need to wait for the outcome which hopefully won’t take too much longer
Lauren says
Hi David I had the same as u. An £8k loan. I paid £18,000 back and still to make 5 payments totalling £1.5k. If my claim is upheld then I would be granted £1700 back due to the 17p to the £1, however because I still owe £1500 they will take that from the £1700 so I’ll be lucky to get £200 plus my credit file fixed. If you still owe £9k I’d imagine they will sell the debt to a debt company.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Those numbers don’t look right.
Have you been making payments recently? if not, when did you stop?
And how long ago did you make the claim?
Was this your only loan?
Ronnie says
Hi Sara, have you had any news on people that have already received there claim outcomes and what the percentage of claims are being upheld or denied, I feel like theres gonna be more denied claims so they can keep more of the money?
Sara (Debt Camel) says
No. One person reported on an MSE forum that their claim was rejected. That is the only one anyone has heard about.
But all the money will be distributed. If a lot of claims are upheld, people will get less. If a lot are rejected, those that are upheld will get more. Amigo doesn’t get to keep any more of the money whatever happens.
Las says
I phoned them
A few weeks ago and they said that they were currently in the process of contacting the peoples whos claims that are denied 1st, they said if my claim is upheld it would be round about May time and I would be Sent a link to follow if to see if I wanted to accept or deny x
Maggie says
What happens to the payments that guarantors have made, that should never of been taken off them, do they see a full redress or will they see a reduction please?
It turned out the person I was guarantor for , had a big loan out from a bank before taking a reloan from Amigo. Then he went bankrupt and I was left paying it for over a year, when I made a claim, the stopped taking payments, knowing full well they were in the wrong. So need to know if I will get my money back?
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Your full refund should have been all the payments you made, not just the interest part. However you will only me paid the same percentage of that that everyone else gets, now expected to be about 17%
Helen says
Hi Sara. Thanks so much for all your tireless work. I was guarantor for my partner and we had a claim upheld a couple of years ago and I got a full refund. They wiped the loan and then some time later resurrected it and demanded large payments even though he couldn’t afford them. They took three payments in one go last month, wiping all our bills money out for the month. They haven’t refunded him yet. Does he still have to keep on paying them? It was wiped off his credit report when they paid out our claim years ago. They still threaten court action if he doesn’t manage to pay but can they do this? Thanks again.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
you said “we” had a claim – – who was making the affordability complaint, you? or him? or both?
And what was upheld? how long ago was this?
When did they start demanding payments?
Helen says
He made the affordability complaint in early 2020 but they also knew I didn’t find it affordable when I was on maternity leave before this and I had to enter into an arrangement with them. I was then released as guarantor when his claim was upheld and received the refund for the payments I had made on his behalf. They agreed it was unaffordable for him and he received notice from them by email that the loan had been wiped and that he didn’t have to pay anymore. This was in Summer 2020. It was around a year ago when they started to demand payments again. Thanks Sara.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Have they explained why they are asking after having said his loan was cleared? How much do they say the balance is?
Helen says
No real reason was given for the resurrection of asking for payments again and no apology was given for the taking of three payments in one go last month, with no authorisation from him. We’re wondering if they did this to anyone else lately. The balance is about £3k. Thanks.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
“No real reason was given”
well they must have said something?
How large was the original loan? how much did he , not you, pay to the loan before stopping?
Chris says
I made an affordability claim by the deadline. But have heard nothing at all yet. Is this normal? Struggled with the online form as it kept falling over so now worried that claim may not have gone through.
Don says
Hello Sara,
Thank you for this brilliant website. It has been invaluable to me.
I had An Amigo guarantor loan in 2015, the repayments were unaffordable from the start. A repayment has not been made since 2017, it’s been over 6 years since a payment was made to them. I have not made a claim nor sent them any correspondence in that time. Do you know if my loan would now be considered statute barred? Should I keep quiet?
Many thanks for your help.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
See https://debtcamel.co.uk/statute-barred-debt/ for more about statute barring. You can talk to National Debtline on 0808 808 4000 about this old loan.
You are now too late to make a claim to the Scheme. I am not sure you have any practical alternative to keeping quiet at the moment.
Gemma says
So exactly what does this mean for me a garuntour That’s been paying for almost 4 years now.
Made a complaint in 2019 and claim last year.
Am I right in thinking nothing has changed if my claim is upheld , il be released from this bell.
If not then what exactly???
Sara (Debt Camel) says
If your claim is upheld, yopu will be released as guarantor.
And you should have a refund of all the payments you made. However you will only be paid the same percentage of that that everyone else gets, now expected to be about 17%
Gemma says
A I’ve said before, I’m not interested in the pay out.
Thank you
Andy says
I am a guarantor on a loan. I couldn’t afford the repayments so requested to get them lowered that was 3 years ago, I made a clame back when I could, just waiting for the answer to the claim.. does this news mean I don’t have to keep paying my loan to amigo.? If I don’t will it affect My credit rating? Any news would be brilliant. Many thanks
Sara (Debt Camel) says
This news doesn’t affect the loan and your liability to pay it.
Your claim to the Scheme will be decided over the next few months.
Are the current payments you are making affordable?
Nothing can affect your credit record unless Amigo takes you to court for a CCJ. If you look on your credit record, this loan doesn’t even show there. Amigo can’t go for a CCJ until your claim has been decided – and remember you can appeal if it is rejected.
Andy says
Thanks for the reply Sara.
The amount I’m paying now is affordable. They won’t be able to take me to court if there going into liquidation right ?
Sara (Debt Camel) says
No – it is VERY likely that they will sell most of the loans to a debt collector. If your payments are affordable and you do not have the claim upheld that will probably include your loan.
Sean says
As per shareholder meeting yesterday and from comments on forums theyre saying its likely we will now get nothing after 12 months further business trading, redundancies and salaries for board. Sara you need to use your platform to make sure Amigo don’t drain the money and we get nothing after years!! Can you speak to Amigo
Sara (Debt Camel) says
theyre saying its likely we will now get nothing after 12 months further business trading, redundancies and salaries for board.
They being fed up shareholders? Because that was not what the board was saying.
They are not lending any more. They have to keep enough staff to deal with debt collections and the scheme.
I am sure the board salaries are very irritating to shareholders but the amounts make no practical difference to the refunds.
The 17p being talked about at the moment was the estimate from the last Scheme report of the return in the event of af Fallback which has happened. It may be more, it may be less, but the main factor is how many claims will be upheld.
Sophie says
Hi Sara
I have a chance to pay off my loan, could I offer them a reduced amount to settle it?. I have also got a claim in
Thanks
Sara (Debt Camel) says
I don’t think so. There are set procedures to go through in the Scheme. You will find out in the next few months if the claim has been upheld or not. If you are still left owing money, you can make an offer then
Jo says
What if everyone refuses to pay them
Sara (Debt Camel) says
You have a current loan?
Have you made a claim?
Are the payments affordable?
Michael says
With your website you have been a great help to very many people.
I have made a claim as a guarantor but Amigo broke their own rules when the loan was taken out due to the fact that I was over the age that they set for a guarantor (75 years).
Where do I stand with my claim?
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Amigo have never been clear how they will decide if claims are unaffordable in the Scheme.I don’t know if this is something they will take into account n
Rob McMullen says
Surely the sole reason Amigo pushed any ‘scheme’, whether the original one or the accepted-under-duress one or the inevitable ‘wind-down’ current one, was to allow them to regain control of the process and as sole arbiters of all claims, successfully excluding or sidelining any ombudsman – a scandal the courts just acceded to – with the recently proposed largish fine just cancelled on a whim, as icing on the Amigo management cake..?
Sara (Debt Camel) says
The FCA fine is irrelevant. The FCA knew that it would push Amigo immediately into the Fallback option. But the board and management gain nothing from the Fallback option.
And none of this speculation changes the fact that neither you nor I have any idea whether a guarantor being over the age of 75 will be a relevant factor in deciding a claim from a guarantor.
Stan Hope says
Peoples loans need writing off. Now. Enough is enough. Too much money getting wasted when people are struggling as it is. I don’t like seeing people lose their jobs, but Amigo deserve this.
Rob McMullen says
Agree.
Yes, it’s clearly been one gigantic scam for over 15 years that the FCA did absolutely nothing to monitor or fix to help vulnerable people.
(similarly for the ongoing Northern Rock ‘mortgage prisoners’)
How many people have to lose their homes before their representatives represent them..
Louise says
Months? How long this going to go on. 18 mths since my complaint redressed at £5250, now owe £6183, so what does that mean for me.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
18 mths since my complaint redressed at £5250
Do you mean that was the balance on your loan at that point?
Louise says
Yes. Paid what i borrowed of 6500 and paid about 850 interest on top. Total repayable around 15000. Balance owing at time of offset was 5250 if pay in full. My balance now is 6183 and has frozen at that amount.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
if the balance has frozen this is probably because it has hit the interest cap and no more will be charged.
Ewan says
Anyone else chancing their arm and seeing if Amigo will just close their account? Not as I’ve not paid enough – certainly paid the capital off at least.
They’re in enough trouble as it is, and I’m sure having one less customer to deal with would benefit them.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
It won’t benefit them at all. They are closing down.
Ewan says
Well even better then. If they’re shutting down anyway, then it stands to reason they’re not going to miss the money because where else is it going to go?
Also, if my claim was disputed and ends up being that my loan is sold to a debt collector, do you think the debt collector will take a lowball offer to clear the account, or would they maintain whatever the balance is that they buy is what needs to be paid?
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Amigo have a process underway to decide claims. There are 210,000 of them. My guess is they do not want to have to talk to people proposing any alternatives.
A debt collector will normally want to see an income & expenditure statement before accepting a settlement offer.
Chris Bone says
Sara from my days as an ex debt adviser, what about the poor souls, often pensioners, who acted as guarantors who then had CCJs invoked against them and then these were enforced by a charging order against their property??
From my experience debt purchasers don’t touch secured lending, who will sort out the mess when a property needs to be sold and the solicitors start asking about a secured charge in favour of Amigo??
Sara (Debt Camel) says
the only debt collector Amigo used to sell to was Intrum. I can’t remember if they used to buy loans with CCJs and charging orders.
Rob McMullen says
Yes, we’re pensioners and acted as an Amigo loan guarantor for a friend – as he had otherwise threatened suicide to my wife after struggling to keep his business afloat. He eventually became bankrupt (yet was luckily ok himself by then) so defaulted on the payments.
Amigo were unable to be repaid by the borrower, yet by then we struggled as guarantor to pay as well, so had to make a debt arrangement whereby Amigo (with other creditors) accepted a reduced monthly amount, after which Amigo used a CCJ through the courts to put a charge against our flat (actually two charges, we later found out).
(NB: We submitted a claim against Amigo, as we had acted as guarantor under duress)
The flat eventually had to be sold (not just due to the Amigo payments but increasing mortgage interest etc), yet our solicitor had trouble getting Amigo to remove their charges against the property in time for the agreed sale completion date of 11/01/23.
But incredibly, Amigo had posted their request letter to the land registry (ie: by ‘snail mail’ – probably 2nd class too), despite this being the Christmas period, instead of using the standard land registry ‘instant’ online facility which Amigo hadn’t (and very likely still haven’t) provided to their legal team (of only 4 in-house solicitors).
Moral: If you’re forced to sell and need Amigo to remove their secured charges, don’t trust them to do so in any efficient/timely manner.
Las says
HI Sara
Couple of questions, my claim was submitted before the scheme of arrangement does that make any difference? Also if the claim is rejected even with amigo no longer trading can you still send to ombudsman?
Sara (Debt Camel) says
When the claim was made is not relevant to what happens to it now.
Do you still owe Amigo a balance?
Las says
Yes I do, it says about 9000 although that’s the interest as they agreed to a set off so that means iv paid the amount I borrowed does it not? I struggle with how all it works I honestly have no interest in a pay out and just want my guarantor released and hopefully be fine with them
X
Sara (Debt Camel) says
as they agreed to a set off so that means iv paid the amount I borrowed does it not?
Amigo was never very clear who it would let have equitable set off and who it wouldn’t.
Were there other loans before this one?
How large was this last loan – the amount your borrowed – they may have been larger than the cash you received if there was aprevious laon to settle?
And how much have you paid to the last loan in total?
LAS says
Yes another loan but I paid that in full took a loan from my bank to pay that off in 2018, think the 1st amount on this loan was 5000 and then a couple of 1000 top ups, just over 7000 I think they said?
Sara (Debt Camel) says
ok with top ups I can’t guess what your likely result will be. It first depends on whick loans Amigo upholds, and then on whether they add in a charge for “unpaid interest” if they don’t uphold them all.
Las says
Is that a thing they could do, charge for u paid interest? And what about if I disagree can I still send to ombudsmen?
God i was thinking they would just close ur all down as I have won three cases so far with loans from
Uk credit and very all round about the same dates, this is so worrying
Sara (Debt Camel) says
this is a weird and unfair charge only Amigo adds. it only applies if you have topped up a loan and the top up is upheld but not the original one.
LAs says
Ok thanks Sara, hoping that’s not the case!! Absolute disgrace what they get away with, I remember taking out my loan they didn’t even ask to see a pay slip, I was in maternity leave ant the time and uk credit had just knocked me back for a top up, so I defo don’t think they done the proper check at all 🙏 did u say if u can send it to the obudaman or not?
Sara (Debt Camel) says
I don’t think there are any circumstances in which you could go to the Ombudsman.
Las says
Really, so they can just knock back who they want really then, no consequences so tragic and upsetting
Sara (Debt Camel) says
We don’t know what is going to happen until we star5 seeing decisions.
Sue says
Hi Sara, i have paid over the amount of the original loan. I have an agreement in place with Amigo to pay £54/month which I have been paying since 01 June 2021. Should I continue to pay this or ask for an offset equity?
Sara (Debt Camel) says
is the amount affordable? Do you have any priority debts or arrears on bills you need to clear?
Col says
Thanks for all your help and reporting on Amigo Sara. I’m not sure where we would have got any info otherwise, all the official channels have gone dark or been intentionally confusing.
Lola Lawson says
Hi Sara,
I received a CCJ from Amigo loans (2018) for being a guarantor and missing one payment ( This was after I informed them that I couldn’t make the payment at the time), not only did they send it to my old address, will I be able to get this removed from my credit file? I also raised a complaint to Bosman as well.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
if you have made a claim and it is upheld, Amigo should apply to the court to set aside the CCJ which will remove it from your credit record.
What is Bosman?
Jamie says
Hi Sara, just been looking through the details on the Amigo website now they have updated it surrounding the fallback option. Wording is vague enough to suggest any upheld claims will not receive a large payment this year. They will receive an ‘interim payment’ and a final payment made in May 2024, not by the end of this year. They are dragging this out as long as they can post liquidation at the expense of the customers who have indeed been mis-sold loans. I just wanted to let you know as it may be worthwhile updating this topic just so anyone expecting the redress fully issued this year is aware that in Amigos own words, it won’t be.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Thank you.
This (https://www.amigoscheme.co.uk/faqs) says “The initial payment will be unaffected but (under the fallback solution) the final payment will be delayed until approximately May 2024 as opposed to November 2023 (after the business has been liquidated).”
The initial payment was originally expected to be the larger one. It doesn’t say that has changed.
Lorna says
Hi
Is there anything that I can do about my credit file? This is impacting my life significantly, buying a house and obtaining credit.
I’m in the equitable set off, I didn’t opt in I think they have done it automatically as I haven’t paid in over 2 years and they never contacted me.
I have a claim in! I have a 4k outstanding balance, this is my 3rd loan.
Any suggestions about the credit file?
Sara (Debt Camel) says
I am sorry but if you haven’t paid anything for 2 years there is nothing you can do about this being recorded on your credit record
Isobel says
I have used Equitable Set Off for a while now. I’ve just seen about these updates.
I no longer care about the redress payment. I really don’t, I just want my loan gone and all the negative info on my credit file gone. I am barely 25 years old and finally in a position to be wanting to move, to save to buy a house… this means I can’t. Is there anything I can do to get this moving faster? All I want is the negative credit info gone. If I told them that, would they listen/move faster?
Sara (Debt Camel) says
no that is very unlikely. There are probably yens of thousands of thousands of people in your situation and over 200,000 claims to be assessed.
Richard says
Hi Sara, I borrowed £5000 in 2019 and have so far paid back £8500 with £3035 left to pay. I have been offered equitable set off but am worried if I do they will add a lot of interest to the outstanding balance. I’m currently paying £197 a month but in today’s current climate I’m struggling.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
The interest they can add is capped at the interest that was quoted on the original loan.
If you win your claim it won’t make any difference what they have added as all the interest will be removed.
If you lose your claim, the fact they have added some interest during this period just means you will hit the interest cap sooner.
If you are struggling to pay this debt, then equitable set off is usually the sensible option for you.
Georgi says
Hi Sara,
I have similar case as Richard has. I borrowed £5000 in 2019 and have paid back exactly £5000, then I’ve applied for equitable set off last year and now I am waiting for Amigo to decide my complaint. If I lose my claim am I still be able to complaint to FOS?
Sara (Debt Camel) says
No. This was the main aim of the scheme for Amigo, to stop complaints going to the Ombudsman.
There is an appeal process within the scheme so use that. In other schemes some people have had success that way.
Lee says
How can Amigo loans fail to pay what they owe but open a new company called rewardrate. Surely they do in fact have the money to pay redress.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Rewardrate wasn’t a new company, it was a new brand name. I am afraid in the terms of the Scheme that was approved, they are allowed to carry on in business and start lending again.
But now they have stopped that new lending and will be closing.
Jo says
I was told yesterday that it would be June before receiving outcome letters would be sent but pay out time frames would remain if ya can believe them . Don’t honestly believe they even know what they r doing ha ha ha I’m stressing no more , way I look at it if I’m turned down with my claim is it was unaffordable then and it is now and il pay a reduced rate
Stan says
If I opted to activate ESO, how bad is my credit score going to be hammered? Will I lose some or all points for every payment not made / collected?
It’s bad enough as it is, but currently I’m unsure what I’d rather. No money and a good score, or a bad score but more money.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
How bad is your credit score? if you already have defaults and missed payments, a few more missed payments may not make much difference!
The answer probably depends on how good you think the Amigo claim is? And whether the payments are affordable, or paying Amigo leaves you so short you get behind on other bills and debts… if you win the Amigo claim they will remove negative marks on your credit score, but that won’t help if paying Amigo has resulted in higher credit cards bills, overdraft, or you have missed payments elsewhere.
Stan says
My scores across the 3 agencies are 418, 507 and 573
Not great, some were getting better.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Well you obviously don’t have a good credit score to protect.
Was this the first Amigo loan you had? Are the payments affordable at the moment?
Loopy loo says
I have a complaint in and I’m seriously considering contacting Amigo and asking them to remove these negative marks on my file due to equitable set off. I’ve contacted the credit reference agency’s and they said it’s at the lenders discretion… Surely there is an argument here and a movement to be had given that it’s impacting on people’s lives the longer this goes on!!!
Sara (Debt Camel) says
It’s annoying but it’s very unlikely that Amigo will agree to do this. They have a set procedure and they are following it. There are probably more than 10,000 people in your situation.
David says
My amigo loan is still showing on credit report even though no payments have been made for 7 years –
They update it as a missed payment every month and haven’t defaulted it or taken me to court for CCJ –
Can I get it removed from credit reports
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Have you made a claim to the Scheme?
Tom says
I have had equitable set off since Oct 2020 which has left me almost £7000 in arrears, with a total balance of £8900. The longer this all drags out without any decision, the more anxious I am getting at seeing the balance increase. I have a claim in to the scheme and think it’s a very strong case as I haven’t been without an Amigo Loan for many years (including when it used to be FLM Loans) but am concerned that the claim settlement, should it be successful, will be really small and hardly make a dent in the amount owed.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
if the last loan is upheld in the Scheme then all the interest currently accruing will be removed.
Danielle says
I don’t fully understand hardly any of this it’s all confusing me a lot….
So I held multiple loans with amigo dating back to 2008
All of which have now been repaid finally after dreading each monthly debit
I do remember them all amounting to more than double the amounts originally borrowed
Over a repayment periods from 24 months duration on the smallest loan (1st loan I received in 2008)
So my loans was …..
38596891 – created 26/10/2017 / £4,500 (last)
28390717 – created 05/04/2016 / £5,000
16529131 – created 09/06/2014 / £5,000
10206861 – created 06/12/2012 / £5,000
WST5761104 – created 25/03/2011 / £5,000
EXS414408 – created 03/01/2008 / £3,300 (1st)
WST1788198 – created 09/04/2009 / £5,000
With each of these loan amounts i would of paid more than double 1000% on each one
which would amount to £33.300 on top of the amounts above in total
So if my claim was to be upheld on let’s say al of them
For example if I’ve paid £33.300 in interest alone on top
Do it mean I would be owed £33.300? (definitely unlikely I know) OR
Would It be 17p in each £1 of that refund amount equalling £1700 in each £10.000 ? Basically ?
And also what does the 8% interest per year mean ?
Is this an additional amount on top of any given refund or
Sorry in advance for the hugeeee paragraph
I appreciate anyone reading & any understanding please
***All loans was finally repaid in November 2019***
I made my claim in April 2021 and still awaiting
Sara (Debt Camel) says
which would amount to £33.300 on top of the amounts above in total
That is unlikely. A lot of those loans were top ups, where the new loan settles the old loan early, so there would be less interest charged at that point.
Unless you know exactly what you have paid to each loan, then you won’t easily be able to work out how much interest you have paid.
Also if Amigo doesn’t accept all the loans were unaffordable, it may add on a charge which it calls “an unpaid interest deduction” – so you refund may be less than you hope for.
And also what does the 8% interest per year mean ?
Once the refund is calculated , 8% simple interest is added each year from that point. You can’t try to guess at that until you know whch loans are upheld.
Richard says
Hi Sara, when I first took out my amigo loan I set up a direct debit and paid them that way. When the pandemic began I took a payment holiday for two months and thought the next payment would come out as normal. I received an email saying the payment had failed so I began to pay every month by card payment. This went on for nearly two years until last month I noticed a direct debit had been taken out without me being informed by amigo, are they allowed to just start taking the money by direct debit without informing me even though I have never missed a payment whilst paying by card, I’m a bit concerned now as I know the situation they are in and was thinking of taking an equitable set off.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
No they should not have done this. You can ask for this payment to be refunded by the direct debit scheme – tell your bank. And cancel that direct debit if you want payments to be under your control!
Richard says
Hi Sara, in my previous post to you I said that amigo had started taking money by direct debit again but after looking at my account it seems to be a continuous debit card payment which again I did not authorise, I will contact my bank but are amigo allowed to do this also?
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Well they shouldn’t have, as you were paying by card. But you cant claim it back from your bank like a DD.
I suggest you phone the bank to cancel the Continuous Payment Authority in future.
if you have paid twice this month, don’t pay them next month – and tell them what is happening.
Sara says
I received a letter yesterday asking for me to pay my outstanding balance even though its been cleared with DRO which ended 31st March 2023 lol
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Then reply to Amigo by saying this! And make sure they mark your credit record correctly.
Jackie Vernon says
Hello Sara I am not sure if I have reason to be hopeful but Amigo has been removed from my son’s credit file. I made a claim in respect of my role as his guarantor as did he as borrower. I have now got my fingers tightly crossed that the complaint has been upheld and we will be able to move on. Any compensation will be great but the relief of knowing I would not be chased for further payments would be even better. The last notification I received was earlier this year stating that there is just over £3000 still owing but that would be the interest that had been added as the actual payments made far exceeded the amount of the loan.
A says
Hi I had a first loan of 5k then topped up to 10k – I stopped paying in 2019 and complained about being unaffordable and not enough checks to see if I could even afford it as I was gambling obsense amounts. My claim was rejected in January 2020, haven’t heard from them since other than a yearly statement. Literally not a single peep since January 2020, any advice ? Thanks
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Did you send your complaint to the Ombudsman? Or make a claim to the Scheme?
Tom says
Hi Sara. I’ve regrettably been guarantor for my ex partner for the last 4 and a half years. As it stands, she has paid off what she initially borrowed from Amigo Loans, but she still owes £6’300 in interest. She’s been granted equity set off while her claim is being considered. Am I right in thinking that if her claim is upheld, the interest will be wiped in its entirety?
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Did she only have one loan from them? It was never topped up?
Tom says
She had one top up. She’s paid back the initial amount she borrowed as well as as the top up. The remaining amount is all interest.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
If she has the last loan upheld then you will be released as guarantor. So you don’t need to worry about my ext point, but she does.
She would also have interest removed from the current loan. Which you would think would mean it’s repaid. Unfortunately if Amigo do not uphold her first loan as being “unaffordable” then in this situation they will add on to her balance a “deduction for unpaid interest” on the first loan. Which may be over £1000.
This addition is entirely unreasonable. But there is nothing that can be done about it – except go through the Scheme appeal process to argue the first loan was also unaffordable.
We won’t know until the claims decisions start coming through how often this will occur or how large these penalties will be.
Tom says
I understand. Thank you for getting back to me so quickly and thanks for explaining everything. This forum has been a godsend.
Thomas James says
Has anyone received any correspondence from Amigo yet?
J Brownell says
I haven’t. Been 19 months since I offset.
Rachel says
Has anybody heard anything yet? Getting ridiculous now this waiting and waiting
Kelly R says
I did and mine has been rejected. I was declared bankrupt in 2020 and the debt was included so I guess they will Pursue my guarantor who also made an affordability claim.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
did you look at making an appeal? This won’t help you but winning it will get your guarantor released
Kelly.R says
There is a section on their portal which asks if you agree with the decision or disagree.
When I select disagree it then asks the reason why I don’t accept the claim outcome.
Reasons can be – 1. Unhappy about your affordability claim.
2. Unhappy about your non-affordability claim.
3. Unhappy with outcome of both your claims.
4. Unhappy with the value of your claims.
5. Unhappy with the review of documents.
Once one of these are selected there is a box to add further information.
Your Claim
Please provide below the reasons why vou do not accept your Claim outcome and wish for it to be re-reviewed. It is important that you include any relevant information or details that you believe have not been considered in full and could change the Claim outcome. Please provide as much information as you can to help support your Claim, and to aid the further investigation.
Kellyr says
I’m yet to submit my response, After my loan I had to declare myself bankrupt due to other debt too.
Claim rejected as it was affordable and I said I could afford it.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
well it’s up to you. You will not get paid any compensation, but the reason to appeal is the chance of getting your guarantor released.
there will be a time limit you have to appeal in.
Lsa says
Hi Kelly
Sorry to hear your claim was rejected iits the news we are all dreading to hear and
Sorry to but in just wandering when you heard from them was it within the last week and wondering what email address it came from just so we know what to look out for?
Kelly r says
Hi. My complaint was originally through the ombudsman then passed back to amigo.
My decision was via email on Friday.
Kelly r says
Yes of course this is my intention as he also has an affordability complaint with them and is waiting his decision .
Sara (Debt Camel) says
to be clear, you may need to appeal before he gets a decision on his complaint. Don’t run out of time.
diane says
Hey sara
I had my claim sent to the ombudsman before
The bloody scheme came about, will my claim still be valid?
Sara (Debt Camel) says
do you know if a claim was submitted to the Scheme?